Was-Clutch Is-Clutch

The title sounds a bit Dr. Suess. Must be too much reading to the girls. Anyway, back to the garage work. I promise not to rhyme Mr. Fox Sir.

After spending over an hour modifying six 5/16-18 x 1 1/2" bolts to replicate the special bolts Willys used to secure the pressure plate to the flywheel, I was ready for the 10 minute job of installing the clutch.

The top bolt is original, the bottom is a new grade 8 from the local Tractor Supply. I thought the unthreaded portion was going to be the perfect length and I'd only have to cut them down. Turns out I needed to add about 1/8" more thread.


Fortunately, I found the right die in my meager kit of threading tools. I spent some extra time with a thread file and thread restorer to dull the new threads a bit and remove burrs.

And after getting that all done it was literally about 10 minutes of work to get the clutch installed on the flywheel.

Motor Madness

After some delay, I got the motor mounted on the frame. I live in the suburbs so there's no triple pole teepee and chain rig in my front lawn. My neighbors all shake their heads at me over the grinder sparks and hammer sounds coming from my garage. Thanks to a buddy loaning me his engine crane so I at least look semi-professional and neighbor-friendly.