I am having trouble installling my 4 speed. I have a SBB 350 in my Special, and I have a 2 ring Saginaw 4 speed. The bellhousing I have is a Buick unit. The clutch kit (clutch disk, pressure plate, throwout bearing, pilot bushing) I got from NAPA. All the parts assemble together (and I was careful to use the alignment tool to align the clutch disk with the pilot bushing when bolting down the pressure plate), but the trans won't install the last 3/8" or so into the bellhousing, the transmission front bearing retainer is just about to engage the bellhousing but that's as far as it goes. So I started some experiments. I took out the pressure plate and clutch and re-installed the bellhousing empty to make sure that the trans, bellhousing, and pilot bushing work together. They do. I was able to insert the trans all the way into the bellhousing and pilot bushing. Experiment 2 was with the clutch and pressure plate installed and basically everything except the throwout bearing and clutch fork. This scenario gets me back to the original problem, won't go all the way in. My theory is that the clutch disk is bottoming out on the Saginaw's stationary tube that the throwout bearing rides on. Has anybody run into this issue? Maybe my NAPA parts are actually Chevy parts? I couldn't imagine the parts being different but I've been burnt before. I think the thickness of my clutch center (near the coarse splines) is too high, and not letting the trans go all the way in. Does anybody have an old 10.5" Buick clutch disk laying around who could get me a measurement from the clutch disk's friction face (pressure plate side) to the top of the center hub (which slides onto the input shaft)? If I measure mine and it's higher than a known Buick disk this might confirm my theory. Thanks for any help.
Well if I do a search on a clutch company (like McLeod) just to see if there is a different callout for Buick for a basic street clutch, one part number covers General Motors 1965-2010 for a 10.5", 1 1/8 x 10 disk. Hmm, tonight I'll use some marking compound to try and see if that sleeve on the trans is bottoming out on the clutch disk hub before the trans is all the way in. with the trans loose and the clutch disk loose the disk does slide all the way to that sleeve so nothing holding that up. I'm thinking I might have to trim that sleeve back on my trans about 3/8" or so to ensure correct assembly.
What came to mind first as i read this was: Did you try and have someone push in the clutch as you try to wriggle the trans in? My guess is the splines on the shaft and disc aren't lined up just right. I don't think the clutch covers will be that much different to cause an issue, IMO.\ Also, have you verified that the disc is installed facing the correct way?
Hi Scott, my clutch pedal and z bar are not installed in the car yet so I can't use it to assist in the install (although at this point I wish it was!). I did however use the alignment tool to align the clutch disk with the pilot bearing before tightening my pressure plate bolts. The input shaft is definately meshing with the clutch disk, it's just that last 3/8" or so of final distance that the trans won't go. you can see the front bearing housing on the trans is just about to enter the bellhousing but no further advancement can happen. And I've been lifting, rotating, and going in all directions to try and see if it will go while it's semi-supported on my floor jack and just needs that final 3/8". I verified that the clutch disk is on the correct way (because if I flip it you can see that the center hub of the clutch disk crashes into the flywheel bolt heads and the friction material isn't even touching the flywheel).
If you used the plastic alignment tool that comes with the clutch kits these days, thats your problem... Best to use an old input gear... Hope this helps... Crash
I just put a muncie 4 speed in my suncoupe, 2 weeks ago . I have an old disk and PP I can measure. I can post the measures tomorrow evening. Make sure the clutch fork is inserted correctly in the TO bearing. If the fork end is not completely inside the bearings recessed center of the bearing, the trans will definitely not the seat to the bellhousing. uzzled:
Make sure to have the trans shifted into 1 of the gears. this will allow you to spin the input shaft will spinning the trans case to allow easier alignment of the input shaft into the clutch disc. Usually the last 3/8 of an inch is the nose/end of the input shaft going into the pilot bushing. Sometimes while installing the pilot bushing into the crank it will distort and not allow the input shaft to go into it. With the clutch off make sure the input shaft will go into the pilot bushing. If this is ok then most likely the alignment of the clutch disc is a bit off. If it will not go into the pilot bushing you will need to open the hole a bit with a drill, dremmel tool, die grinder etc. As mentioned on one of the posts, assemble the clutch linkage, install the trans as far as it will go and depress the clutch pedal.
Bingo! You can even take a extra large pry bar and use that to put some pressure on the clutch fork. Works like a charm
UPDATE: Got it in!! Thanks to everyone for the big help! The "pushing in the clutch" idea got me thinking. Since I can't do that because none of my clutch linkage is installed, I realized: make use of that giant access hole in the bottom of my bellhousing! DUH! So, instead of torquing down all the pressure plate bolts and then installing the bellhousing, I just put the pressure plate bolts in loose and installed the bellhousing. This time, when I put the trans in, the allowance of the clutch disk to move and adjust (equivalent to depressing the clutch pedal in a car with a working clutch pedal) was the trick and boom, home sweet home. Yes, it will be a longer task to now torque each of the 6 pressure plate bolts individually and have to clock the motor 5 additional times, but hey, I'll take that over the never-ending Saginaw bench-press any day!
It seems you may have solved your problem but for what its worth, I measured an old disk for the dimension for the hub thickness of the 10.5 in gs clutch disk and its roughly 1.25 inches. :TU: Maybe this will help some one else down the road.
