Hey guys, need some guidance

[tcat55371]

It's been awhile since I've done anything with clutches. I'm putting a 406 in my Gasser over the winter and pulling the 350 and probably going to sell it once I find out what it really is. When I got the car I was told one thing and been finding out another along the way. It has camelback heads and a cam but I'm not sure if it is a 2 or 4 bolt main and whats inside yet. Hope to have the motor out and on a stand in the next couple weekends. Car is at a friends in southern MN right now for the winter.

My question is what would be a good clutch since most of the driving will be on the street but I would like to get the horse power to the ground. I've been hearing of different step clutches? I remember different stage clutches but never heard of step clutches. The new motor should be little over 500hp,
it's over that now in the car it's coming from. My old T10 4speed is staying for now, trying to keep this low cost as possible for now to get back on the street this summer. The motor is hooked to an automatic now and I am not getting that.

So what are you guys running for a good clutch? Gone are the days of going into MAS or Smith to get parts and talk to people. Any idea's would be great.

John

[MR.hp]

If it were me I would just get a clutch with a diaphram plate and a rag dics. If this is just for street use and not a bunch of drag racing then there is no need for the high buck clutch. Hech in my bird when I put in the 6 spd. all I used was a new 11" LUK clutch kit and it works fine.

[tcat55371]

Yup

That's what I was thinking too. I looked on Summit and the 2 disc setups are a grand. Can get a nice clutch for 300. otherwise. It may hit the track sometime but mostly street driving. I just didn't want the clutch to be the weak spot in the drivetrain so I thought I would ask you folks here since there is a lot of knowledge here.

Thanks for the response. :)

John

[Z28SSMAN]

Hmmm.. I didn't see your thread John.

Yeah, if your car is lightweight and just a street driver, then a basic clutch should do the job. If you plan on putting it on the drag strip with slicks, a basic clutch is only gonna frustrate you.

In my case I bit the bullet and bought the hi dollar clutch, Mcleod RXT rated at 1,000 hp. For me, it was a no brainer. Why buy and have to replace 3 $300 clutches when you can just buy the best and not have to monkey around with it?

I've had a least 7 clutches in my fbody. The one I liked the best and I ran the quickest with was a 10.5" Spec stage 3. It only lasted 1 year of track punishment though. I replaced it with a Clutchmasters ceramic and it just about shook the car apart. Pulled it out and it was a bad pressure plate. It was only grabbing on 1/2 of the pp. I sent it back and they agreed and gave me a refund. They could have told me I was out of luck and blamed it on me, but sent me a full refund.

I then bought the Textralia 11 7/8". It lasted at least 5 seasons, but the car wasn't as quick. The larger diameter Tex had more surface area for grip and longevity, but the extra centrifugal force of the larger set up didn't allow the car to rev as fast and was obviously heavier. I replaced it with a Diamond stage 3 rated at 700 hp, but it never grabbed as well as the Tex. The shop I bought it from said it just needed to be broken in. Well I broke it in and it still slipped. I found out that the disc that wasn't stamped properly so it was only grabbing on half the disc pucks. Was no ones fault, especially the shop I bought it from. Just bad luck. I pulled it and replaced it with the RXT. The RXT uses two 9.6" discs which have more surface area than any single disc but the smaller diameter takes a lot of centrifugal force off the input shaft. Pedal pressure is not much different than stock.

Only time will tell if it will be a good clutch. People with twice the hp I have are happy with them though.

Here's the bad disc:

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...pse80d69fc.jpg

Here's a Mcleod RXT vid on how the RXT works.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWX6zKIGLaI

[tcat55371]

Hmm

Interesting. I bought a new Hays performance clutch setup. Will just run that this summer and see how she does. Car wont get much track time if any. I'm just a cruiser and didn't need the new motor but what the heck.... :)