4 speed clutch and trans linkage questions

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68383

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I'm looking for some help from people familiar with 4 speeds.

I bought parts from Brewer's, Mancini and Year One. I spent about 10 hours on my tranny last weekend and don't feel like I got too far. The clutch fork I bought is a Mopar part and it's a shoddy piece of work. When I asked Brewers, they told me, "I am aware that the quality of those new forks is a bit off, they come from Mopar and the tooling is getting worse all the time."

I also spend too long installing new clips on the throwout bearing because the old clutch fork seemed sloppy. This was tough with the transmission in the car, but the new clips make my old clutch fork fit a lot better. I also bought the wrong clutch fork adjusting rod kit. My bad.

Can anyone help with the following questions I e-mailed to Brewer's? I'm looking to get as much insight on this as possible so I can get the car up and running properly.

Question 1- I bought item # LRS-B, Linkage rod set 64-9 with swivels, clip/washer package from you too and have some questions that relate to the rods.

My shifter was sloppy with the old control rods that were in the car. When I put the new control rods in, it's difficult to shift gears. Things seem very tight, almost like something is binding. However, I was under the car while someone else shifted but I didn't see rods binding. And it shifts smoothly when the control rods are disconnected. So I'm thinking it relates to the installation of my new rods, not something internal to the transmission.

Question 2- The geometry for the rod for 1st and 2nd doesn't seem right. I attached the rod to the lever on the transmission. Then I adjusted the swivel to attach the rod to the lever on the bottom of the shifter control mechanism. Unfortunately, the rod fits in slightly ****-eyed on the shifter side. Do you think this could be related to my question on the washers, the lever on the transmission, or the lever on my shifter control mechanism?

With all the problems I'm encountering, I'm wondering if the shifter control mechanism is the right one for my car.
 
Update- I tore into the clutch and tranny linkages today. I think I have some parts in the car that aren't correct.

I want to have all the factory correct equipment in the car and am encountering some problems. I'd be interested in your opinions. Here’s a summary of what I’ve found:

Clutch Issues

I inspected a lot of the parts- from the clutch pedal, rod through the firewall, clutch adjusting rod, clutch fork, shift levers on the transmission, transmission linkages, shifter mechanism to the shifter handle. I replaced the rod through the firewall, clutch adjusting rod and hardware, and transmission linkages with
parts I had already ordered from Brewers. I reviewed the order carefully with them and they said the parts I ordered are correct for my 69 Super Bee.

The hole in the firewall that the rod to the clutch pedal passed through is oval, but looks slightly “hogged out” on the left hand side. The old and new rods don’t pass through the center of the hole. When either is installed, they are very close to the left side that’s hogged out. Also, the old boot that was in the hole was worn on the left-hand side.

I'm also having trouble with the clutch adjuster rod that attaches to the other end of the Z bar. The one that was in the car is approx. 6 1/4" long and has a slight bend in before the hole the knob on the Z bar goes through. The replacement part I bought is about 4 7/8" long and has the same bend. The end with the bend and the hole doesn’t seem to mount properly to the Z bar. The angle doesn’t look right and it’s very difficult to attach the spring clip. Once the clip is on, the odd angle wants to pop the clip off.

I paid specific attention to the old rod, and the distance of the adjuster nut to the end of rod with the hole. I marked the new rod so I could put the new nut in the same place as the old one. Unfortunately, the rod seems to be too short when I adjust the nut. The tip of the rod is inside the rubber bushing that's in the hole, in the clutch fork.

I pushed on the Z bar and made it go slightly to the left (away from the engine). When I pushed with my hands, it would move approx. 1/16”. It didn’t seem sloppy, but the rod through the fire wall and the adjuster rod were both connected.

My observations make me wonder if the Z bar is either incorrect or there is some wear. What do you think?

Transmission Issues

I had installed new linkages that were identical to my old linkages. The only difference is the threads on the old rods were chewed up and the swivels were loose and sloppy. I removed the old rods, put the new ones in, and lined up all the levers with a tool, per the service manual. Unfortunately, I could hardly shift with the new rods installed. The shifter mechanism also didn’t move freely in neutral. It seemed like things were binding when I shifted, so I had someone shift while the car was jacked up and I was underneath. I didn’t see any of the rods binding, but there wasn’t a lot of clearance between rods and some of the levers on the bottom of the shifter mechanism. When I drove the car briefly on the road, I had a lot of trouble finding gears.

I was concerned about alignment and inspected the shift levers on the transmission. They seem to be in good shape and the part numbers are 890, 891 and 967. I was told they are correct for my car, and I confirmed the info. in a Year One catalogue. Since they should correct for the vehicle, I’m thinking the shifter mechanism is not correct. The number on the reverse linkage is 7180.

I also noticed there were two holes in the top of portion of the shifter mechanism, where the shifter handle mounts. There is only one hole in the shifter handle. Consequently, the handle seems to have a little play that shouldn’t be there. The number on the Hurst shifter handle is 5974. I don’t think it goes with the shifter mechanism or that it came with the car back in 69.

Thanks in advance for any help or insight you have. I’d appreciate it if you could recommend any parts you think I need to return things to the way the car left the factory.

I’ve posted some pictures on the web so you’ll have a better idea what I’m talking about at: http://public.fotki.com/69440/super-bee-clutch-an/
 
Thanks for the info. Much appreciated.

Interesting on the shifter mounting plate. That's noteworthy.

I'm at the point where part numbers are important. I know I need to buy parts and want to get the right stuff.

Thanks again.
 
Everything's in, adjusted and is working great!

Lots of worn parts (ball stud bushings, worn Z bar) and the clutch adjuster rod and pivot bracket (inside bellhousing) contributed to my clutch problem.

And the car shifts awesome with the new shift mechanism, rods and shifter handle.

Having all the right parts, in good condition, makes all the difference!
 
I feel your pain. I had alot of the same issues, particularly with the shifter/rods. But my car is a clone 4sp conversion, so any stock or factory issues were out the window before I got it. I ended up basically refabricating the z-bar, making some slight bends in the rods along with many hours underneath tweaking and testing. But it sure is worth it once you get it dialed in, huh?!
 
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