103 replies to this topic

[TerrA LX]

fitzsi, pm toranamunk or try the for sale section.

[LXCHEV]

Yep, toranamuk was selling both hooks, and complete modified pedals a while ago. Contact him and see if he still has any. Yell out if he's run out of hooks, cos I have a spare I bought off him which I could send to you. I bought a whole modified pedal in the end, just been keeping the spare hook, as it "could be handy one day".

Here's Craig's hooks for sale:

http://www.gmh-toran...=1

And here's his pedals for sale:

http://www.gmh-toran...=1

Edited by LXCHEV, 30 March 2010 - 01:55 PM.

[LXCHEV]

Ok guys, I've FINALLY pulled the Hatchback apart! Now we can finally get some pictures happening in this thread... so here goes.... hopefully documenting all this will help a lot of members on here....

This is my current "BH40" CRS bellhousing connecting my 253 to the Supra 5 speed...

This first photo shows the pivot ball on the left side closest to the fork hole... in this position it suits the factory type "push" setup.







Here you can see the standard Torana throw-out fork mounted on the pivot ball....



A good shot of the pivot ball, showing that it can be adjusted in or out...



Since I'm now converting to a full cable setup, I purchased a CRS "CB02" cable bracket. This bolts straight onto the BH40 bellhousing & converts it to cable setup:







Here's a pic comparing the old Torana "push" fork (top) and my new CRS TF9 "pull" fork (bottom):





You can see why the new fork is a "pull" type system... the pivot ball mount is on the far side...



The new fork dummied up inside the bellhousing. An advantage of the BH40 bellhousing is that it suits multiple setups, so I was able to move the pivot ball to the other side...





Side shot... I've included this, as I believe this hole needs to be modified (enlarged) to allow more fork travel??



And just a few photos of the standard V8 Torana thrust bearing that I've previously been running:







Showing how the factory fork locates onto the thrust bearing:

Edited by LXCHEV, 26 April 2010 - 10:17 PM.

[LXCHEV]

That's all so far.... I only started playing with this late today. But as I continue along with this conversion over the next week or so, I'll keep the photos coming... next up will be pedal pics etc...

I do have some questions though in the mean-time;

1. How much do I need to modify the throw-out fork hole in this bellhousing?

2. As an initial setting (and hopefully final setting!), should I adjust the pivot ball in, out, or middle? Is there an accurate way of setting this or is it just guess-work? No doubt I'll end up fitting the box several times.... yay :(

3. When you look at my pics, the old Torana push fork sat very level. But the new pull fork sits on a fair angle - I assume this is ok?

4. Thrust bearings - getting back to my questions from a long time ago.... which thrust bearings do you guys run? Just the standard V8 Torana one in my pics?

Using the longer V8 thrust bearing will require the clutch fork & bell housing to have some modifications made to ensure it has adequate "back travel".

The shorter 6cyl thrust bearing may cause the clutch fork to contact the pressure plate on full travel.

The proper thrust bearing is not the CT22 type as used in the standard HQ & Torana assemblies.

Craig - can you please expand on these comments? Exactly what do you do in your conversions? Is there a "perfect" thrust bearing to suit available off the shelf?

If you use the V8 one, what mods are required?

[76lxhatch]

#1 and #2 are related - personally I'd pull the pivot ball as far forward as the cable and thrust bearing allow while still providing adequate clearance to riding on the clutch. That way you'll have maximum throw with minimum (if any) enlargement of the hole required. Measure the depth of the clutch from the crank and the same down the input shaft with the box fitted to the housing and you should get an accurate starting point. #3 angle looks ok to me, #4 I would think the standard thrust bearing is intended to be used with that fork, Toranamuk's comments line up with the fact that you are expecting to need more travel

[TerrA LX]

I like the new cast throw out fork but the hook for the cable looks a little... may I say... rough?

[LXCHEV]

Yeah totally agree, it's rough, but as long as it works I'll be happy!

Thanks for the feedback 76, much appreciated. Hopefully this weekend I can continue with it. Stay tuned.

[TerrA LX]

I would smooth it up a lil, may help prevent the cable end wearing but I do want one.

Edited by TerrA LX, 28 April 2010 - 10:46 PM.

[LXCHEV]

Does anyone have a decent photo or two of a CRS "BH-82" bellhousing, showing the throw-out fork hole in particular? I'd like to compare this to my BH-40.

[TerrA LX]

I just took delivery of this type clutch fork from Dellows made from cast air craft alloy and altho I will still take the dremel to it I must say that it looks twice as good and under half the price.

Edited by TerrA LX, 24 May 2010 - 01:05 PM.

[LXCHEV]

Couple more photos.... I'm trying to work out where I need to drill the new hole for the cable:

This is my original factory setup:






The reason I'm slightly confused, is from the other thread.... this pic below shows where toryman76 mounted his cable - 25mm above the factory captive nut:




As you can see in my photos, I don't have a captive nut, just a locating hole, which is clearly in a different position. Should I just be drilling a hole 25mm up from the centre of the big hole where my original cable ran through? Next time I'm looking at the car, I'll try to dummy it all up and work it all out, but if someone has an answer for me already, it'd save me any drama's!!

[TerrA LX]

I would assume, looking from the inside, the cable should run straight off the hook thru the fire wall.

[rodomo]

I agree.
Forget others measurements. Just make sure it lines up with the link/hole at the pedal when the pedal is at it's correct starting height. (Same height or a tad higher than the brake pedal)

Drill a 3mm hole initially and use a length of straight coat hanger wire through the hole to check your alignment.

Bend a hook in it to anchor it to the pedal and work the pedal to see how it aligns?

Adjust the hole from there.

Edited by rodomo, 06 June 2010 - 12:36 AM.

[LXCHEV]

Funny you mention the coat hanger wire rodomo, I spent some time on the car today, and that's exactly what I did! Ended up drilling a new hole which I'm pretty happy with now, it all seem to line up ok. Will post a pic once I grab one.

Got everything else finished too, new clutch is fitted with cutout in pedal box area to clear the raised hook. Gearbox back in the car, time to test it - press the clutch pedal, and bugger - one side of the throwout fork slips off the thrust bearing. I thought everything went too smoothly :(

Ended up calling the guru - Craig... and he confirmed I can't use the standard thrust bearing, I need a VN V6 job. So will buy one during the week, and pull it all apart and try again next chance I get....

Oh yeah, the throwout fork is also contacting the pressure plate, before the clutch pedal hits the floor... so this may need modifying too (Even though it may be just providing enough throw). But I'll wait until I get the new bearing first as I'm sure it will change things once again.

[TerrA LX]

Yeah be carefull of the throw (pull) of custom installs pulling the fork too far, ol mate used to weld a bolt to the bottom of the pedal to stop this.

[TerrA LX]

I just took delivery of this type clutch fork from Dellows made from cast air craft alloy and altho I will still take the dremel to it I must say that it looks twice as good and under half the price.

[StephenSLR]

if you have soft legs or dont like the heavy feel, go hydraulic.

I have a hydraulic set up with a Supra 5 speed in the LX and you still need a strong left foot to disengage.

I have a feeling after all these years it has caused an issue I have with a tendon on the left side of my hip, I notice particularly after driving it clicks past a bone or muscle when I walk, it can get annoying at times. Have been to chiro, etc. not much can be done.

I was told that the bore on the master and slave cylinders is small so it requires more force.

When I had the cable set up I recall snapping the cable after I went to a heavy duty clutch plate, after replacing them twice and both cables lasting about 2 weeks I went hydraulic.

Out of curiosity, are the latest cables any stronger?

s

Edited by StephenSLR, 07 June 2010 - 09:06 AM.

[TerrA LX]

if you have soft legs or dont like the heavy feel, go hydraulic.

Out of curiosity, are the latest cables any stronger?

s

I have mine custom made by a cable maker, much like a hand brake cable, plenty strong.

[LXCHEV]

The new Dellow fork looks pretty nice TerrA! Cheers for the pics.

As for the cable strength - mine is an off the shelf stocky job from Rare Spares... so fingers crossed it holds up ok. I'll let you know a few months down the track how it's going. A custom job sounds like a good solution if they are prone to breaking.

Picked up my Commodore thrust bearing at lunchtime today, so I'm ready for attempt # 2.

[StephenSLR]

The new Dellow fork looks pretty nice TerrA!

I had a diff company install my gearbox, etc.

They recommended CRS gear over Dellows, they've had issues with Dellow bellhousings saying there was always something they had to machine, etc. to make it fit.

The CRS products tend to bolt up straight out of the box and a time saving at work meant $ to them.

s

Edited by StephenSLR, 07 June 2010 - 02:22 PM.

[rexy]

if you have soft legs or dont like the heavy feel, go hydraulic.

I have a hydraulic set up with a Supra 5 speed in the LX and you still need a strong left foot to disengage.

I have a feeling after all these years it has caused an issue I have with a tendon on the left side of my hip, I notice particularly after driving it clicks past a bone or muscle when I walk, it can get annoying at times. Have been to chiro, etc. not much can be done.

I was told that the bore on the master and slave cylinders is small so it requires more force.

When I had the cable set up I recall snapping the cable after I went to a heavy duty clutch plate, after replacing them twice and both cables lasting about 2 weeks I went hydraulic.

Out of curiosity, are the latest cables any stronger?

s

I used to have the same heavy hydraulic clutch problem with a CRS set up (V8). I changed the slave cylinder from a 27mm to a 30mm bore and it was much much lighter. Still had enough throw to work with the original master cyl.
R

[StephenSLR]

I used to have the same heavy hydraulic clutch problem with a CRS set up (V8). I changed the slave cylinder from a 27mm to a 30mm bore and it was much much lighter.

Mine is the Dellows system, I bought it a very long time ago. They may have came out with it first but it was the only one I knew of at the time, never really had an issue with it.

What slave cylinder is the 30 mm one and did it bolt straight up?

My understanding is one cylinder unit (master or slave) is from a HR the other is from an FB.

s

Edited by StephenSLR, 07 June 2010 - 02:52 PM.

[rexy]

Interchangeable and both bought directly from CRS.

[76lxhatch]

Yeah the master is the HR style one, you can also alter the effort by moving the pushrod up the pedal a bit if you have the stroke to spare. People don't tend to pay a lot of attention to the right lever ratios when installing these things for some reason...

[TerrA LX]

The new Dellow fork looks pretty nice TerrA!

I had a diff company install my gearbox, etc.

They recommended CRS gear over Dellows, they've had issues with Dellow bellhousings saying there was always something they had to machine, etc. to make it fit.

The CRS products tend to bolt up straight out of the box and a time saving at work meant $ to them.

s

FWIW I have never used a Dellows bell housing, everything else from them seems to do the job fine, they were the originators after all.
I use old Hatfield bell housing, never used and not real keen on the look and price of CRS.