[DeTomaso] Clutch master swap out

[Bill Lewis]

Dirty David, and Larry C. - did you notice anything in Mike's reply that, uh, caught your eye!  He is too pragmatical to see it.  Takes us esoteric dudes!!!     BILL

> From: MikeLDrew at aol.com
> Date: Mon, 11 Mar 2013 15:35:12 -0400
> To: fisher95020 at gmail.com; detomaso at poca.com
> Subject: Re: [DeTomaso] Clutch master swap out
> 
> 
> In a message dated 3/11/13 9 21 14, fisher95020 at gmail.com writes:
> 
> 
> > It looks like I am due for a clutch master and scanning the Ford repair
> > Manual makes it sound like you just unbolt the old one from the trunk area
> > and bolt the new one in (after draining fluid).
> > 
> >>>It's a non-trivial task, made very difficult by the location.   You will 
> need long extensions, and a universal joint, and a good back, and a helper 
> on the outside to hold the wrench while you toil away under the dash.
> > 
> > >This seems over simplified from my viewpoint as there must be a clevis 
> > pin
> > in there having a snap ring holding it to the clutch pedal shaft and
> > looking from inside the footwell I dont see any easy way to get at it from
> > inside the car.   What is the known best method for this swap out?  Do I 
> > have to pull the
> > whole pedal box out?
> > 
> >>>The conventiona wisdom has you removing that snap ring, driving the c
> levis pin out, and removing the whole assembly.   It's located up above the gas 
> pedal, and it's not a very happy place to be working.   The alternative is 
> to loosen the locknut and then unthread the rod from the clevis, leaving it 
> installed on the pedal, but that's a lot of painful work too.
> 
> Steve Wilkinson taught me a brilliant shortcut.   Assuming you're replacing 
> your master with an identical kind (and as an aside, there have been 
> repeated failures of the so-called "De Tomaso" clutch master cylinders, and if you 
> are contemplating installing one of those, STOP, and insist on a proper 
> Italian replacement, available from Pantera East, and nowhere else as far as I 
> know?), what you can do is unbolt the two bolts holding it in position 
> (after you have drained it and disconnected the line of course), then depress the 
> pedal which will force the unit forward slightly.   You can then get in 
> there with a pair of 90-degree snap ring pliers, remove the snap ring, and 
> withdraw the unit forward off the pin.   Remove the snap ring from your new 
> unit, remove the pin and set it aside, then position the new master against the 
> old pin, compress it and reinstall the snap ring, then install the master.
> 
> This preserves all your adjustments and minimizes time spent under the 
> dash.   I've done it both ways, and each has its advantages and disadvantages.
> 
> It's highly unfortunate that most of the vendors seem to be carrying this 
> 'factory' replacement, whose origin is highly dubious, and certainly not 
> Italy.
> 
> If you buy a new one and it looks like this:
> 
> http://www.poca.com/index.php/gallery/?g2_itemId=36135
> 
> Don't even bother taking it out of the box.   The seals fail internally 
> (Ron DeMaderios had FIVE of them fail in the span of a few short months), and 
> the bottles leak where the metal fitting is swaged to the plastic bottle.   
> They are simply horrible.   I've got one sitting in my junk pile that we had 
> to take out of Lori's car, which failed in under 2000 miles.
> 
> Pantera East sells original clutch masters, sourced from Italy.   You can 
> buy *just* the master cylinder, without the bottle, and simply transfer your 
> bottle over from your old one, which saves money.   You need to specify if 
> you have the clutch effort reduction kit monkey-motion under the dash, 
> although if you are going to use the Wilkinson swapout technique as described 
> above, it doesn't matter.   We put one in Lori's car a couple of years ago and 
> it's still going strong.
> 
> Call Marino at (727) 381-1151 to order.
> 
> This whole discussion presumes you still have an original clutch master in 
> your car, and not an aftermarket replacement, which looks totally different. 
>   Can you confirm that?
> 
> Mike
> 
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