tdpole1 Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 I am a new member of the old Buick family. Been mainly building and driving muscle cars for years and wanted to get involved with the older factory cars. I bought a 1928 Buick 28-20 two door sedan and need to adjust or replace the clutch in it. I have to let the clutch pedal all the way out before it engages and in my past experience this meant the clutch and pressure plate need to be replaced. Not sure what I am getting into since the clutch appears to have multiple discs in it. How do I determine what I am looking for when looking for new discs? Any help will be appreciated. Tad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leif Holmberg Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 This`s how the discs look for 1927 Ser.20s,and I´m quite sure it looks the same on 1928 Ser. 20 models.Leif in Sweden. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
26-25Buick Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 Welcome Tad,Of course in comparison to a modern car the action of the clutch is a lot higher but before you go pulling the clutch it might be worth checking that the clutch pedal is properly adjusted. The pedal should travel 1 to 1 1/2" before you feel the pressure of the clutch spring. The adjustment is down next to bellhousing. The other issue you can get is the plates get contaminated with oil from a leaky engine rear seal. The owners manual says you can clean it by blocking the drain at the bottom and add a pint of petrol and turn it over by hand to wash the oil off. Never tried it myself but I've heard it works but seems a little risky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdpole1 Posted October 25, 2015 Author Share Posted October 25, 2015 Thanks guys for the help. I will try adjusting the clutch pedal first and see if that helps with the problem. It does not appear that the clutch slips after it engages it just engages so far out in the pedal travel that it is hard to make a smooth take off. I found a set of clutch plates for a 40 series straight six, which I think I have, and was going to buy five of the discs in case the adjustment and cleaning does not work. They are NOS but the seller is not sure they will work for my clutch. Says I should measure the diameter which means a tear down to get that done. Does anyone know if a 40 series for a straight series will work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepcak Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 This guy offers complete clutch assy for 1928 STD model. http://www.ebay.com/itm/1928-Buick-Sedan-Straight-6-Six-Manual-Transmission-Clutch-Used-Looks-Good-25598-/141771028674 Worth to seek for 1927 Shop manual with 1928 Supplement. I can possibly scan few pages with clutch adjustment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AzBob Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 Hi, and welcome to the forum. I had the opposite problem with the clutch on my '26-26. The discs didn't want to disengage fully with the proper adjustment and pedal all the way to the floor. Ended up plugging the drain hole on the flywheel housing and pouring in 2 quarts of naphtha then turned over by hand. Some of the naphtha ended up in the starter which I had to remove and clean afterwards. In addition, had a couple of fire extinguishers on standby. The treatment appears to have worked, the clutch discs disengage more readily and made for easier shifting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave_B Posted October 26, 2015 Share Posted October 26, 2015 Hi Tad,Welcome the world of twenties Buicks. You asked about the clutch In your car. First I would try adjusting the the pedal. Replacing the clutch in these cars is a major undertaking. You have to pull the rear. Ugh But anyway the clutch facings for the 40 and 50 series cars are 5/32 thick and the ones for the 20 series cars are 1/8 inch thick. Other than that they are the same. I don't think they will work Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hidden_hunter Posted October 26, 2015 Share Posted October 26, 2015 Hi Tad,Welcome the world of twenties Buicks.You asked about the clutch In your car. First I would try adjusting the the pedal. Replacing the clutch in these cars is a major undertaking. You have to pull the rear. UghBut anyway the clutch facings for the 40 and 50 series cars are 5/32 thick and the ones for the 20 series cars are 1/8 inch thick. Other than that they are the same. I don't think they will work Dave We found it more time consuming than difficult, the main thing is having the right tool to support the gearbox (we used an engine hoist through the door with the floor out) as it's really really heavy - seriously do not underestimate how heavy that transmission is. Lining up the transmission shaft can also be a bit of pain, the engine hoist meant that it could be repositioned reasonably easily. I also seem to recall having issues finding somewhere to put the jack stands (the design of mine don't quite fit under the frame rails) and it's reasonably awkward to put them near the back of the car. We managed to do it in a weekend to give you an idea of timing. The shop manual suggests flushing it with kero (or gasoline) but it's very difficult to actually plug without ending up with flamable liquid everywhere. While you're down there, it's also worth checking your gearbox oil to see if it's still got enough and that it's the right grade Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdpole1 Posted February 6, 2016 Author Share Posted February 6, 2016 Guys, I apologize for not thanking all of you for your suggestions and help. The end of the year was a mess for me. I am getting back into the swing of things now and will be starting on my car in the next couple of weeks. I am going to try the gas in the housing trick first in addition to checking the clutch adjustment. I was able to buy the complete clutch assembly as suggested by PEPCAK in addition to a set discs so I would be ready to work. We'll see how it goes. Again thanks for all the responses. Tad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdpole1 Posted February 23, 2016 Author Share Posted February 23, 2016 I tried adjusting the clutch and still have to let it all the way out until there is about 1-1.5 inches of pedal travel left. Very hard to get a smooth start. Being new to this world of old Buicks I'm still working on my double clutching to get smooth less grinding shifts. Kind of embarrassing given the amount of attention the car generates when out for a drive. The speedo does not work due to a nonexistent speedo cable and the attachment point on the transmission. I knew it was not working when I bought it but did not realize that it is such a tough part to find. Any help in pointing me in the right direction would be appreciated. Thanks,Tad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hidden_hunter Posted February 24, 2016 Share Posted February 24, 2016 I tried adjusting the clutch and still have to let it all the way out until there is about 1-1.5 inches of pedal travel left. Very hard to get a smooth start. Being new to this world of old Buicks I'm still working on my double clutching to get smooth less grinding shifts. Kind of embarrassing given the amount of attention the car generates when out for a drive. The speedo does not work due to a nonexistent speedo cable and the attachment point on the transmission. I knew it was not working when I bought it but did not realize that it is such a tough part to find. Any help in pointing me in the right direction would be appreciated. Thanks,Tad I haven't had it off but I didn't think the speedo cable was anything special, just a fairly standard square drive flex cable? possibly something else could be adapted to fit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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