<The clutch pedal is very soft, I checked the slave cylinder seems OK, am now
<going to replace the master cylinder complete (enough fooling around).
<But I still have this nagging question about how much pressure should be
<required to actuate the clutch When I try and move the fork lever it
<is extremly hard.
This seems to be a common thread. I don't know what kind of car you have,
but It seems to me alot of people are replacing master cylinders that don't
have to.
The throwout arm on the clutch is very stiff if you try to move it manually
from under the car. But in fact it only has to move about 1/2 inch at the
clutch to go from completly engaged to disengaged. A hydralic system is used
because it is smoother, self adjusting, and more reliable than a cable. It
has two faults that can be easily checked.
1. Hydralic fluid doesnt compress, air does. Air in the system will make
the pedal very soft because the air is being squeezed rather than the clutch.
Unfortunately, air travels to the highest point in the system where it is
dificult to coax out. Be patient, keep bleeding.
2. A little wear goes a long way. Since at the clutch the throwout arm
only has to move 1/2 inch to disengage, if any of the mechanical points along
the way are worn a little, the sum of the wear may cause the system to not
fully disengage. Check the clevis pin at the brake, the hole in the end of
the brake pedal the pin slides through, the hole in the pushrod at the
master cylinder, the rubber hose at the slave cylinder (if so equipped, B's &
A series Midgets), the hole in the pushrod at the slave cylinder, and the
clevis pin at the slave cylinder.
The clutch pedal on our cars should be fairly easy to push, but you should
feel the resistance within the first 1/3 of the pedal travel.
Hope this helps.
David Riker
69 midget
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