So about 6 months ago i decided i was gonna take on the job of swapping my clutch/flywheel in my garage instead of take it to a shop to get done. Well to make a long story short i got in way over my head and had to basically get it done by talking to people and having friends w/ experience with trannys help me out (when they could). I know it's been outrageously too much time even w/ working on it a little bit at a time, but i got caught up w/ small inconveinces such as stripped bolts, cotter pins, and separating my D.S. hub from the lower control arm. So now i jus threw on my new 12lbs chromoly flywheel and stage II clutch and have a couples questions before i proceed...
1). how important is it to REALLY clean out the inside of the bell housing before i throw it back in?
2). is there any specific or special way in order to replace the rubber boot between the D.S. hub assembley and lower control arm? (the only way my friend and i could pop out the hub was to use a pickel fork~not recomended!~haha)
2a). do i need to add more grease or whatever is inside the boot before installing it?
3). how do i separate the upper control arm w/ the piece that attaches to it that leads down to the hub assembly?
4). i'm definately going to break in the clutch/flywheel to the suggested 500 miles before i really give her hell, but during the break in period what is the highest RPM i can take it to (before it starts pushing it past it's breakin limits? obvious around town usually won't be anymore than 3500-4000rpm, but what about on the highway?) when i'm in 5th doing 70mph i'm somewhere around 4500, is this too much?
i think that's all for now, sorry if my descriptions/ terms are a little off (i don't really do too much tech work, jus body and systems), but any help quick help would be greatly appreciated!!! I havn't drivin my lude for about a full year now and want to get her out atleast once before the snow comes! I'll let ya'll know if i run into any other problems.

Thanx
RED

 

It's not all that important to clean out the clutch dust.

I use a bearing puller to separate the taper joints. This preserves the rubber boots.

Yes, there should be clean grease in the ball joints.

RPM doesn't have a whole to do with breaking in a clutch. Just do some normal street driving to break it in. You'll have to slip it a little more anyway with the light flywheel.

Congrats on doing it yourself!

 

i really dont think that the 3000-4000 rpm really matters as long as you use ur new clutch as 'much' as possible.....(around town driving)(stop and go) on the highway you really dont use the clutch all that much....thats why they want you to drive around town.....do research this has been covered sometime ago.

 

thanx for the quick responses,~flyrod-how do i get the driver's side upper control arm off of that piece that connects to the hub? i didn't see any bolts or anything, do i just pop it out? And thank you for the DIY comment, i'm glad that i'll finally be able to say i've done a tranny from start to finish. (i probably won't ever do it again, well atleast in my small garage w/o all the right tools or an air compressor!)
~also i read on a guide to swapping your clutch out that unless i have a timing light, that i should have "marked my distributor " so my timing wouldn't be off. Unfortunately i read that article about 8 hours ago so i obviously didn't mark anything. is this going to automatically screw up my timing? if so how hard is it to fix? i've got a couple buddies that work at the local honda shop here that might be able to get me that light.

thanx again for your help!

p.s. andre809~I figured i'd jus ask along w/ my other questions to see if anyone could help me out. It would probably take longer for me to keep refining my search than to jus ask and have someone that knows type me 5 sentences jus to be a friendly, knowledgable lude enthusiest like yourself.

 

well i've run into another minor bump in my reinstallation of my tranny. When i switched the old release bearing w/ the new one that came w/ my clutch i noticed that it was much much looser than the stock one that was in there when i'd pull on the black lever. The little metal piece that fits inside the black handle had come off and i figured out exactly how it went back on over the round ball piece on the inside of the bell housing. I've been messing w/ the new release bearing trying to get it to fit snug on the lever w/ absolutely no success!!! if anyone knows what i'm doing wrong here or what exactly i should do PLEASE let me know! Also~when i finally do figure it out does anyone have any tricks or special ways they've put the bell housing back onto the motor? A friend and I struggled w/ trying to get it back on for about 30 min. straight and ended up out of breath w/ a couple of light scratches to the pressure plate i don't have a cherry picker or a tranny stand, jus one shop jack (and my engines held up right now by a 2x4 and a single heavy duty jack). I know i should have had everything i needed before i started but i had gotten an OWI and wasn't going to need it for 6 months, so ANY techniques that have made the job easier would be greatly appreciated!!! after i get that POS housing back on the motor, i know the rest will be pretty easy sailing (knock on wood)!

RED

 

use a honda throw out bearing....always...the aftermarket ones are junk and will make the wiggle sound...

 

is it still good? jus throw in the old one again and that's it? it said it was recommended to replace the release bearing if swapping clutch and flywheel

 

i reccomend buying a new oem one...youll regret not buying it later if this one squeaks...

 

the aftermarket one looks exactly the same as the stock but just new,

 

if you bought a clutch kit, it should be included in it.

 

well its not the exact same, its made with plastic peices where honda uses metal...

you can argue with me about it if you want...but i know....i had to change that peice of ****....

 

same here, when i was doing my swap. my exedy was made of metal