This doesn't look good..., Throwout arm getting destroyed Options

[cassmcentee]

Hello all, just separated my trans from the motor and found that the clutch unit is tearing into the throw-out arm. What have I done wrong??? What are my options???
(been gone for a while, just got back from The US Open at Oakmont)

[Tom1394racing]

The clutch pedal backstop needs to be adjusted so the arm does not contact the PP when the pedal is fully depressed.

[cassmcentee]

The clutch pedal backstop needs to be adjusted so the arm does not contact the PP when the pedal is fully depressed.

I wasn't aware of a backstop, thank you Tom, figure I need to weld some meat back into the arm as well. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/welder.gif)

[fixer34]

The clutch pedal backstop needs to be adjusted so the arm does not contact the PP when the pedal is fully depressed.

I wasn't aware of a backstop, thank you Tom, figure I need to weld some meat back into the arm as well. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/welder.gif)

Wouldn't that be when the clutch pedal is fully released? The arm at that spot would move away from the pressure plate when the pedal is depressed.

[BillC]

The clutch pedal backstop needs to be adjusted so the arm does not contact the PP when the pedal is fully depressed.

I wasn't aware of a backstop, thank you Tom, figure I need to weld some meat back into the arm as well. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/welder.gif)

Wouldn't that be when the clutch pedal is fully released? The arm at that spot would move away from the pressure plate when the pedal is depressed.

Yes, @fixer34 is correct -- the release arm is dragging on the pressure plate when the clutch pedal is up.

My guess is that someone put a thick washer (or a couple of washers) under the pivot ball, moving the release arm too close to the pressure plate, causing the arm to rub on the pressure plate when the clutch is released.

Usually the pivot ball is spaced out only when the flywheel is machined, to take up the extra space caused by the clutch face being moved forward (due to the machining).

Did you or someone put a new flywheel on the engine recently? If so, I'm guessing y'all forgot to check the pivot ball for washers.

[JamesM]

My guess is that someone put a thick washer (or a couple of washers) under the pivot ball, moving the release arm too close to the pressure plate, causing the arm to rub on the pressure plate when the clutch is released.

Usually the pivot ball is spaced out only when the flywheel is machined, to take up the extra space caused by the clutch face being moved forward (due to the machining).

Did you or someone put a new flywheel on the engine recently? If so, I'm guessing y'all forgot to check the pivot ball for washers.

This would be my first guess as well as I cant think of anything else that would move that part of the arm closer to the pressure plate. The pressure plate itself does look a little odd though to me.

Thinking about it a bit

Stepping on the clutch pedal would pull that part of the arm away from the plate, so the contact is occurring while the clutch is not depressed. The only way I could see contact occurring in this state is if the throw-out bearing arm was at a very extreme angle while at rest, however when shimming the pivot ball to obtain this angle what eventually happens is the TO bearing arm winds up hitting the case (not the pressure plate). So im thinking either the thickness of the bearing is to thin or for some reason the pressure plate is to thick. that appears to be a fairly large interference where there should be a gap so I wouldnt imagine its crank float, but who knows?