Clutch stuff

Ok, so we're replacing the broken aod in the challenge car with a manual trans from a 77 ford long bed.

Stupid question time.

Can i cheat the flywheel by not having it resurfaced? Its been laying in the bed of the truck for years, so its a ball of surface rust. No idea id it had hot spots. I honestly tbought about dressing it up with some scotch brite on my zizz wheel and running it. Is there a good reason not to?

Hydraulic clutch conversion: i have a bolt in factory master cylinder fot it. I also orderd the matching factory slave for it. But that all is desighned for an iron duke powered spirit. Not a 302/3 speed. What do i need to know about adapting a factory push style slave to a factory linkage style bell?

Lastly, i got no bolts for flywheel to pressure plate. Grade 8 good enough? Any washers/lockwashers/special E36 M3 there?

For a Challenge budget I would have no problem doing a DIY resurface on a flywheel. A roloc disk on a die grinder can take off lots of material (rust).

Grade 8 bolts with loctite, preferably red for extra insurance.

Roloc disc on angle grinder. Thats the correct terms. Couldnt think of them. Same thing i was trying to say with scotch brite and zizz wheel.

No washers under tbe bolts?

I generally hit flywheel with roloc disc on my angle die grinder and go from there. I've yet to need to get one machined. Pressure plate bolts have a shoulder on them, not sure how critical that is.

Cool. The roloc trick saves me 40 bucks. If the clutch lives a life of three seasons of racing, ill be happy.

Bolts: got it on red loctite. Orielleys sells the correct bolts for what appears to be 10 bucks a pack. If the grade 8 studf will work, id rather do that. After all, im trying to make chicken salad out of chicken E36 M3 here. This trans swap was not planned, nor welcomed.

Any ideas on the hydraulic clutch setup?

Get the correct bolts for attaching a flywheel to the crank. You don't want to experience those bolts failing at speed. It won't be pretty. Just a few hard clutch releases when down shifting can cause failure and since this is a race car, can you be sure that won't happen?

We have the correct flywheel to crank bolts. The pressure plate bolts we do not have. If it's best to order them for the correct bolt I will because safety is of primary concern.

In reply to Dusterbd13:

For pressure plate to flywheel, I see nothing wrong with grade 8.

Hardware bolts are measured for Streach, Not shear, go ahead and buy some from the dealer.

Most PP bolts have a short shoulder on them. Yes you need the right ones!

The only time I would say it's OK to use "plain" bolts to attach a PP to a flywheel is if the flywheel has dowel pins to locate the PP to the flywheel. That way the shear loads are removed from the bolts.

I buy new ARP or OEM stuff for anything in the rotating assembly. I've failed a lot, but not at hardware.

Ordered the arp bolts. Parts store couldn't get what was listed.

Hydraulics: any recommendations, rules of thumb, etc on system design?

In reply to Dusterbd13: there is a bracket, that holds the slave on the Cobra I built, Bolts on the bell Don't remember MFG.Right now, but look it up I know you can find it. Our Kit was a Unique from Gadsden Alabama but very common part Also check, David Kee toploader parts, he is #1 heck even speedway or summit. After seeing one you can make one. and the PP is held with Locater pins but I like to be right on spinning Parts so you did the right thing.

Good god, the bracket is essentially a chunk of angle iron. Thats stupid simple to make.

How do i ensure enough throw? Anything on slave to clutch fork geometry i need to know, or just make it fit?