Hey guys new to this site. . I'm finishing my 5 year frame off and have a couple struggling issues I'm dealing with. . First I did a manual swap and everything is in but I Can't get any adjustment out of my clutch.. The adjustment rod is maxed all the way out and the clutch is engaging a couple inches off the floor. . Do I have the right Z bar? Bought it from a respected member of a different site. . Has a GH stamped in it. Now I have a 455 in the car so are the z bars different from big block to small block? Also I have Hooker super comp headers on it and can't find a good place to locate the clutch return spring. . Anyone have same problem?

 

Put a hose clamp on the header pipe at the correct height to attach the clutch spring...the type of clamp with an external nut and screw, not the gear type.

 

All Z-bars are not the same. I tried to use a 70 Olds z-bar on my 68 and it didn't work with the adjustment rod and clutch rod I was using. I ended up using the 68 one that came with my car and it worked fine. If you bought a generic Z-bar for a Ch*vy that may be the problem. It sounds like you may need a longer adjustment rod or clutch rod with the z-bar you have.


I have W/Z manifolds and I think I attached the spring to the downpipe bolt but obviously that won't work for you. Like Yellowstatue said, you can pretty much make the return spring work anywhere with a little tweaking.

 

Its a cheap fix to make a longer rod rather than to try to find and buy a different Z-bar. If the Z- bar mounts OK youre off to a great start. There are a few different ways you cn accomplish your problem. Remember too -- all clutch forks are not alike ---if you have a rear offset on the end of your fork --- then you may need one that is almost straight? Anyway you get the picture -- you have a mismatch there and the answer is in the correct combination of Z-bar, Clutch fork, and adjusting rod ---- not to mention that your throwout bearing's length also plays in this combo!!

 

Thanks fellas, that was my presumption as well. . Missed match parts..I went to the hardware store and picked up some 3/8 threaded rod. . Hopefully does the trick! Thanks for the hose clamp idea to..Not many if any places to attach that spring with those massive headers!

 

You should look at the drawings in the assembly manual and perhaps the Chassis Service Manual. I believe the spring is supposed to anchor at the brace bolt at the fwd end of the starter (some [rebuilt] starters do not even have a threaded hole here). A very short double ended 5/16" stud is used to secure brace to starter, rather than a bolt as used with auto trans cars. On the protruding stud then goes a 2-hole sheetmetal link, with the 2nd hole being to hold the spring end.

When I did this same thing a few yrs ago I ended up fabricating the double ended stud out of what was handy- a bolt and a self locking nut perhaps- because the starter end has to be JUST THE RIGHT LENGTH, not too long for sure. Then for the link I ended up using a spare drum brake part- the 2-eared shoe retainer. I sawed one ear off, ground it smooth and round, then drilled a hole in the remaining ear for the spring. Not OEM but it is factory parts, and I was done in 10m.

I too found that the readily available adjustment rod was not the right length. I bought a few [National Automotive Lines] for the proper shaped aft end and pivot pin part, then welded a proper looking threaded strut piece to the proper squarish aft end piece. For a proper looking partially threaded piece, look at the store for a long [~10"] CARRIAGE BOLT- it will have a nice overly long threaded part and a nice overly long unthreaded part. If you are not a stickler for detail like me, you can even leave out the welding on of the proper aft end- just use the carriage bolt, cut to the proper amount of unthreaded and then proper overall length. Grind smooth and paint or finish to your stringent specifications.

The readily available clutch adjuster rods also had the wrong size peg to go thru the z-bar [too large]... I had to remedy that also.

Wait until you get to the backdrive linkage to ensure that your locking steering and trans linkage behaves like it should.

The manuals will be your best friend.

Brake part I used can be seen at the top of this photo:

 

Here is your swivel with the proper 5/16" peg diameter, only $24 NOS

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1964-72-Chev...item2c8436a79e

then again you can swing by "gmpartsdirect.com" and get two for $5.62 plus shipping.

There is supposed to be a wireform adapter at the clutch fork to hold the spring. I could not find one, and the drawing looked pretty simple so I took some beasty strong wire and bent one up. It worked fine.

Like this, only different, to fit your fork arm:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1932-74-Chev...item2c84251936