hydraulic clutch linkage vs. mechanical....

clutch linkage - pro's / con's?

I have a Richmond 5 speed and a supercharged big block chevy going into (someday) a 1929 Dodge bros Coupe.

suggestions, comments, advice for or against hydraulic

Thanks.

 

For me it was a big block set back in my 57 Chevy with headers in the way of trying to install a z bar.My buddy tossed me a dump truck bellhousing along with the hydraulics to give it a try. Worked out good so I replaced the master,slave and lines with new stuff. So far so good....I,m just concerned with the hole size where the trans fits in, a lack of bearing retainer support.

 

I adapted a 2000 GM truck hydraulic unit complete to my T-5 trans. works great. Second choice would be cable clutch.

 

I'd try REAL hard to use linkage first - it would **** to be in BFE and have the slave **** out.

If I REALLY couldn't fit it - then so be it - hydraulic it'd be.

 

Since nobody else answered I'll give you my thoughts to maybe get it started.
I just like the mechanical feel of a clutch linkage. So I'm goin' mechanical in the coupe with a Richmond 5 speed Lakewood Chevy II (the cluch fork is lower) blowproof and McCleod clutch parts.
Wilwood, Neal, CNC make hydraulic slave cylinder (push or pull)setups for clutch forks. All are good companies and good products.
I would not use the hydraulic throwout bearing deal on a street car. Just because if it fails it's inside and everything has to come apart for repairs.
With all of the quailty parts available I think that it's just your preference.
Have fun,Smokey

 

Damn I type slow....

 

If you'll use swinging pedals mounted to the body(and not the frame) use a hydraulic set-up. If the body or frame flex at all, linkage will move, giving eratic clutch engagement. With the hydraulic set-up, just the flexable part of the hydraulic lines will move. 54chop

 

Use linkage if you can over the slave cylinder deal.I to prefer the mechanical feel and when its all lined up properly its usually trouble free other than binding up the bell crank under hard acceleration .I remidy this problem with a chain on the driver side head or block to the frame .As was mentioned already slave cylinders go bad at a bad time and you gotta pull everything apart to change it...

 

When a regular throwout bearing goes bad, you have to pull it all apart to change it also.

 

My slave is on the outside of the housing. Easily changable in the event of a failure.The throwout bearing is the one that came with the 11 inch clutch pressure plate and disc.

 

True , but normally regular throw out bearings will start chirping to you on cold mornings long before they lock up.A hydraulic deal can fail without notice...

 

I run a Mcleod hyd. release bearing w/ my Richmond & it has not given me any grief & I beat the **** out of it.
The only chance of failure is if an o'ring ****s out. Don't use the wrong fluid & it should not be an issue.
It is tidy, saves space, & performs flawlessly.

 

DW-

Is your McLeod hyd. bearing the slide on type or the style where it is part of the front trany retainer plate??

 

It is a bolt on as opposed to a slip on. You remove the stock snout on the Richmond, & bolt the hyd. ***embly on in it's place. I believe this is the only style Mcleod makes for a Richmond.

 

Yeah, but mine has yet to bestow great artistic talents upon me.
Clutch in & out yes. I still can't draw a ****ing stick figure.

 

Im a fan of the hydraulics. Pedal pressure is light and mine uses all factory LT1 stuff, so its as reliable as stock stuff can be. I like it better than any clutch linkage I've ever had.

~Scotch~

 

Yeah, pedal feel is another thing to consider. A blown big block needs lots-o-clutch. Mech. linkage can wear you out. I'm able to run a multi disc clutch in a street car & still retain a light pedal feel.

 

I used a hydraulic release on my track roadster, but moved the fork to the p***enger side to get foot clearance for me. Worked out well/

Charlie

 

wow, a lot of great advice, thank you all.


keep em coming, so far I am leaning towards the hydraulic set up.

 

I think some folks may be confusing the question you asked. You've got some responses about a hydraulic throw-out bearing and some responses about a hydraulic slave cylinder that mounts on the outside of the transmission and moves the clutch fork the same as mechanical linkage would. I think your question is asking about the latter (correct me if I'm wrong, trust me, I've been known to be).

The hydraulic slave cylinders work great. Easy to install and require less leg muscle to operate. I think this is one of those "personal preference" situations... I've never had a problem with either mechanical or hydraulics.

 

and you can put a line-loc in 'em

the rambler i'm building has to run an internal hyd bearing cuz there's no room for a fork sticking out the side although a early nova housing MIGHT be usable....
but then i'd have to buy another bellhousing.



as far as a hydraulic t.o. bearing on a street car, there's millions of 'em out there (oem)

 

another option is "metric" ch***is stuff- the forks on those are Funky like James brown. they drop down instead of straight out.

they do a good job of clearing exhaust/headers....neither of which should be a concern.

I think the "big secret" to one of these set ups is choice of throwout bearing in itself. the 'Vette styles are prone to failure- The McLeod is a quality peice. personally, if I could swing it, I would use an external hydraulic ***y simply for ease of installation and r&r in the event of failure...plus, they are (typically) easily rebuilt-versus the internal peices, which I wouldn't attempt (imagine this fun scenario- remove trans, rebuild cylinder, re-install...still don't work. sounds like a 6 pack worth of P.I.T.A. to me)

Mechanical is fer sure the "big winner" in every department except pedal feel. which, if you're gonna drive it alot (which I suspect you will be) can wear you out. the Centerforce in my wagon would have your leg shakin like a puppy with it's ribs getting scratched inside of about 200 miles. Less if you got laid that morning.

another cool factor in the Hydraulic department...no adjustment neccecary. Ever. if you set them up right the first time, the slave will adjust itself as the clutch goes away.

just be sure to get a good master cyl.

 

Done correctly ...it's a coin flip. IMHO. 45 years ago in my circles the hydraulic clutch was seen as a "quick and dirty" cop out easy way of doing it. Engineering mechanical linkage can be a challenge. Especially when clearance is an issue. Hydraulic clutches were looked down on and there were all kinds of wives tails about burning up clutches and such.

Opinions have changed and the Chevy truck combination M/Cyl has become a cl***ic hot rod icon on the firewall. It became an icon because it worked and was repeated often. If it didn't work it would have died a quick death...like the Corvair front suspension.

 

Ratmotor, I'd have a spacer ring made up for that bellhousing, if not you are setting yourself up for some serious greif.

 

I am running a hydrolic slave with a willwood master and i like it but there is something to be said about the "positive" feel of mechanical linkage.I have a 10" clutch in a flathead and it felt a little mushy on a fast release.So i drilled the ports at the slave and master a little and installed a larger line to get a more positive feel at the pedal.My friend use to race b/g in the 60s and told me of the trick they used in there willys.Worked well. Good luck.

 

you are right, i may have confused some with my question, because for me, this is my first manual ******/big motor build, and I probably could have asked my question differently. (mostly been a sbc/auto ****** guy)
My question was in regards to linkage, and not throw out bearings, however, everyone's opinion and advice is appreciated.

lots of good stuff, again, thanks all.

 

My '57 truck uses a heavily modified '65 pickup swinging pedal ***embly with a hydraulic master out of an isuzu truck and 1962 chevy pickup bell housing and corresponding slave and linkage. All parts are easily attainable at your local NAPA.

 

I've used hydraulic master/slave systems quite a bit with my race cars. They are pretty good. Currently I use a pull slave from Winters Performance products. It has a little more stroke than the Wilwood unit.

Be aware that bleeding can be a bit difficult. I've found that the slave cylinders need to be "stroked" while bleeding in order to get the maximum clutch fork travel. Seems like the system needs to be bled out about once a year...especially if the car sits for the winter.

 

How about a cable? I'm planning on useing one in my T coupe. My donor car, a '80 Monza used a cable and it seems that it might be better than the other two ways. Anyone have problems with the cable setup?