KDMatt

Hey gang, I'm in the middle of changing my valve stem seals tonight, and after a tumultuous battle I've got the keepers back into place on valve #1, cylinder #1, but I can't tell if they're seated correctly. I've never done this before, and I want to make sure I've got this correct before moving on to the rest of the valves. Basically, the keepers are where they belong, but I can still push down on the spring compressor and have the keepers move down the valve, independent of it... but they seem to "catch" at the top, preventing the spring from pushing any further up. This is correct, right? I made a quick video to demonstrate: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7_bZL8NqxIAZlotUzJRSGRXb0k/view?usp=sharing I'm paranoid and this is driving me nuts. If a couple of folks could weigh in that would be great -- then I can keep going. Thank you!!

For the record, this is what my workspace looked like when all was said and done -- between the transmission/clutch job, and building/hanging a new 2.5" exhaust, I made quite a mess. I spent about 2 hours yesterday just cleaning up and putting things away.

@Dave WM I think the only special insight I can offer you at this stage in the game is that one of the "game-changing" tools for me during this process was my little endoscope camera. I used it 3 times, but it really helped me get my transmission aligned to put it back into the car. Just like this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/3-5-1-5M-5-5mm-Android-Endoscope-Waterproof-Borescope-Inspection-Camera-6-LED-/231719182188?var=&hash=item35f38a1f6c:m:mdmjLJQX3qUovPlP4X4jYIw 2 meters long -- perfect for inspecting all those hard-to-see places (like the inside of your bellhousing when it's up on a jack) Plug it into your android phone (or PC), download an app, and boom now you can see in all of those hard to reach places. Also, going without saying, the cheap transmission jack from Harbor freight was a big help. http://www.harborfreight.com/automotive-motorcycle/transmission-jacks/450-lb-low-lift-transmission-jack-61232.html I'm glad you got something out of this thread, dude. If I can do it you can too! (Also, I'm sorry to say I did not drive around my neighborhood with open headers like you suggested... so I was not a menace to society last week... )

Right on guys. I'll try to find some time to play around with the pedal and linkage this week just to make sure it's all lined up like it's supposed to. I doubt very much I played with the master, but there's no harm in pulling it out just to see. I replaced the slave cylinder back in 2010/2011 -- and back then (unbeknownst to me at the time) the clutch was so worn out that the rod-length on the new slave was keeping that fork from retreating all the way... so in my mind at the time I needed to modify the new slave cylinder to make it work correctly... I ended up drilling that dish the rod sits in just enough so that the slave could sit flush with the fork lever. Since I'm a little older and (arguably) wiser now, I knew that with a new clutch/pressure-disc going in, the hackneyed slave cylinder had to go, which is why I put in a new one at the same time I did this job. They're cheap enough, and there's an Autozone hub 45 minutes from my house that has pretty much anything I'd ever need for this car in stock, so it was an easy decision. The clutch master was replaced at a later date... sometime between then and now... which is why I don't remember fiddling with it. @EuroDat Yeah dude, it feels pretty good that I was able to take apart a transmission, replace the broken bits, throw it all back together, and have it work. It really puts that $700-900 rebuild quote into perspective! I think I got out of this whole thing for somewhere in the neighborhood of $120 if you include specialty tools and replacement parts (along with new gear oil) and don't count the clutch/pressure-plate. @Zed Head The clutch and pressure-plate came as a kit -- the clutch brand is Parault I believe, and the pressure plate is from Exedy. The new throw-out bearing was OEM (Koyo? Does that sound right? I chucked most of the boxes after I was done with everything -- the replacement parts have all been sitting on a shelf for a few years, so no chance of warranty-claims on any of it should it all go suddenly awry...) Now I just need to go and knock on some wood or something... I'm superstitious and I sure I hope I haven't jinxed the whole car by singing my own praises! Thanks again for all of the help and insights, team. Oh, and @Dave WM I look forward to hearing how you progress on your end too! I've been so wrapped up in my own project I haven't seen how yours is coming.

I might also have the pedal mis-adjusted too... I did a lot of weird stuff when I felt the clutch slipping -- live and learn! My old slave cylinder was something I'd cobbled together and adjusted in weird ways, so I replaced it with a new one -- so it's freshly bled thanks to a little help from a buddy. Clutch master is pretty fresh too -- within the last couple-of-years/few-thousand-miles. Thank you though. The transmission did take a little more cussing and swearing to get in there, even with the jack. I had a really hard time keeping it balanced on the jack, and keeping it centered. It slid in with a little bit of fussing... and I will admit I "cheated" a bit by sliding my endoscope in through the cluch-fork sleeve to see where and how it was mis-adjusted ... i.e. did I need to move the tail left, right, down, up ... to get it dead on. In between cusses it suddenly slid into place, with the jack under it, it was able to stay there while I tightened it all down. Thanks again for all of your cautionary advice in this thread Zed Head. Now if I can get cracking on some of my running issues/tune-up stuff I might almost be able to tolerate driving this thing on the regular again.

Hey gang! Sorry to leave you all hanging for the rest of the week. I took me several days to get my new exhaust mocked up and installed... however.. SUCCESS! I just took the car out a few blocks, shifted through all of the gears -- no noises, no grinds, no hesitation. Everything is working just as it should. BIG THANK YOU to everyone who's been a part of this thread. Dave, Zed, Chas, Mark, et al -- you guys rock! Thanks for being pillars of support in my time of need! This would have been a way more intimidating project without your guys' encouragement. Now I just need to get used to my clutch engagement being so low -- I'm used to it being near the top of the pedal, and now it's a lot closer to the bottom. My neighbors must think I'm a complete newb at driving stick.

Not gonna get away with that in the middle of the night though -- open headers + suburb + middle of the night = cops. Haha.

Holy replies batman! Okay, if it's normal for the fork to be able to move back into the transmission a bit with a new clutch then I won't worry too much about it. @Zed Head and @EuroDat thank you for the picture references. I will compare notes with mine. Thanks for the votes of confidence everyone. If all looks good I'll finish buttoning it up tonight and try to take it for a spin tonight or tomorrow to see how she feels. I hope you can bear with a young guy just being a bit paranoid and wanting to be absolutely certain he's done everything correctly before moving on to the next step.

Okay gang, I got the transmission back up into the car ( @Dave WM your prediction came true!) ... but before I put everything back together and install my new exhaust, I wanted to check with you guys on the subject of clutch engagement. I took some pictures of where the slave cylinder is sitting, because I can still push the fork lever in with room to spare... and I'm not sure that's normal... The slave cylinder used to press right up against the fork lever... it was tight... Granted, before all of this, the clutch didn't start to grab until the pedal was near the very top of its travel, so maybe with it like this it'll be more toward the middle. @Zed Head you were telling me a cautionary tale about engagement. Would you weigh in on this please? As much as I loathe the idea of taking it all down again, there's no sense in putting everything back together if it isn't going to work right.

This could really be taken the wrong way!! Transmission jack is in hand. I'll let you guys know how it goes tonight.

Hey @Zed Head I totally did that bud. I took off the pressure plate and clutch disc and slipped the latter party over the spline on the transmission, just to make sure it will slide over it and engage -- and it does -- I can push it all the way to the throw-out bearing. The disc is also clearly labeled "transmission side" on one end of it - so it's not in backwards either. I'll take some more precise measurements of the gap if this continues to be a problem. I'm going to go get a proper transmission jack tonight so I won't have to mess around with straps anymore -- I think that's half my problem, tbh. I'm just starting to think that I've got the transmission at a ****-eyed angle and that's why it won't go through all the way. When I had the new disc off, I had to align it perfectly with the drive shaft in order to get it to thread through. @Dave WM -- same thing I just said to Mr. Zed. The splines are a dead-ringer for the old one -- I test-fit it all outside of the car, I think my entry angle is what's killing me here.

I think I'm going to make a trip to Harbor Freight later to get one of these http://www.harborfreight.com/automotive-motorcycle/transmission-jacks/450-lb-low-lift-transmission-jack-61232.html It's clear that my strap system isn't working as well as I'd like.

Update -- it looks like the splines aren't engaging afterall -- even with that thing swung as far forward as I can swing it, I can still turn the shafts. No amount of me fussing and swearing and kicking is getting it up there and engaged. I lowered it (for the third time) and took off the pressure plate and clutch (also for the third time) and slipped the disc over the input shaft on the transmission, just to make sure they would fit... and they do -- they mate just fine so long as they're lined up... but for some reason, with everything together and in the car I can't get it all to line up and play nice. I re-aligned the clutch AGAIN, and this time the alignment is absolutely spot-on -- I can slip the alignment tool out with complete ease. I put out an SOS in my local chapter to see if anyone wants to show up and give me a hand ... I'm tired and sore after trying to do this for about 36 hours... and I'm about ready to scrap the car altogether, lol.

I took a picture with my endoscope (10 bucks on ebay), and it looks like the splines aren't going in all the way. GUH. I knew there was a reason I stopped working on this thing. Every project is such a PITA!!!

I guess I'm not sure what I'm looking at. I've got the fork clipped in over the ball, and the T/O bearing is clipped too... That's what I meant on the previous page when I said it was "wiggly" ... that it was hanging down, despite being clipped into place. I think that picture is just messing with perspective. It's centered with where the slave cylinder lines up and it pivots up and down like it's supposed to. In other news, I've got the trans locked into 4th gear now so I can spin the shaft. I'm still stuck in the same place, and I can definitively say that the splines are engaged because the shaft won't spin. Where does that leave me?

There's a trick I didn't think of... so maybe put the transmission into 4th gear (so I have mechanical advantage at the tail) and use that to see if the splines are engaged? Maybe give it a little spin to help line things up? I agree that this distance makes it look like the spines aren't really catching into the clutch. I can tell you the fit of the alignment tool was really tight... I lubed it up with some grease and that made it a lot easier to slip in and out. This is how it's always been for me -- it's rested at the "clutch off" position. Even before I took it all apart and stripped it down, the clutch fork rested at the end of its travel. Hmmm....

This is as far as I've been able to get it. I dropped it back out again. My alignment tool came with a new bushing. Should I pop out the one that's in the motor now and use the new one? Do I need to take the flywheel off to get to it? If I stick my finger in there I can feel it. Trust me, I've done plenty of cussing shoving and wiggling, and I can't get it to go any farther than this: EDIT: LOL, I just realized there are ENTIRE THREADS dedicated to getting the pilot bushing out. Sounds like a major pain.

The pilot bushing has not been changed. That's the little bronze one that the input shaft slips into on the engine-side, right? The shaft and engine mated up just fine before I pulled it all apart, so I doubt very much it's an issue of the shaft being too long. I'm not keen to drop the trans back out again, now that I'm so, so close, but I will if I have to, I guess. I think part of my problem, too, is that because I'm doing this on the floor of my garage, I, personally, cannot get a lot of leverage on the transmission -- which is why I'm using tow straps to get it up into position. I'm going to run to the hardware store to grab some longer bolts to see if, perhaps, applying unilateral pressure on the bellhousing, pulling it toward the motor, will be enough to get it to "pop" that last inch or so and help it get perfectly aligned in the process

Okay guys, still no dice. The clutch is aligned perfectly, but the trans is stuck at the last inch. I CANNOT for the life of me get it to budge forward that last bit. What the hell is going on?

Clutch and pressure plate are back in... now the alignment tool comes in and out easily. I'm taking a quick break because my arm and wrist were both cramping pretty badly from the tight quarters buttoning everything down. I'm going to put a little dab of grease on the input shaft this time before I hoist the tranny back up. Fingers crossed! Also, Dave, since you're paying close attention for reference when you do this -- I highly recommend getting a volunteer to help you out with getting the transmission up into the car, but if you can't find one, I've been using a couple of ratching 500lb tow straps to help lift the transmission up and hold it in place while I wiggle it around. I've also got a sandbag underneath it just in case something goes awry and it falls. I think I was having nightmares last night about breaking a finger underneath a falling transmission, lol.

Guys, you were right on the money (and Dave your instincts here are impeccable) -- I put the alignment tool again, and sure enough it jammed and got stuck until I loosened the whole thing and took it out again, which means the alignment was just a smidgen off -- just enough to keep things from being happy. I'm going to re-align and re-install and see where that leaves me. Zed, I measured the two pressure plates side by side using two straight-edges, and as far as I can see they're approximately the same height. The slightly bigger opening in the Exedy pressure plate, now that I'm looking at it, is kind of a good thing - It provides just enough room for the "lip" on the throw-out bearing to seat into it, as opposed to the OEM design, where that lip just kind of rode along the inner-most edge of the pressure plate fingers. If there's, perhaps, a quarter millimeter height discrepancy between the two designs, this could explain why. I hope that makes a little sense. Thanks for sticking around in my corner, gang.

If I took the new pressure plate back out, and put it side by side with the old one, would that give a pretty good general impression if there's a discrepancy or not? @Dave WM I'll try to document as much as I can. It's the least I can do after your helpful videos and links. It looks like the opening on the new pressure plate is a little bit bigger than the old one, perhaps lending a little more fuel to the speculation that my new pressure plate is just different enough from the old one to keep everything from lining up correctly. For the record, this is what the assembly looked like before I tried to slide the transmission up into it.

That's an interesting point. I do not believe I got a new collar. I do have a new T/O bearing on the existing one though. You can see it in the previous pictures -- it looks like it's seated properly (this was my first thought.) If I remember right, this was a "kit" that I ordered... it was a few years ago now though (because the Z has been 'sitting' for about that long) so I don't remember the details. I suppose if I have to, it wouldn't be the end of the universe to re-use the old pressure plate, even then I would generally prefer to keep the new stuff in there. The newer pressure plate does have fewer teeth than the original one, which is not super uncommon from what I've seen. I'm going to drop the transmission back down a bit and fiddle with the alignment again to see if that makes everything line up a little more easily. If that still doesn't do it, I'll see what happens with the old pressure plate. You guys have given me some options. Thank you! I'll find some time to play with it.

Okay, that's good to know. This is my first clutch job, so it's completely possible I didn't do it 100% right. I'll slip the transmission back down and lower it to fuss with the pressure plate and alignment a bit more. I'm going to be mad (but relieved) if it's something that simple! Also, I'll do a dab of grease on the splines -- that makes sense too. I do the same on the lower-unit for my boat... it's beyond me why I didn't think to do it here.

New Clutch, New Pressure Plate. I used the alignment tool to keep the clutch in place, but I suppose it's possible that it's slightly off-kilter. Do you really think that could be what's keeping me from getting it all the way up there? Also, I found a thread over on the ratsun forums where someone was talking about 720 5-speeds, and this person mentioned a truck transmission with the exact ratios I've got (including the strange .882 fifth) http://community.ratsun.net/topic/40535-1985-720-5-speed-tranny/#entry639082 ... makes me think it might be a completely unmolested 720 5-speed... just still playing detective over here!