Am i the first EVER to be unimpressed with a gear swap??!!!

I am sure everything requires a break in, and if you have doubts call the manufacturer and see what they say.

We just put a rebuilt T5 (3rd and 4th and some new synchroes) in our 86, and the tranny guy suggested 30 miles on it to make sure everything meshes and gets heat into it before racing it. Dad took it out put about 40-45 miles on, ran it through the gear once after that, and yesterday I took it to the track and powershifted every gear with no issues (other than one missed 4th, still got it in fast enough to go 12.55 :D). Every mechanical piece in the car will need a little time to go through some heat cycles and if it comes in contact with other parts (as most do) need time to mesh with them perfectly. Some times we can't do a proper break in, so we don't, but we can also fix, replace, or change anything ourselves, and usually have the spare stuff lying around.

For the average guy who can't do gear swaps, or has no room to perform a tranny swap, CALL the person who made the parts and ASK about a break in. If they say it is not needed, get that in writing, just in case. If they say it is, break it in how they say.
 
when the shop did my rear end they had me take it easy, meaning don't beat the hell out of it for a couple hundred miles. I took this has no burn outs, hard shifting etc. I'm guessing that was their break in period. I have over 1,200 miles now w/o issues. when my T5 got rebuilt and new clutch done same deal needed to break both in. The same deal goes for new motors too.

It isn't law, just good practice if you care about your investment. I don't now if what they said really was going to make a differance in the life of my rearend or tranny but after spending the dough...I listened :D .