[DeTomaso] Clutch Slave Cylinder Health

[JDeRyke at aol.com]

In a message dated 7/09/07 10:27:33 AM, pvperry at earthlink.net writes:

<< What is the collective wisdom out there on cleaning and rebuilding our 
clutch slave cylinders? >>

It normally does not work very well. First, there is no true rebuild 'kit' so 
we wind up using pieces of two similar kits from different brands. 
Second, the cylinder is soft cast iron and is extremely sensitive to water in 
the fluid. Rust pits appear and cut the seal (there's only one). Honing out 
the pits enlarges the cylinder so a new seal doesn't seal very well under 
pressure. And thats if you're skillful enough to freehand-hone the cylinder 
straight instead of into a conical bore as most do. 
Finally, being part of the same system, if a slave starts to leak, normally 
the MASTER cylinder also has seal-destroying pits growing inside, it being in 
contact with the same water-contaminated fluid. So repairing or replacing only 
the slave (or only the master) simply delays the inevitable.
I suggest changing brake and clutch fluid yearly, replacing both master and 
slave as a set if you have a leak, or evidence of a leak, and always use a 
long-throw slave as a replacement in Panteras. These last come in stainless steel, 
 which may save the day if you somehow forget to change fluid yearly. Leaking 
clutch cylinders (either one) cause extra drag on the ZF transmission 
synchros, which wear not only the steel synchro rings but also the integral 
gear-cones, necessitating a gear-pair replacement, for several thousand dollars. 
Bottom line: a bottle of fresh dry hydraulic fluid for both brakes and clutch 
is cheap each Spring.... Good luck- J DeRyke
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