[Walter89]

I'm trying to replace a failed clutch pivot arm. I followed the detailed instructions found on the BB and everything was going fine until I tried to remove the tapered pin that attaches the clutch pedal to the pivot arm shaft. After soaking it with penetrating oil and hammering the end of the tapered pin with a nail countersinking punch it still won't budge. I've read where other people have had the same problem but I haven't found a post that offers a solution.

I reinstalled the pivot arm housing to the fire wall and pulled up on the clutch pedal (it is now even with the brake pedal) hoping that this might eliminate any binding between the shaft and tapered pin but it still wouldn't budge when I retried hitting it with the punch.

I don't want to remove the entire assembly (disconnect the brake lines) to work on it on a bench if I really don't have to. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Tifosi]

With the nut in place but backed off a couple turns, work it with a flat ended punch or drift.
(You are driving it from the threaded end and not somehow the plain end, right?)
The nut will protect the threads and stop the pin from dissapearing into parts unknown should it pop loose with any vigor.

Barring that, you may need to resort to heat and a punch, and if that doesn't bring it, it's likely going to have to go to the bench whether you want to or not.

 

[ghnl]

Get a bigger hammer. (and do leave the nut loosely in place - meaning the nut on the tapered pin, not the nut wielding the hammer...)

 

[86spider]

Pulling up on the clutch pedal gives you a false sense of doing something. Well you did do something, just not something positive. The end of the shaft where the clutch pivot arm attaches is twisting off, just out of sight behind the arm. Pulling the pedal up to its normal location is just twisting what little metal holding it all together just a little closer to separation. Just like twisting a bolt back and forth till it shears off.

You may have a while yet before it separates or it could be the next depressing of the clutch pedal.

Before I knew about this I kept pulling mine back up, thinking it was binding or had lost a return spring. Then in downtown traffic the pedal went to the floor when the arm came off completely. Not fun.

I remember it was difficult to get the pin out when I replaced mine but my mind seems to have blocked out all the painful memories as I don't have a clue how I finally got it apart.

good luck

 

[Walter89]

I'm going to try a little heat then continue working the nut with the flat-ended punch. I'm just wondering if the tapered pin got bent as the pivot arm shaft twisted over time. Nothing is ever easy!

 

[ghnl]

Get two big hammers. Have your trusted assistant hold one firmly against the pedal housing then use the other hammer & a drift to hit the loosened nut on the tapered pin. The first hammer held against the housing gives some mass to work against. Otherwise most of the force of your hammering just moves the housing and wastes the energy of the hammer blows.

 

[Walter89]

Status Update

I finally got the tapered pin out. I tried using a mallet head as a backing iron against the housing as suggested but that wasn't enough. I heated the pivot arm area around the pin with a torch and hit it very hard with hammer and it came loose (At that point I was ready to take a sledge hammer to the whole thing out of frustration). Either the pin was bent or I bent it trying to get it out. Although I left the nut on the end of the tapered pin to protect the threads, they got ruined anyway. The nut sheared the treads on the pin (probably since it was heated or I had to hit it so hard with the hammer).

I'm hoping that John has new pins to go with the pivot arm.

 

[JoeCab]

I'm hoping that John has new pins to go with the pivot arm.

We are manufacturing the pins out of stainless steel. As far as I know we are the only ones who have these rather obscure pins.

 

[Walter89]

Replacement clutch pivot arm complete!

I finally got the replacement pivot arm installed. The car now shifts up and down without any grinding. This job was a lot more difficult than I ever imagined it could be. I offer the following "Lessons Learned" in the hope that it saves others some grief.

1. Buy a replacement tapered pin with the new pivot arm. After more than twenty years in place, you'll probably destroy the original pin trying to get it out.

2. The end opposite the threads of replacement pin will be square not rounded like the original. Round the end of the replacement on a grinder or it will may hit the back of the pivot arm housing when trying to feed the pin up through the hole. The area behind the pivot arm shaft is not visible so this is not obvious. I wasted alot of time on this before I figured out what the problem was.

3. The wire that you wrap around the pin threads to help pull and align the pin though the hole can’t be larger than 24 gauge because the wire diameter can't exceed the height of the thread or it will bind. A 50 Ft. spool of gardening wire is less than $2.50 at Lowes.

4. Once the pin is inserted into the hole and the tapered side aligned perfectly with the flat side of the pivot arm, an angled screwdriver or something similar (I used a bearing seal puller) is required to push up against the bottom of the pin from behind the pivot arm enough to get the nut started on the threads. You can't pull the pin all the way in by pulling on the wire and pushing the pin up with your finger (unless your superman).

5. Reconnect the pivot arm to the clutch master cylinder push rod before bolting the housing back onto the firewall.

 

[Walter89]

Some photos of the installation:

 

[tran1747]

Good morning all,
I also have been unable to get the pin out, trying to replace the pivot pin. In desperation, would J-B Weld work, trying to "weld" the two parts of the pin back together?

 

[ghnl]

If actual weld doesn't hold up in the long run I doubt JB Weld will hold up at all.

 

[Alfajay]

would J-B Weld work, trying to "weld" the two parts of the pin back together?

As ghnl wrote, no, it won't, JB Weld won't begin to be strong enough.

I'm not picking on you tran1747, you never know until you ask. But I gotta comment: There seems to be a misconception that JB Weld is as strong as steel. Many threads include a questions like: "Can I fix my broken crankshaft with JB Weld?" The answer is NO. That stuff is just glue; it's good glue, sure, but it has its limits. Using it in mission-critical applications or places exposed to heat or fatigue (like a clutch pivot) is risky. So use JB Weld to fix your leaky radiators and broken window cranks, but not steering components.

OK, now's where all of you describe how your uncle Zeke fixed the broken driveshaft on his dump truck with JB Weld.

 

[tran1747]

Thanks. Have anyone try to drill through both parts and secure it with steel wire? Any suggestions for quick fix, not a long term solution? Since you can always shift it back to neutral w/o the use of the clutch, i just need a quick fix at the moment and maybe drive to the mechanic instead of tow it.