Clutch release arm ?

[Bob Chayer]

Quick question.......What position does the clutch rod conect to the clutch release arm on a 71 4X4with a SM465? There are two positions one closer to and one farther away from the bell housing. Thanks!

[Scrub]

I move mine depending on what type of clutch I am using. Some clutch presure plates have different ratio's. In other words. Some are really hard to push on, but move the pressure plate out more, On that type I use the outer notch. Other types(diaphram type comes to mind) are easier to move, but don't release the clutch as much, so I use the inner notch on that type. It's sort of a balance of things. If you can push the clutch in with normal effort then use the inner one.
If the clutch is really hard to push in, then use the outer one. I actually had a racing clutch that was so hard to press that the linkage kept breaking and I had to get a more mild cluch plate.

A) Hope this helps
B) Hope it made any sense at all

[Bob Chayer]

Thanks for the help! Have you had any problem with the internals of the pivot piece? (The piece that bolts between the block and the frame). The reason I asked about the location of the rod in the arm was to see if the leverage may be different at the two locations. It seems my pivot piece is cocked and the rod that goes through the fire wall rubs on the fire wall. I have replaced the internals on the pivot piece not too long ago and it seems they are broken again. It may also be the pieces I used to rebuild the pivot were junk. Any idea where I can find quality parts to fix it for good?

Thanks!

[Scrub]

Yes, I have been through about 5 on "Old Green", But Old Green has over a million miles. You can get the parts from Chevy I think. My Local parts guy gets them for me though a dealer. You probably need the plastic bushing for the motor side and a new bolt/ball piece for the fender side. Seems like they are less than ten bucks. On the bolt/ball piece, I add extra washers on both sides of the (fender side)frame mount. It is the slotted piece of steel that the ball bolts to. I have broken several of them. I also replaced the plain old swivel joints in the linkage with heim ends. The rods had worn the holes in the lever piece so much that the holes were oblong and rough. The extra friction was breaking my linkage. It works pretty smooth now and that was 4 or 5 years ago.

Good luck

[77 Shortbed]

According to GMs service manuals the closest hole is used for adjustment. With the spring or springs disconnected put the adjustable rod in the nearest hole and adjust it until all slack is taken out of the linkage. Then move it to the farthest hole. The proper amount of free travel then set.

[Bob Chayer]

Thanks scrub! Did you replace both rods with new joints or just the one from the pivot piece to the release arm? It sounds like a good idea to do the same while I have it apart. What did you use and where did you get the parts. Thanks again!

[Bob Chayer]

77 Shortbed, Thanks for the reply. I always wondered why there were two slots. I'll give it a try when I put it back together!

[Scrub]

I replaced both ends that swivel on the bellcrank. The replacement parts are what I call "Heim ends" or "Rod ends".
They look kind of like a steering knuckle in that they fit on a 3/8 fine threaded rod (I think that is the size of the clutch hardware) and they have a spherical bearing with a threaded shaft comming out at 90 degrees. I tried to drill out the bellcrank, but the steel was too hard, so I ended up cutting a larger hole with a torch.
The part looks kind of like the one here:
http://www.stockcarproducts.com/rodend7.htm
except it has a threaded rod instead of just a hole and the ends are female rather than the threaded shaft in the picture. I couldn't find a pic of what I used, sorry

Good luck