clutch question.

[old ugly]

i was looking at the snyders page and there are two choices for buying a Pressure Plate. it is for Model A car with a single disc clutch. the price is very close to the same so quality is what i am wondering about.
-new
or
-rebuilt

which one to buy?

 

[Dick M]

I believe there two types. One has the springs pressed into the disk. The other type has tabs that keep the springs in place. I just finished replacing a clutch disk in a friends A. He completely lost his clutch. Why? Because he had the disk without the tabs and one of the springs popped out and ended up between the flywheel and disk. Make sure the disk you purchase has the tabs that keep the springs in place.

 

[Marshall V. Daut]

I believe "Old Ugly" is asking about the clutch itself, the pressure plate. But your advice about which disk to buy is right on.
Marshall

 

[The Master Cylinder]

I believe there two types. One has the springs pressed into the disk. The other type has tabs that keep the springs in place. I just finished replacing a clutch disk in a friends A. He completely lost his clutch. Why? Because he had the disk without the tabs and one of the springs popped out and ended up between the flywheel and disk. Make sure the disk you purchase has the tabs that keep the springs in place.

Which brings up a question, Who sells the disk with the encapsulated springs these days. Bratton's and MAC's used to but are unfortunately both gone.

 

[JayJay]

Which brings up a question, Who sells the disk with the encapsulated springs these days. Bratton's and MAC's used to but are unfortunately both gone.

I heard in the not too recent past that those disks with the encapsulated springs were no longer available. I'd be more than delighted to hear otherwise. I bought one late last year (from whom, I don't recall, maybe Bratton's?). A call to Steve Becker at Burt's or Sammy Guthrie at Arizona Model A would clear that up.

 

[Herb Concord Ca]

Try Ft. Wayne clutch (IN).

 

[Dick M]

My mistake. I miss read the post. The disk I installed came from Arizona Model A. It was ordered by the A owner.

 

[Marshall V. Daut]

Yes, Sammy sells only the best!
Marshall

 

[Y-Blockhead]

I heard in the not too recent past that those disks with the encapsulated springs were no longer available. I'd be more than delighted to hear otherwise. I bought one late last year (from whom, I don't recall, maybe Bratton's?). A call to Steve Becker at Burt's or Sammy Guthrie at Arizona Model A would clear that up.

I got one from Bratton's when they were closing for50% off. Sitting with my spares.

As far as I know, nobody has them. Bert's catalog shows them is a picture but I believe that is incorrect.

 

[Synchro909]

I got one from Bratton's when they were closing for50% off. Sitting with my spares.

As far as I know, nobody has them. Bert's catalog shows them is a picture but I believe that is incorrect.

IMO, Those are the best clutch plates - the springs are retained by the raised edges of the centre part of the plate. I help out a friend a while ago to get his car on the road when no clutch plates were avaialble - of any sort. The deal was, when his ordered one came in, he would give it to me as a repalcement. I gave him one of those good ones but he gave me one with the springs not restrained. They are known for the springs popping out of the plate - always at the worst time.
My cure was to cut a strip of 3mm thick steel (1/8") , grind one edge off at an angle of about 45° and weld short pieces the the plate to hold the springs in place. No trouble (yet) and that was about 2 years ago.

 

[old ugly]

sorry folks i must have worded that wrong.

i am shopping for the pressure plate.

 

[Marshall V. Daut]

Pressure Plate = Clutch.
It's easy to confuse "plate" with "disk" when discussing clutches. "Pressure Plate" is a bit misleading, as it's not really a plate. I assume the "plate" part refers to the flat area that comes into contact with the clutch disk. It KINDA looks like a plate, but using the word "clutch" is so much clearer.
M.

 

[old ugly]

Pressure plate = Clutch.
It's easy to confuse "plate" with "disk" when discussing clutches. "Pressure Plate" is a bit misleading, as it's not really a plate. I assume the "plate" part refers to the flat area that comes into contact with the clutch disk. It KINDA looks like a plate, but using the word "clutch" is so much clearer.
M.

i see what you are saying.

-i call the fiber lined clutch part a "disc"

-i call the spring loaded assembly that bolts to the flywheel and releases disc the "pressure plate".

it is the pressure plate i was asking about.

thanks all. sorry for the confusion .

 

[Marshall V. Daut]

Correct on all counts. Now maybe you'll get an answer to your original question.

Keep in mind that if you decide to send your pressure plate (CLUTCH) to Snyder's for an exchange rebuilt clutch, add a bunch more money to the total cost for shipping the heavy clutch from Canada to Ohio. I am not sure what the advantage is of going the exchange/rebuilt route instead of buying a new clutch outright. Are the new clutches not of the same quality that original clutches are, and hence it'd be better to buy a rebuilt original clutch? But at this late date, how many original clutches are still in our Model A's? Chances are the clutch you send in for exchange was installed years ago and is therefore not a factory clutch. Will the "rebuilt" clutch you receive be an original quality pressure plate?
Maybe call Snyder's and ask to talk to the technical staff. They can better advise you which clutch is better/more economical. After all, they want satisfied customers and I have always received good recommendations from Joe & Company.
Marshall

 

[bobbader]

There are REBUILT Pressure Plates and there are NEW pressure plates.

The rebuilt ones are, unless anyone knows differently, are usually done by reputable rebuilders here in the states. The NEW pressure plates are Chinese.

The sale of rebuilt pressure plates usually involves sending a core exchange for rebuild before they will sell you a rebuilt unit. That can be an inconvenience, and incur shipping costs, but worth the effort from my viewpoint. I've had a couple of the Chinese units and I was not impressed. Overall, they don't "look" horrible, but they seem to cut corners on the hardware used to adjust the fingers. Instead of staked nuts, as original, they might use double nuts which can cause clearance problems in the bellhousing. Or, they might spot weld the adjustment nuts so they can't ever be adjusted again.

 

[Marshall V. Daut]

"Are the new clutches not of the same quality that original clutches are, and hence it'd be better to buy a rebuilt original clutch?"

Thanks, "bobbader". You answered this question in post #14. 'Makes sense. You usually get what you pay for.
Marshall