The bleeder nipple is on the slave cylinder, which is usually mounted near the tranny. The clutch master cylinder is in the engine compartment (thats where you pour in the fluid).

Slave cylinder shaft wobble and fluid color.
 

Good evening all,

I have read as much as i can find and i think i have a very similar symptom to others. I do not want to derail a thread or ask repetitive questions, i am simply looking for confirmation.

Here is what i found today.

1. There was no nut on the rear of my shift fork connecting to the slave cylinder rod. I believe this is a problem, put a locknut on it and tightened all the way. No improvement.

2. The fluid in my master cylinder is brown and continues to go down. I know this is a problem.

3. My slave cylinder shaft spins freely which i believe is correct however there is quite a bit of play up down / left right. There is also a lot of fluid on the boot. The fluid on my garage floor is the same color as the master cylinder.

All that being said, i believe i need to do the following

1. Drain the system fully
2. Replace the slave cylinder
3. Flush entire system and refill with DOT4, is a cleaner required?

I this is like groundhogs day for many of you, i have gleaned this info from several different sites and posts before posting here.

Does anyone know of the Mighty Vac referred to, that will help bleed the system?

Thank you anyone who will respond, i appreciate your help.

If your master is still in good shape just have someone press the clutch petal as you bleed the fluid from the slave. It should not take very long to bleed the system this way. check for proper alignment also do not let the master empty while bleeding . If you still wish to use the vacuum you can purchase one at orielys for 40$ not needed in my humble opinion.

I think you have the major steps covered other than as Hauss said - check the master for leaks. No need to flush IMO as you will probably do that in part as you bleed the system. The important thing is to be sure you position the bleeder port on the slave at the very top so that the air can bleed out of it.

If you really want to make bleeding easy try to find a speed bleeder of the same size as the bleeder on the slave. If you can manage that bleeding is as simple as hooking up a hose into a jar and pumping the pedal a dozen times or so. Otherwise someone topside slowly pushing and holding the clutch pedal while you crack open the bleeder is the surest way to get the air out. Sometimes those Mityvacs just pull air around the loose threads of the bleeder valve and it looks like your entire system is filled with air and will never get bleed out.

Actually I shouldn't be so negative on trying a Mityvac. Most of the issues I've had with loose bleeder valves has been on replacement brake calipers which get rebuilt over and over again. I would guess not many slave cylinders are remanufactured from cores so no reason to think the bleeder screw threads should be worn out. If you have a Mityvac then it might work just fine. You could put a light dab of non-hardening thread sealer on the bleeder valve as a precaution.

Guy’s,

Thanks for your responses. I will be doing this in the morning. I bought the bleeder pump from autozone. My wife does not have a lot of patience for car maintenance at 97 degrees. I will let you know what i find.

DanEC,

You nailed it, i used the vacuum pump from autozone and wound up sucking up air from the bleeder valve, i could hear it.

I did manage to flush the system, the old fluid was black as oil.

That being said it did not solve my problem. My clutch pedal is loose and does not seem to engage until 3/4 travel?

I can get the car in and out of gear, however it engages IMMEIDATELY upon any release of the pedal.

It hooks up solid, I don’t think my Centerforce clutch is bad, I muss be missing something.

I'm most accustomed to mechanical clutch linkage so when I built my ERA I had a learning curve with the hydraulic system. I suspect you need to lengthen the rod by adjusting it - from the slave to the fork. Basically force the rod into the slave as far as it will go and lengthen the rod until it takes up all the slack to the fork. The slave cylinders have a return spring in them so it takes some force to fully seat it back. Try this and see if that doesn't fix it. You do want a bit of free play at the top of the pedal - I like not more than an inch in hopes the pressure plate isn't spinning the TO bearing when the clutch is released. So after it seems to be working properly and not engaging the clutch right off the floor, you may need to shorten the rod just a bit to allow that slight bit of free play at the top of the pedal. A return spring on the fork is a good idea to counter the spring inside the slave cylinder. Another poster on here recently posted about removing the spring inside the slave cylinder and posted that it improved his clutch pedal feel.

Edit - also you may need to check your clutch pedal to master cylinder linkage. Basically, the clutch pedal should activate movement in the master cylinder as soon as you start to depress it. Depending on your type of set up there could be some slack in the linkage that needs to be taken out or a return stop on the pedal that needs adjusting. Basically everything needs to be adjusted for immediate response in the cylinders when the clutch pedal is first depressed.

Crap,

I think that is it! I have been focused on the master and slave cylinder. I think the linkage is the missing piece. Thank you all so much for your help.

This is a great forum!

I’m surprised nobody recommended the often easiest fix , verify the bell housing is tight and all bolts are correctly torqued. Even a little slop in a bellhousing will make all kinds of little
Shifting issues.

I had this trouble on one my cars a few years ago.
After verifying the hydraulics were fine, I pulled the transmission.
This was all new parts, steel flywheel, custom clutch, new special bolts. The pressure plate bolts were coming underdone.
They went back in with a lockwasher and red loctite. Issue solved. I could have had a pressure plate through the floor.
Gary

Guy’s,

Thanks for all of your help. I made progress yesterday. Back in town Wednesday to finish.