Brake/clutch shaft removal

[JayJay]

All: I need to remove the brake/clutch shaft from my bell housing and I'd really really like to avoid removing the tranny and bell housing from the car. There is a pin holding this shaft to the bell housing. If I had the bell housing out I would remove the pin from the inside. Is there any trick to getting it out from the outside? My thought was to try getting a wedge or chisel underneath the head and then pulling it out. Worst case, I suppose I could grind the head and punch it out from the outside, and hope to catch it inside through the inspection opening before it was lost forever.

Anything I haven't thought about?

Thanks.

JayJay

[MrBruce]

JayJay
Tom Endy has written a vast amount of articles and the one on removing the brake/clutch shaft is really good. Here is his first paragraph;

Removing the old pedal shaft from a bell housing can be difficult and I would recommend never attempting it with it in the car as you are liable to paint yourself into a corner. This is a job that should be done on a workbench. The pin securing the pedal shaft from the beginning of production until 1931 had a dome shaped head on the
outside and was peened over on the inside. The best way to remove it, that I have found, is to knock the dome head off with a chisel and drive the pin out toward the inside. Best to avoid ever drilling it out. Once the pin is out, the trick is to drive the shaft itself out and it can be in there very tight. There is no room inside the bell housing to swing a hammer, so any punch used has to attack the shaft at an angle through the throw-out bearing access window. One method is to hacksaw the shaft off as close to the casting as possible and drive the remainder of the shaft in toward the inside with a punch.

I made the tool (actually made two of them) and am getting ready to do a couple of bell housings.

[History]

Here’s a link to a thread I started asking the same thing

https://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showthread.php?t=314986

[Bill G]

I did mine a few years ago with the bell housing out of the car and on a bench. Having done it that way, I would not even think about doing it in the car.

[Tom Endy]

If your pedals are really wobbly, install new bushings in the pedals. That will improve things, and live with it until the car needs a new clutch. With the bell housing on the work bench, replace the pedal shaft, the clutch shaft, and the clutch shaft bushings. Install a new felt block also.

Tom Endy

[JayJay]

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Folks, I would be silly to ask for advice and not heed it. Overwhelming opinion seems to be "forget it" about removing the clutch/brake shaft in the car, so I'll abandon that idea. Tom Endy called the situation: while underneath the car I noticed that the brake pedal is wobbling on the shaft. Previous restoration had installed grease fittings in the pedals, so I presumed that the bushings were replaced then (mid-1980's) and the problem is the shaft. (That may or may not be a correct assumption, I've found a lot of sketchy work that took place during that "restoration"). But I'll go ahead and remove and rebush the pedals, document the condition of the shaft, and leave it until I have the engine out (which may very well be never).

Thanks, all, and especially to Tom who has written so many helpful papers. Between Tom and Les Andrews we can't go wrong.

JayJay

[Marshall V. Daut]

After rebushing the brake pedal, install one of those auxiliary brake pedal return springs sold by the vendors. In addition to helping the pedal return to its stop position, the spring tension applies enough lateral pulling power to somewhat stabilize a still-wobbly pedal. In the past, this part came with the spring from H*ll that was hard to stretch in order to anchor it in the left rear motor mount. Lots of snapped springs and cut fingers experienced by me. I received two of these aftermarket brake pedal return springs last month from a major Model A vendor. I needed these parts to help stabilize two re-bushed pedals on two worn shafts because the pedals were still a little loose. To my disappointment, the spring tension has gone the opposite direction and is so flimsy that it is of almost no use. I bought two screen door springs with more tension at the hardware store and that solved the problem of cheaply-made inferior repo parts THIS time. Be forewarned if you order this part that you will probably also need to buy a stronger spring in order to make the brake pedal snap back in place and to help keep it from wobbling on the shaft until a new shaft can be installed down the road. The spring in the accompanying photo, by the way, is NOT the one that came with the two recently-received parts.
Marshall

[JayJay]

Originally Posted by Marshall V. Daut

After rebushing the brake pedal, install one of those auxiliary brake pedal return springs sold by the vendors. In addition to helping the pedal return to its stop position, the spring tension applies enough lateral pulling power to somewhat stabilize a still-wobbly pedal. In the past, this part came with the spring from H*ll that was hard to stretch in order to anchor it in the left rear motor mount. Lots of snapped springs and cut fingers experienced by me. I received two of these aftermarket brake pedal return springs last month from a major Model A vendor. I needed these parts to help stabilize two re-bushed pedals on two worn shafts because the pedals were still a little loose. To my disappointment, the spring tension has gone the opposite direction in tension and is so flimsy that it is of almost no use. I bought two screen door springs with more tension at the hardware store and that solved the problem of cheaply-made inferior repo parts THIS time. Be forewarned if you order this part that you will probably also need to buy a stronger spring in order to make the brake pedal snap back in place and to help keep it from wobbling on the shaft until a new shaft can be installed down the road. The spring in the accompanying photo, by the way, is NOT the one that came with the two recently-received parts.
Marshall

Thanks for the input, Marshall. Indeed, I was having trouble with the brake pedal hanging up and keeping the stoplight on (that was my initial impetus for going underneath the car to look at the brake pedal) so I ordered one of those kits. The spring is supposed to attach to the motor mount, but I have Float-a-Motor on this car so I'll have to find an alternative place to tie the spring. Maybe need to fabricate some sort of bracket. Never a dull moment!

JayJay

[Marshall V. Daut]

Jay-Jay-
I always drilled a small hole in the bottom Float-O-Motor bracket for the spring's end to slipped into. Then you can stretch the spring from the pedal and attach it to Float-O-Motor mount. Just be sure to drill the hole far enough forward in the bottom of the lower bracket so that the spring's tension doesn't break the hole from the backside and pull free. Those Float-O-Motors are only made of aluminum, meaning they'll need a little more meat between the hole and the edge of the bracket. This isn't necessary if drilling a hole in the original steel rear motor mount. It is stronger and doesn't require as much metal left between the hole and the edge.
Marshall

[JayJay]

Originally Posted by Marshall V. Daut

Jay-Jay-
I always drilled a small hole in the bottom Float-O-Motor bracket for the spring's end to slipped into. Then you can stretch the spring from the pedal and attach it to Float-O-Motor mount. Just be sure to drill the hole far enough forward in the bottom of the lower bracket so that the spring's tension doesn't break the hole from the backside and pull free. Those Float-O-Motors are only made of aluminum, meaning they'll need a little more meat between the hole and the edge of the bracket. This isn't necessary if drilling a hole in the original steel rear motor mount. It is stronger and doesn't require as much metal left between the hole and the edge.
Marshall

Check, thanks.

JayJay