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saintjoelarry 07-17-2018 08:26 AM

Surprise...no clutch.
 

1 Attachment(s)
When driving home from visiting friends last night, pushed the clutch to shift from second to third. Clutch went straight to the floor. Obviously something happened to the clutch pedal linkage. Thankfully we were only a mile from home, so kept it in second gear and just drove more slowly.

When I crawled under the A to take a look. This is what if found - the somewhat substantially piece of cast iron making up the clutch release shaft arm had cracked right down the middle! Thankfully, I have another one on the shelf with some other transmission parts, so an easy fix. Just a bit of a surprise.

1928Mik 07-17-2018 08:43 AM

Re: Surprise...no clutch.
 

That'll do it for sure! Luckily you were close to home and no damage done....

ryanheacox 07-17-2018 08:53 AM

Re: Surprise...no clutch.
 

Those cast clutch arms do crack. My grandfather started losing the clutch one day and put the car up on ramps to adjust the linkage. While testing the clutch the arm broke just where yours did with the car in 1st it jumped off the ramps and they punched holes through the fenders... nobody was happy that day.

Glad you fared better!

katy 07-17-2018 09:02 AM

Re: Surprise...no clutch.
 

Quote:

the somewhat substantially piece of cast iron making up the clutch release shaft arm had cracked right down the middle!
Are you sure that it's cast iron? I would suspect that it's either cast steel or forged, but not cast iron.

saintjoelarry 07-17-2018 09:12 AM

Re: Surprise...no clutch.
 

Nope, I'm not sure at all that it is cast iron. Perhaps cast steel. Perhaps forged. Nonetheless, it is fairly substantial, yet bridle enough to crack. But, after 87 years of use, I guess I can't complain. Who among us wouldn't be a bit more bridle after 87 years?

Tacoma Bob 07-17-2018 09:35 AM

Re: Surprise...no clutch.
 

Mine broke as well. I put the re-pop super duty on and keep an original for those that will eventually need one.

Marshall V. Daut 07-17-2018 09:53 AM

Re: Surprise...no clutch.
 

After 90 years and tens of thousands of clutch pedal uses - or even hundreds of thousands - we are seeing this problem occurring more these days than ever before. That clutch arm has held up pretty well since 1928, but the metal fatigue issue is finally striking our cars. Think how much pressure is exerted on that arm every time the clutch pedal is pushed in! Eventually something is going to give and it's usually this clutch release arm. Not your fault. It's time had come. Either replace it with an original style (which should last another 90 years) or go with the heavy-duty wider arm, which looks kind of odd, but is stronger. No matter which one you pick, it's unlikely this problem will occur again in your lifetime.
Marshall

JimDin CT 07-17-2018 11:07 AM

Re: Surprise...no clutch.
 

Kinda off topic, I know, but I've always had a concern about the same happening at the brake rod - pedal connection. That is not a lot of metal surrounding that eyelet, which is all that stops the car. Anyone had that rod assembly let go?

saintjoelarry 07-17-2018 11:30 AM

Re: Surprise...no clutch.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimDin CT (Post 1652317)
Kinda off topic, I know, but I've always had a concern about the same happening at the brake rod - pedal connection. That is not a lot of metal surrounding that eyelet, which is all that stops the car. Anyone had that rod assembly let go?

Wow, good question!

Flathead 07-17-2018 01:39 PM

Re: Surprise...no clutch.
 

I would say the clutch arm gets more of a workout than the brake.

Synchro909 07-17-2018 05:02 PM

Re: Surprise...no clutch.
 

When I’ve fitted a clutch release arm, I use a fabricated one beacause it is not possible to buy a new one that will do the job. I have to cut and weld even the fabricated one to make it work. Never had a failure though. If I were the OP, I’d toss the cast arm and use a fabricated steel one.

Phil Brown 07-17-2018 06:09 PM

Re: Surprise...no clutch.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimDin CT (Post 1652317)
Kinda off topic, I know, but I've always had a concern about the same happening at the brake rod - pedal connection. That is not a lot of metal surrounding that eyelet, which is all that stops the car. Anyone had that rod assembly let go?

Not the arm, BUT had the pin fall out one time. That was a exciting few seconds :eek: Used the E brake to get her stopped. Walked back up the road and found the pin, and a short piece of fence wire. Five min. later we were back on our way

Vic in E-TN 07-18-2018 01:38 PM

Re: Surprise...no clutch.
 

About 20 years ago I was in a parade in Illinois and the same thing happened to my clutch arm. It was a cast part, probably from India, as the replacement part looked the same and had a "Made in India" tag. I used it for a while until I replaced it with a fabricated steel one. I believe that they were sold by a long defunct but well known supplier at the time.
Vic


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