Blow-by??

I took the whole clutch assembly off and did some cleaning. The oil channel in the clutch drive was a little gunked up, and the hole at the bottom of the housing was plugged (I cleaned them). Of course the clutch disks had an oil film on them, as well as the pressure plates.

I cleaned all the clutch surfaces with a laquer thinner to get the oil off and put it back together. When I put the adjusting nuts on, they have to be on far enough that the cotter pins are in the innermost holes. It still slips in higher gears when engaging the clutch. When I put it in 5th and throw the clutch in, it wont kill it or even pull it down, just kind of takes off slow and easy. I'v got the nuts tight enough that one more notch is really tuff to get clutch handle to snap in. The clutch disks are about 1/8" thick.

Then I went to the hardware store and got the piping to make an extended oil fill and welded a 1/2" pipe on the side of it to act like a breather tube. When it runs, the crankcase is breathing in and out on that little tube.

I have a few questions: are the clutch disks needing to be replaced for thickness? Did the oil glaze the disks? Why am I getting oil in the clutch in the first place? Was I wrong to use a laquer thinner to clean the oil off the clutch parts (couldn't think of anything else at the time)?

Any help would be really appreciated, as I am just a wanna-be-mechanic.

The operating sleeve seemed to be a good fit on the belt pulley shaft, it slid easily, but didn't flop or slop.

The bronze bushing was a little loose on the crankshaft. After I slid the belt pulley back on, if I lifted the outside of the belt pulley, without the driving-adjusting-clutch disks installed, I could feel a little slop, and that bronze bushing had a few marks in it.

As far as the adjusting nuts, what would be a proper torque setting on these? I'm not sure what you mean by good tension. In the past, I just set them so the clutch lever snapped in and out (have only had to set them up once or twice in past 5 years). I do know that it seems to pull out a little harder than it goes in. I want to make sure that I'm with you on this.

Any further info would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for your response.

The operating sleeve had no noticeable rotational play. Only movement I found was fore and aft on the pulley shaft.

Any more thoughts?

Thanks, I appreciate your help.

Wanna-Be-Mechanic

Wanna-Be-Mechanic

You could be getting blow-by indication at the clutch because your crankcase ventilation roller pump, located at the base of the fanshaft, has ceased to pump. Or, the air pipe from the tappet cover to the air cleaner is plugged.

Normally, it would pressurize the crankcase, then that pressure would makes it's way out that tappet cover vent pipe. If that pipe is plugged or gone and capped, the clutch is a good place for the pressure to try and escape.

That roller in the pump can score and be stuck down in it's vane body. But when this happens, it usually pumps oil into the air intake, and smokes like the devil.

Since you have plenty of pressure, I'd check that air pipe that goes from the tappet cover to the cast pipe on the frontside of the carb is clear.

The old fix if one didn't want to fix the pump was to do what you have already done. I think we just drilled about an 1/8" hole in the side of that pipe nipple where you add oil. I fixed the pump years later when I restored the tractor.

Frank-in-Tallahassee

It doesn't suck any oil or smoke, so hopefully it isn't the ventilator pump. I'll check the vent tube tomorrow. If it's OK, I'll probably be back to pick your brain.

Thanks for the response.