Technical Hydraulic vs mechanical vs cable

Last night Brenda & I went out for dinner in her wagon and the restaurant was pretty busy, we were seated just behind another couple next to the window and as we were being seated the man turns and said he saw us getting out of the wagon and ask what year is it, and the conversation was on.

He said he had a 40 Plymouth truck he had been working on for the last 10 years but he hasn't driven it yet and he was having clutch problems, he went on to say his brother in law had helped him work on the truck but health issues prevented him from helping now and he was on his on, he had ordered a hydraulic clutch conversion kit that was pretty expensive and he couldn't get it to work properly.

I went on to tell him I had experienced the same thing in the past and I had replaced the mechanical clutch linkage on the wagon with a simple cable set up that I had salvaged from a mid 80's mustang.

The conversation lagged while we both had dinner but as we finished I told him about the car club I was in and invited him to the meeting, I also ask him if he would like me to look at the set up he has and see if I can help, I reiterated that I have had problems with the hydraulic throw out bearings in the past but I don't mind trying to help.

I gave him my contact information and I mentioned talking to the man at breakfast this morning and our daughter said she went to high school with his son.

What set you are you guys using for your clutch. HRP

 

I am not a big fan of the hydraulic throw out bearing, no real reason why. For me if its a hydraulic clutch I like a master cylinder/ slave cylinder setup.

I have been known to use a cable clutch more than once an d like them real well too. if your car is not setup originally with a mechanical clutch hydraulic or cable is the easiest way to go. Unless of course you have a donor car with the mechanical stuff.

 

My 32 PU has a 55 Chevy bellhousing with a Speedway slave cylinder.Wilwood clutch master cylinder.Only trick to it is getting the throwout bearing as close to the pressure plate as you can without touching before you press the pedal.You don't want to use up your limited travel just getting the bearing to the pressure plate.My next build is going to have F1 pedals,and a fox body Mustang cable.One of the guys here posted nice pictures of his brackets,and how he routed the cable.

 

I'm using a Howe Racing hydraulic throw out bearing on my '37 Chevy and it works fine. Initially, it had a leak but after using the leak quit. I guess using the system let the seals "seal" and it works fine now.

It is especially appreciated by one whom has had two knee replacements. It is not mushy but easy to operate and it feels like something is happening.

My '54 Dodge pickup is getting a Howe hydraulic throw out bearing system. I think this one is a little easier to setup.

Both of these transmissions are American made off topic common transmissions that have one gear more than the acceptable 4 speed.

 

I like simplicity! But there’s a time and place for all three, you just have to figure them out! The hydraulic are probably the smoothest, but also prone to trouble, both on install and down the road. When ever possible I use mechanical, but I have used all three. A well designed and lubercated mechanical clutch is very similar to a hydraulic in pedal pressure. I like the “ feel” of a mechanical. Can’t beat simple....something I can relate to........









Bones

 

I've used them all at one time or another. The biggest drawback to the mechanical is the z-bar , headers and steering box are fighting for some of the same real estate, especially if its a rear steer car/truck. ( I dont know squat about a 40 Plymouth truck). If you can get all that worked out, they are the most trouble-free in the long run, IMHO. Also the most aggravating to put in and work around.
If its really bad, I've seen the clutch fork moved to the other side and a slave cylinder mounted over there.
I would hesitate on the hydraulic throwout bearing, because the next person to work on it may not have a clue about it. They do save the most space, and probably the lightest.
Good Luck, and good on you for offering to help out a stranger.

 

I use all of the above except for the internal unit as a 1st choice. The oem internals are very reliable. That's usually not the 1st item on the list when building a hot rod. I'm very familiar with the 5.0 setup as is on the wagon. I've used the external slaves with success. The alignment isn't perfect and requires a swivel joint in the pull rod to achieve good life. The cable is more durable but requires more mechanical effort on many applications. Space and mechanical leverage will usually determine what the end result will require. The flexibility or lack of in a full mechanical linkage is something we all dealt with years ago because there weren't options. When your left leg is telling you there is a problem, I believe you will source an alternative means of clutch depression.

 

It is the resistance of the clutch springs in the clutch that makes the clutch hard to push down. If your mechanical clutch on a moderate clutch set up is very hard, your ratio is off or design problems or lack of lubercation is your problem. I had a mechanical clutch on a OT stock pick up that would move the cab instead of the throw out bearing, to the point of damaging the cab. Ford screwed up the design in 1980 and there was a lack of lubercation causing the throw out bearing to try and “ grab” the transmission snout! Fixed the lubercation problem, clutch pedal was very easy to push down then.








Bones

 

Mechanical is 1st. Hydraulic (master and slave cly type) 2nd. There is no 3rd for me.

 

Mechanical in a fully stock set up.
Hydraulic is nice for headers and custom swaps.
An internal slave is great in stock form. It requires a proper set up for custom applications.
The cable works great in an OT mustang.
That’s the order for my thinking and experience.

 

The Ranch Wagon was originally equipped with a 3 on the tree and used the z bar with mechanical linkage for the clutch, when I installed the 302 from the fox body mustang it had a 5 speed transmission and when I set it all in place I realized the original set up wouldn't work without a lot of fabrication.

I looked at the cable and realized that if could adapted the quadrant that was attached to the clutch pedal in the doner car I could have a working clutch with a minimum of trouble, after I removed the pedal I was able to remove the quadrant and attach it to the '54 pedal, that way everything looks completely stock and the clutch & brake pedal match.

As far a ease of use, this setup takes very little effort to engage the clutch, great for old farts with bad knees or legs. HRP

 

The Pontiac 347 and three speed manual gearbox in my Modified came from a 57 GMC pickup. It originally had a Z bar setup - but that wasn't going to work in the confines of the TT chassis. I converted it to cable using Citroen 2CV clutch parts. I got a lot of great information from a HAMB thread. I will see if I can find the link.

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I haven't used a cable clutch but i might try it on m next build.

 

Haven't used a cable, but hydraulic sucks.
No feel. You can't feel when things are happening.
I have a hydraulic actuated clutch in a newer car now. I wish there was a way to convert it to hard, mechanical. But too many changes in direction and not enough room for bell crank swing.

Mike

 

Cable, hands down.

Aftermarket hydraulic setups are notorious leakers, and very expensive. OEM parts work great, so keep them if you have them. Mechanical linkage is fine if you have the space, but often requires some reengineering for an outside-the-box drivetrain.

The cable has great feel, is easy to adapt, and sidesteps a lot of packaging problems.

 

If it is a stock '40 Plymouth truck, the bellhousing is one big casting that holds the clutch, brake pedal, master cylinder and all the related clutch hardware. Fairly direct in actuation, no z bar, no cable, and no hydraulic stuff.

 

TECH: Clutch Cable Installation w/Pics
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/index.php?threads/TECH:-Clutch-Cable-Installation-w-Pics.210569/


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I have had a bunch of foxbody mustangs and my FFR has a Foxbody Pedal box, clutch cable and transmission.
It’s important to note that the T-5 from a mustang has a release bearing that is supposed to be in contact with the pressure plate all the time. For that reason the clutch cable has to be under slight tension when the clutch pedal is not depressed.
It’s a good system if you’ve got a matched transmission and cable setup, but if not setup correctly it’s the equivalent of riding the clutch all the time.


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Mechanical! Only way to go if you can.

 

Oh My God........

 

I have mechanical in my RPU and 52 GMC

 

Simplicity is the name of the game ,,although in a Model A ,,mine is almost a direct link and pulls back through the fork lever ,,after adding a lever to the stock pedal used a few temporary links to try it out ,,,didn’t need a z bar as the pedals are mounted to the trans ,,I moved the pivot ball around to a better alignment,,works great and is not hard to push ,,the clutch is 11 inch Chevy ,,easier to push than the hydraulic one in my 34,,,

 

I have a external slave & Wilwood master on my Ford, works very well. Got 12k miles on it so far.

 

What type of clutch set up does your god prefer?


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Shouldn’t a cable also be considered mechanical?

 

"Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak."

Semantics my friend, it could very well be considered mechanical in it's primary function but it does give you simplicity & flexibility in routing to be creative with limited space. HRP

 

That’s the problem , I see, with the hydraulic clutches that are enclosed in the bell housing. It seems they have a tendency to spin the throw outs bearing 24/7!
That bothers me, because I can still hear my Dad telling me “ Don’t ride that clutch, Boy! Your going to wear out the throw out bearing!”

They don’t seem to have a problem with that. Just seems to go against my grain! Lol








Bones

 

Danny, did the cable operated clutch on your wagon come from a original mustang or is it one like summit sells?

 

In my model A, I made my own set up using a modified pedal assembly from a F1, a shortened stock Chevy clutch fork, and a e brake cable from a mid 90's gm truck. It works great, and feels great. I'm not a fan of hydraulic really as I don't like the feel of them, and lots of them by design have the throw out bearing constantly with slight use.