A couple of weeks ago, I noticed a bit more free play in my clutch, so I adjusted the clutch rod to take up the slack. I felt back behind the clutch fork, and felt the tip of the clutch rod instead of the clutch fork itself. I vaguely remembered when I put Midlife back together 5 years ago, that there was a small hole in the clutch fork dimple, thinking that was normal. Well, the hole managed to get larger, which accounted for the excessive free play.
These two pictures show the state of the clutch fork:
My bell housing has three of the four holes buggered that accept the tranny bolts and I really didn't want to separate the tranny from the bell housing. You need to do this if you want to replace the clutch fork. Although I had a spare bell housing, it did not come with the fulcrum, which is riveted in with a design that really precludes the use of bolts or screws to hold the fulcrum in place.
After discussion with a friend, he thought that a piece of sheet metal welded on the back side of the clutch fork would allow me to MIG weld the hole in the clutch fork and repair the piece in place. After some thought, I decided to reverse the plate placement and tack it on the clutch rod side, allowing me to fill in the hole on the back side of the fork. The recessed dimple that accepts the clutch rod has to be reasonably smooth and trying to drill or grind the dimple into the proper shape would be difficult at best. So...I got a piece of 18 gauge sheet metal and fashioned a dimple matching the clutch fork. Unfortunately, the dimple wasn't deep enough, so AZPete and I tack-welded a steel washer onto the back to take up the gap, feathering the outside of the washer. We then tack-welded the sheet metal on the front of the clutch fork, used the rod itself to keep everything in place, and filled the hole on the back side. With a bit of grinding, everything came out great! I think this repair will last a couple of years until I really have to remove the tranny.
Meanwhile, I still need a bell housing with a good fulcrum installed.
These two pictures show the state of the clutch fork:
My bell housing has three of the four holes buggered that accept the tranny bolts and I really didn't want to separate the tranny from the bell housing. You need to do this if you want to replace the clutch fork. Although I had a spare bell housing, it did not come with the fulcrum, which is riveted in with a design that really precludes the use of bolts or screws to hold the fulcrum in place.
After discussion with a friend, he thought that a piece of sheet metal welded on the back side of the clutch fork would allow me to MIG weld the hole in the clutch fork and repair the piece in place. After some thought, I decided to reverse the plate placement and tack it on the clutch rod side, allowing me to fill in the hole on the back side of the fork. The recessed dimple that accepts the clutch rod has to be reasonably smooth and trying to drill or grind the dimple into the proper shape would be difficult at best. So...I got a piece of 18 gauge sheet metal and fashioned a dimple matching the clutch fork. Unfortunately, the dimple wasn't deep enough, so AZPete and I tack-welded a steel washer onto the back to take up the gap, feathering the outside of the washer. We then tack-welded the sheet metal on the front of the clutch fork, used the rod itself to keep everything in place, and filled the hole on the back side. With a bit of grinding, everything came out great! I think this repair will last a couple of years until I really have to remove the tranny.
Meanwhile, I still need a bell housing with a good fulcrum installed.
bj
