Gatsby

iTrader: (7)

Hey folks,

I put in a Monster stage 2 a couple of years ago and only put a few thousand miles on it in that time and it started to slip horribly. I tore it apart and the nice guys over at SNL (Monster) said based on photos I sent and the behavior it exhibited that I had oil on the surfaces that caused a gradual deterioration in holding power. I DID have a substantial oil leak, so that makes sense to me.

I have since replaced it (took about a month, heh) with another stage 2 (but their updated one that is kevlar now (i think). Anyway, AMAZING. I DEFINITELY did not have this kind of holding power on the last one, which I know is not possible.

My main question is regarding the pedal pressure. I went from a stock LS1 clutch to a tick master cylinder and a monster 2 and the pedal was ridiculously hard. Now, this is the first manual car I've owned or even driven, so I had no comparison, but I felt like I had to go to the gym to build up my legs to even drive it and every person that drove it said it was crazy stiff. I chalked it up to having a performance clutch/master like this.

Fast forward to this weekend and I put everything back in the car, bleed the slave a few times just to be sure it's okay, and when I pump the pedal it is REALLY light, like almost stock feeling. I was concerned. I put it in gear, started it, did the hang test (level ground, car in gear with clutch fully depressed, rev engine, see if the car inches forward indicating the clutch is dragging) and it was perfect. I babied the car around town for a few miles (break-in procedure and all) and it drives ten times better than it ever did with the other monster clutch. I was trying to be gentle and it still chirped the tires a bunch. I also noticed that the engagement point is RIGHT off the floor whereas it used to be almost 50% off the floor.

So what gives? Is the old clutch somehow defective? Did I install it wrong somehow? There was never any noise or anything last time though I did have what I thought was chatter for the first couple hundred miles (normal I hear). This time I hear no chatter at all.

I did have the flywheel turned down (because of the oil) whereas initially it was a brand new flywheel from monster and so I did not turn it down (could that cause an issue?)

I really want to get to the bottom of this to make sure I don't make any mistakes in the future. Also, I want to be sure this is how it's supposed to feel and I don't just have a false sense of security.

NOTE: Monster was extremely helpful, courteous, and expedient with getting back to me, examining my pictures, and helping me get the right stuff. I really appreciate why I went with them in the first place and intend to stay with them in the future. Thanks guys.

Hardcoresoldier

iTrader: (2)

how old is your slave cylinder? what color is your clutch master fluid?

Gatsby

iTrader: (7)

The slave was changed to a new GM style when I did the clutch initially a couple of years ago. It is thus about two years old and has less than 8k miles on it.

The fluid is clean (bled regularly) and did develop the usual greyish color every couple thousand miles, but never got black (opaque).

chrysler kid

iTrader: (14)

More than likely your old slave was the reason your pedal was extremely hard. The quick connect fitting can be loose and cause higher pressure to activate the clutch

Gatsby

iTrader: (7)

Sorry, I know I was really wordy and all over the place, the slave was replaced the LAST time i put in the Monster, I did not even touch the slave this time. So to sum up, the slave is exactly the same now as it was when i had the firm pedal.

I did think briefly that it could have been that I didn't have the quick connect all the way in. In fact, this time it looked a little "out" too, so i kept pushing, but I guess it's in all the way because it works beautifully.

Could the quick connect not being inserted fully cause some issues with the clutch other than hard pedal (again, trying to find out why this one failed).

Thanks for all your help folks.

Gatsby

iTrader: (7)

Bump because I really want to see if we can get some insight from Monster/Tick, I'm sure those guys have seen just about everything.

P.S. - Insight from everyone else is very welcome still! Heh.