Technical DOWNSIDE OF TOO LITTLE CLUTCH PLAY?

Got a '68 Ford 4 speed top loader behind my 8 BA, in order for it to shift smoothly I have practically no play left in the clutch pedal; will this cause premature clutch/pressure plate failure?

 

Maybe. Why can't you adjust it for the correct amount of free play? Sounds like the linkage ratio is wrong.

 

No clutch play is hard on the release bearing.

 

I agree the obvious solution would be to re-adjustd but the linkage is adjusted all the way out and the clevis pin is now very difficult to remove. Was hoping everybody would say don't worry about it; gotten lazy in my old age. I'll struggle with the pin and get it out. BTW, the chop on the Buick is perfect, that a 9" in the back of the Anglia; what's gonna happen there?

 

The most likely result is that you'll wear out your throwout bearing - as it is not supposed to be engaged all the time (which it is now). You may get away with this for awhile - but in the end, it will probably be an issue (might have to change it more often than you'd expect).

Also, we don't know the reason for the issue??? Is it because you don't have enough travel or leverage/ratio someplace in the linkage . . . or too thick of clutch disc, or . . . . Without knowing what the actual problem is - kind of hard to know the result. If your adjustment causes slippage in the clutch - then you might wear the clutch plate/disc faster than normal - but I doubt that is the case.

 

Got the pin out and re-adjusted the linkage from practically no play to an 1" now; I know they recommend 1 1/2"-1 3/4" but when I had that didn't go through the gears smoothly, especially getting into reverse. Will drive around and see how it goes. The clutch setup is the stock Ford, Merc half bell and MEC adapter, they say with this I can use the stock linkage.
UPDATE: Still shifts like butter with the new adjustment, may go a little further on the adjustment.

 

That butter does shift smoothly, doesn't it.........

 

Clutch needs free play, w/ rpm pedal rises up, pressure plate has weights, centrifugal force for more pressure w/ rpm, will slip and fail, throwout bearing will fail. Check/change pivot point for linkage to achieve proper adjustment.