replacing release bearing

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Darren

Darren

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hey guys i have a bad whine when i push the clutch in and hard to locate first gear. I think it is the release bearing. is there any tricks to replace the bearing Or just start wrenching.. thanks
 
Darren said:
hey guys i have a bad whine when i push the clutch in and hard to locate first gear. I think it is the release bearing. is there any tricks to replace the bearing Or just start wrenching.. thanks
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It is a 1968 barrucuda 383 4 speed. thanks
 
Only tricks I know...........

Make darn sure you're strong enough before you get the weight of that box on ya

When putting back in, I used to put the trans into reverse and any forward gear I could get it to go into. What this does is to lock the input shaft to the case, so if you wiggle (twist) the case, you can align the disk splines

Where I used to do this, "we" had a gigantic old floor jack. I could jack up the front end of the car, and balance the gearbox on the "cup" of the jack and slide that beautch right IN there

Find out WHY you are replacing the TO. Why did it fail / wear out? Something bent, broken, misadjusted, or do you just "ride the clutch?"
 
The whine could be the release (throwout) bearing, and the hard to get in gear is probably the pilot bearing/bushing.
Or, both problems are the pilot bushing/bearing.

If it has a bushing try to replace it with a well greased needle bearing.
Try to find a clutch disc aligning tool if you can.
It can be done without it, but if you have never done one before I would strongly suggest it.
 
I will take a look for any bent rods. But to change the TO i have to pull the box and bell housing correct?
 
Thanks shall be fun. i am working on a car that has not been touched for years so chances are the parts are in need of change thanks
 
You don't need to pull the bell unless you are changing the clutch on a scatterproof / steel bell and even then, on factory bell, the clutch will come out the bottom
 
67Dart273 said:
You don't need to pull the bell unless you are changing the clutch on a scatterproof / steel bell and even then, on factory bell, the clutch will come out the bottom
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That's true, but changing a pilot is a pain in the *** with the bell in the way and he might as well pull it all if it's been in there a long time.
Probably needs a flywheel resurface anyway.
 
Hey guys got the box out last night. the TO bearing is shot. one thing a found is that the input shaft has some play. is this normal. Is there a way to check the pilot without removing it? i did notice the tranny went into gear nice without the engine running before i started the job. thanks
 
Darren said:
Hey guys got the box out last night. the TO bearing is shot. one thing a found is that the input shaft has some play. is this normal. Is there a way to check the pilot without removing it? i did notice the tranny went into gear nice without the engine running before i started the job. thanks
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A little play in the input shaft is normal, because it is supported by a ball type bearing.
The pilot is what keeps everything in place and lined up, so when you have the clutch pedal down the engine end of the input shaft is supported by the pilot, and the trans end is supported by the input shaft bearing behind that tube that the throwout bearing rides on.

So when the clutch is released the clutch disc and input shaft needs to be able to stop spinning while the engine still turns.
(This is where people have a hard time getting thier trans in gear when the car is running)

Without good measuring equipment, you can't really tell if a pilot is bad or not so most just replace it while they have the clutch out.
If you don't see any obvious damage to it or the end of the input shaft you could just lithium grease it and put the trans back in and take your chances that the problem was all about the throwout bearing.

But you might be pulling it all back out again to change it if you still have a noise, or if it's hard to get into gear when running.
 
I'll chip in with my 2 cents.
First thing i would do is get a factory service manual.
To check the pilot bushing, i would shine a skinny little flashlight at the hole and see if it's obviously egged out. Then put your finger in there and see if there's any big filings in the cavity past it in the crank. (beware, the filings are sharp!) It's not that expensive to replace it anyway.
The input bearing should have some slop in it, that's normal.
If the clutch release bearing was shot, it makes me wonder about the rest of the parts in there especially the pressure plate fingers. If it's hard to put into gear, either the clutch is badly out of adjustment, binding somewhere, or the linkage is binding/badly out of adjustment. The pressure plate springs might be very weak too.
Was the clutch engaging smoothly, or did it chatter?
Did it bite hard if you tried to do a burn out or starting out, or did it slip a little?
I think that you could use a complete clutch replacement really.
I would bet the disc, pressure plate, throw out bearing, and bushing are old and tired. The flywheel is probably glazed and worn and will need resurfacing.
Check the bushings and clutch linkage for slop.
If you want to change the throw out bearing and hope for the best, there's no real harm in that, just make sure you have a minimum of 1/2'' freeplay at the clutch pedal and don't ride the clutch anymore if that's what you were doing.
I think a full clutch job is in your future though.
I hope this helps.......
Tom.
 
Whats the aproxx canadian price of a clutch and p plate kit? Say from MP thanks
 
Dartnut said:
I'll chip in with my 2 cents.
First thing i would do is get a factory service manual.
To check the pilot bushing, i would shine a skinny little flashlight at the hole and see if it's obviously egged out. Then put your finger in there and see if there's any big filings in the cavity past it in the crank. (beware, the filings are sharp!) It's not that expensive to replace it anyway.
The input bearing should have some slop in it, that's normal.
If the clutch release bearing was shot, it makes me wonder about the rest of the parts in there especially the pressure plate fingers. If it's hard to put into gear, either the clutch is badly out of adjustment, binding somewhere, or the linkage is binding/badly out of adjustment. (Or a dry and dragging pilot bearing/bushing) The pressure plate springs might be very weak too.
Was the clutch engaging smoothly, or did it chatter?
Did it bite hard if you tried to do a burn out or starting out, or did it slip a little?
I think that you could use a complete clutch replacement really.
I would bet the disc, pressure plate, throw out bearing, and bushing are old and tired. The flywheel is probably glazed and worn and will need resurfacing.
Check the bushings and clutch linkage for slop.
If you want to change the throw out bearing and hope for the best, there's no real harm in that, just make sure you have a minimum of 1/2'' freeplay at the clutch pedal and don't ride the clutch anymore if that's what you were doing.
I think a full clutch job is in your future though.
I hope this helps.......
Tom.
Click to expand...

Missed one.:D
 
Any of you guys running a Mcleod clutch. They seem to have a decent kit for a decent price. thanks
 
Darren said:
Any of you guys running a Mcleod clutch. They seem to have a decent kit for a decent price. thanks
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I have run them before on 2 other cars with no problems.
I have had great luck with them, in fact i'm probably buying another one this winter for my Dart Sport.
I ran one in my 440 4 speed '69 Super Bee and it was great. I got it very hot a few times bracket racing and it faded pretty bad, but it still grabbed good and didn't stink like it was slipping, and when it cooled off, it felt good again. It felt spongy when hot, but seemed to grab good still. I took it apart soon after to rebuild the transmission, and took apart the clutch. It was literally like new with minimal glazing. I put it all back together and ran it for many years after that with no problems.
The other car was a '69 Coronet R/T 440 4 speed and had an identical experience with it.
The only complaint that i would have is that the pedal effort was a bit higher than stock, but it wasn't that bad really.
Both were borg and beck street/strip style.
I have never tried a diaphragm style, but i hear Centerforce is good.
 
Well guys i have decided for now to install a new TO bearing only. I inspected the pilot bushing and it seems good and the end of the inputshaft is clean and free of wear. Seeing how bad the TO bearing is i am hoping i can get the rest of the year out of the clutch and p plate. I just bought the car car so i want to get it to pass mech and in my name. I plan on pulling the engine and trans this winter so the clutch job will be alot easier. Any advice on installing the TO bearing. And do i need a alignment tool for yhe clutch? thanks guys
 
We took a centerforce DF clutch out of my buddys Road Runner after it blow the trans. and switched it to a Mcleod RST for the new trans. I liked the centerforce on the street it was great but on slicks at the track it hit to hard were the Mcleod is more track friendly and doesn`t shock the system so hard
 
I got the new release bearing installed, car shifts good. No more noise. I have to say installing the gear box with the car on stands in my garage by myself was a good challenge. Thanks for all the help.
 
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