In <m0u1O47-0009r1C@walnut.holli.com>, Robert J. Donahue wrote:
>A.B. Bonds responds:
>>The TD pedal box is not only
>>difficult to get to, it is doubtless the dirtiest place in
>>Christendom.
>>
>Right on the nose! I unhooked the linkage and found that the pedal still
>moved like molasses. A few squirts of WD40 cleared it up. I had pumped
>some grease into the fitting earlier, but I guess it had not displaced
>the old sticky "Fig Newton" grease. Hey, who need a fancy hydraulic
>damper? Just lube a bearing with some 40 year old grease!
>
>Boy, that pedal box is darn right mysterious. You really can't see
>into it, just gotta feel your way around. There aren't any good diagrams
>of it in the usual books. By the way, is there supposed to be some kind
>of boot or grommet around the connecting rod comming out of the box?
>Looks like a good entrance for dirt and water.
>
By necessity I discovered the pedal box almost immediately after I had
purchased my TD some (mumble) years ago. It still sticks in my mind
as one of the most frustrating and revolting experiences in all of my
dealings with iron. The only reasonable way to get good access is to
remove the engine, and even then it is hard to get around inside it.
The original design used a flexible cable to couple with the clutch
lever on the sump. This cable bolted onto the front of the pedal box
and the attachment blocked entry of road gunge. As mentioned earlier,
in the middle of production they substituted a solid rod for the
cable. The rod just sticks out of the hole, with no shielding. The
clutch coupling is more direct, but the box fills up with gravel,
asphalt, broken glass, used chewing gum, rat droppings and dead birds,
all held together in an attractive melange by the oil spewing off the
engine.
I ended up buying a cable. Not cheap, but works well if you keep it
lubed, and it keeps the box reasonably clear. Since the rod pulls
_in_ when you depress the clutch, you can't just put a fixed shield on
it. The box also should have a side shield on it, which is often
missing. This inexpensive item helps a lot to keep the box clear.
A. B. Bonds
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