Don, and everyone else,
> I still have the original t/o bearing on my transmission. I noticed
> that it spins very freely as compared to the Gunst bearing. You
> can "flick" it with your hand, and it will spin. The Gunst is nothing
> like that.
I'll confirm that, the RHP that came out of my 71 TR6 was very loose feeling
and would spin incredibly easily. I decided to put that used RHP back in,
since it was not squeaking or making any other noise, and now that it has
been a few weeks, it seems to be that the used and old RHP bearing is
working just fine with no ill effects (the engine in my car was rebuilt
sometime in the mid-80s and the clutch components appeared to be renewed at
the same time).
> I used to think that the original t/o bearing was worn out, but
> maybe it isn't. I never had any trouble with it and the car only has
> 60K miles. Maybe it was designed to spin freely so the small
> preload supplied by the slave cylinder was sufficient keep it in
> contact with the clutch fingers and turning.
Yes, I would agree with everything you said Don. The original bearings seem
to survive very well and do not need much to keep them spinning against the
clutch pressure plate, when one is not operating the clutch.
> It seems reasonable that a bearing as stiff as the Gunst is would
> require a much stronger preload than the original.
Or the bearing in used by Gunst and BPNW is not meant to be in constant
contact at all. The Dodge bearing I mentioned earlier (BCA2065 for those
interested, although I stress I have no conclusions about this bearing yet),
is quite stiff also. The Federal Mogul / BCA bearing catalogue specifically
states that there should be adequate free play between the bearing thrust
face and the clutch and that it should not be in constant contact with the
pressure plate fingers, for the Dodge bearing.
I am still awaiting an answer from NTN regarding the bearing used in the
Gunst and BPNW parts. They requested some photos and dimensions yesterday,
which I supplied to them late last night, and when I hear back, I'll forward
any findings.
Now can you imagine if RHP just decided to build their TR release bearings
correctly, like they did 30 years ago, and then we wouldn't even have to
have this discussion ;-)
Kai
--
Kai M. Radicke
Wishbone Classics
www.wbclassics.com
Ph: 215.945.7250
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