Clutch pedal question

What Jay says. ✔

I think the arm is cracked. You can pull your front floor boards. The crack may only show up when you push the pedal down. This arm being broken, cracked, whatever, is getting to be a more frequent problem. Since your car was fine before, and now it is not, I think that sounds more like the arm is flexing . Likely where the pin goes through. I have had my car for 40 years, and never once adjusted my pressure plate fingers. And you need a good bright light. A fingernail to catch the groove of the crack too.
 
Gene-Jay,

Really appreciate your inputs and if I can make it home from work before it gets too dark in my garage, my intent is to really conduct a close examination of the arm. If I am lucky, I will find a crack and the root cause.

Jay, I have owned the car since Jan 2020 and initially, I do not recall this problem other than some gear grinding sometimes probably due to being a Model A rookie driver. I can tell you however a couple of years later, a Model A buddy reduced the play to just under an inch which worked for awhile but started to decline. Maybe it was doing this the whole time and I didn't realize it being I was pretty new to this type of car. At risk of sounding like a real dummy, that is the background. I have experience of successfully repairing other areas of old cars and trucks however zero experience with clutch issues. Again, I really appreciate everyone's inputs and want to investigate and rule-out any other issue before removing the Engine or pulling the rear. Best, Steve
 
You can find really good portable, battery-powered, LED lights at places like hardware stores and auto parts stores. They are really bright and low cost. They have pretty much replaced the drop light in my garage. They have magnetic bases that stick to any steel or cast iron part.
 
I believe I have found the problem. Wish I could post a photo, but it’s giving me a hard time. But looking at the pressure plate, I have visibility of at least three fingers. The one to the far left is standing very proud compared to the other two which in-turn look very worn. Very uneven. At this point, I didn’t bother to rotate the engine to look at the other threeL Looks like it’s time to replace the pressure plate, clutch and a new throwout bearing.
 
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I found it easier to pull the engine than to pull the rear end and transmission and work under the car. I use a floor jack under the transmission to help re align things when installing the engine. I use the lifting eye on the third plug hole. I have a hydraulic lift. As a kid I used an A frame made from 2X4's and a comealong. The hydraulic lift is on wheels so it makes it much easier and I can just wheel the engine out of the car. After some experience it only takes a couple hours going out and another couple hours going in.
 
nkaminar said:
I found it easier to pull the engine than to pull the rear end and transmission and work under the car. I use a floor jack under the transmission to help re align things when installing the engine. I use the lifting eye on the third plug hole. I have a hydraulic lift. As a kid I used an A frame made from 2X4's and a comealong. The hydraulic lift is on wheels so it makes it much easier and I can just wheel the engine out of the car. After some experience it only takes a couple hours going out and another couple hours going in.
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I suppose it’s a matter of preference. I’ve done it both ways. One advantage of removing the engine is that you don’t have to deal with the clamshell that covers the U-joint, which for some reason I find to be a PITA. On the other hand, removing and reinstalling the radiator, then aligning the hood, can be tedious as well. (And don’t be tempted to remove the headlight bar. Very little good can come from that.) The most important thing is to make sure that the friction disc is absolutely centered on the pilot bearing. I’ve found that the plastic gizmos that the vendors sell for this are useless. I have a reclaimed ****** input shaft that I use.

Another advantage of having the engine out is that it makes dealing with the flywheel (if necessary to resurface it, I generally do at a clutch replacement) a bit easier. 60-odd pounds standing up beats the same weight on your back.
 
Just to let everyone know, Steve from Berts informed me the Clutch Disc no longer come encapsulated.
 
The clutch pedal return spring on my '31 fordor broke. have checked several suppliers and the spring i broke does not look like what they have. My spring is app. 4 to 5 inches long. any ideas?
 
CRWilliams said:
The clutch pedal return spring on my '31 fordor broke. have checked several suppliers and the spring i broke does not look like what they have. My spring is app. 4 to 5 inches long. any ideas?
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I don’t recall a clutch pedal return spring being stock. The only spring I know of is the small spring inside the bell housing that pulls the throw out bearing aft. If you have something external to the bell housing I think it may be a user modification, so that would explain why you can’t find a part in the catalog.

There is a common accessory spring and bracket that returns the brake pedal to full retract, is that what you are thinking of? Maybe someone modified that assembly to work on the clutch?
 
AA's has a clutch return spring AA-7523.
 

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