my dad's looking to buy a 97 stick and when shifting from 1st to 2nd, if you really get on it, and try to shift fast, it grinds and blocks out the shift. however, if you slide it into 2nd, it goes fine. does this sound like the sincros? also, does the trans have to be pulled inorder to change them? is it a pretty easy job?

yes, yes, not bad job if you've been inside gear boxes and have the tools

Yea, its synchros... my car with the T5 does the same going into 2nd.

95% of all "synchro" problems are either the clutch not fully disengaging (often a symptom of a bad pilto bearing), or the driver jamming it into gear while the pedal is not fully depressed. A car that new should not have that type of geriatric transmission wear unless it has hundreds of thousands (plural) on it, or has been run dry; in which case the synchro rings are the least of its problems.