Manual transmission shifting questions

Reverse powerflow .
When you are in 2nd gear coasting to a stop and try to select first gear by pushing the clutch in and it wont go into first gear no matter how hard you pry at the shifter .

By pushing the clutch down to the floor you are removing the powerflow from the engine , however , because your truck is still moving , your rear differential drives your driveshaft . The driveshaft drives the transmission output shaft which in turn drives your transmission main shaft .
There is no way to remove the reverse powerflow when coasting to a stop .

If manufacturers installed a clutch on the rear of the transmission output shaft , you could grab first gear at essentially any speed

 

I find for me smooth shifting occurs right around 2500-3000 rpms, I think I'm getting the best mpgs between there also. But it seems the power kicks in at 4000.

 

Thanks for all the info, as the days go on and the more I drive the better the shifting gets. No time to practice rev matching for the downshif.