Clutch Fork Adjustment Questions

[AndrewIdaho]

I have a few more newbie questions. I recently received my engine from Forte and I am preparing it for install. In the process of reviewing the hydraulic clutch that his team installed and I want to make sure it is correctly adjusted (easier to do now than once installed) and this is where my questions are focused. For reference, the following are two pictures I have taken:

Slave Cylinder (fully pushed in):
217715

Throw-out Bearing and Clutch Finger Interface:
217716

Q1: Any concerns with Clutch Fork Arm placement relative to the bell housing gap? Will the slave cylinder push it too close to the front of the bell housing when actuated?

Q2: I read that I should have 1/8" to 3/16" gap between clutch fingers and throw-out bearing when slave cylinder is fully pushed in. My sense from the picture is that I have some gap but it is less than 1/8". Is what I have OK or do I need to adjust the slave cylinder screw a turn or two to increase the gap?

Q3: Anything else I need to be aware of?

My thanks in advance.

Andrew

[cv2065]

I think you'll get different answers to your question. For example, Forte recommends 3/16" play in the fork, I go for 1/8"-3/16", others say you don't need any.

[JMD]

Take your best guess and run it. If it behaves strangely make adjustments.

[Blitzboy54]

What I do for a starting point is adjust it until the wheel has free play with the clutch halfway through the throw. IF you don't have your driveshaft on yet you can slide it into the transmission and get it to where it spins in your hand. After you drive it you will likely want it a little tighter or looser. The nice thing about a hydraulic setup is once the adjustment has been made its done. No cable stretch, it should be good for a while.

[JMD]

And in future use the General roadster forum for questions, let's keep the build thread for, well, build threads... :)

[Wizbangdoodle]

Get it all together and adjust from there. I had cut the rod on my slave cylinder early and once everything was together, I found I couldn't get my clutch adjusted. Ended up making a new rod (just cut the head off a long bolt of the correct thread) and started over. And if that's fully pushed in, I'd say you have more to go.

[AndrewIdaho]

My thanks to everyone who responded.

Wizbangdoodle: Can you clarify your comment "And if that's fully pushed in, I'd say you have more to go." I am not sure what you meant by "I have more to go".

JMD: Sorry for not posting to the correct forum. I thought I had so I am not sure what I did wrong..... :p

Not knowing what Forte's team did with respect to the threaded rod length, my inclination is to see how much adjustment range I have and, assuming I have sufficient range, then adjust to get the 1/8" spacing as I know I can adjust it back to where it is currently set If I need to. I will plan to check the operation as suggested once I get the engine installed and hydraulics connected and bled. That should be a week or two from now as I am still waiting on header studs.

Thanks, Andrew

[AndrewIdaho]

As a follow up to close my question. I checked the adjustment range yesterday and discovered that the Heim joint was bottoming out on the threaded rod and could not be adjusted further in and thus preventing me from increasing the gap. I disassembled the rod from the joint and discovered that the rod had not been cut/shortened. I removed 1/4" from the rod, reassembled the system and adjusted the joint further in. I now have an increased gap that I believe is closer to the recommended 1/8" - 3/16" gap.

217806

217807

I think I am good enough until I can get the engine/transmission installed, hydraulics working and do the final adjustments using the clutch pedal and checking that shaft will rotate smoothly when pressed.

Thanks for all the help.

Best Regards, Andrew

[Wizbangdoodle]

My thanks to everyone who responded.

Wizbangdoodle: Can you clarify your comment "And if that's fully pushed in, I'd say you have more to go." I am not sure what you meant by "I have more to go".

I was going by memory on how much travel mine has. We basically have the same setup, using a Forte external clutch slave, so I remembered the clutch fork having to travel a bit further, I could be wrong.

[AndrewIdaho]

I was going by memory on how much travel mine has. We basically have the same setup, using a Forte external clutch slave, so I remembered the clutch fork having to travel a bit further, I could be wrong.

Thanks for the clarification. I did shorten the rod a little and now have some more separation. If it is too far, I know I can adjust it to get it closer.

Best Regards, Andrew