Newbie needs some clutch advice

Tony, don't be enticed by the low price of 351C clutches for Torinos and Mustangs. There is a difference between a stock 351C clutch and a Pantera clutch. I think the Pantera clutch uses a thinner clutch plate and you will have trouble with disengagement with a stock plate.
I got mine through Pantera Performance in Castle Rock, CO. It is a centerforce style clutch and it also reduces the clutch pedal effort noticeably. It may be pricy, but it is worth it to get the right setup the first time. I think it comes with a new throw out bearing, but be sure to ask.
Unless it is warped from overheating, your clutch plate may be OK with a resurface grind. Your mechanic will know how to check.
You might consider a new pilot bushing while you're in there. Try to get one of Marlin Jacks bushings. He posts on this board, so search his name or pilot bushing. He has the non-magnetic oilite bushing that should be used. Apparently the cheapos from the auto parts store have a lot of steel in the alloy and are easier to sieze up. I would avoid the temptation to use a Torrington style roller bearing unless you are building a racing engine and plan to replace it on a regular basis. The right pilot bushing will last a long, long time in a street engine.
Later, Mooso.

Tony,

Welcome to the board and to the Pantera community. The Pantera Club of Northern California meets the last Thursday of the month at Coco's restaurant in Sunnyvale. Join us this month and meet everyone. And you may be able to talk a few of the guys into joining you for a clutch tech session.
http://www.panteraclubnorcal.com/index.php/events/details/2-mm

As far as clutches go, I just got a new Centerforce clutch from Precision ProFormance for my car (came with a new throwout bearing) a couple months ago and an oilite bronze pilot bushing from Marlin Jack. All will go in once I finish my engine rebuild.

Another option is to have your stock clutch and pressure plate rebuilt. I've had B&A Friction Materials (the old Bayshore Friction) in San Jose rebuild clutches and pressure plates for me in years past and they did very nice work.
http://www.bafriction.com/

Now tell us about your car - serial number, pics, etc. And welcome to the wonderful world of Panteras.

I have the CenterForce Pantera clutch and I recommend it.

Like they said, it's more then a Mustang clutch BUT the Pantera clutch is just a little different.

The Pantera doesn't have as much pedal travel as a Mustang and requires a unique clutch.

Tony, WELCOME!

From what I can see you have a very nice ride,
There are alot of choices out there and the best place to start and learn about this is here and your local Club.

PI MotorSports I have found to have good solid advice! You want to talk to Jerry, very good price's. I'll warn you though to have a shop do this for you is expensive, be careful as to who you pick and get some reference's.
I'd say the club way would be the best and spend some time with some new friends while your at it.

Plenty of info if you do a search on "clutch's"
Anyways good luck!

Mark

Thanks to everyone for their help and advice.

I decided to order a McLeod Clutch, PP & T/O Bearing from PI Motorsports which came to ~ $360.

I'm still trying to find a good shop to get the work done.

Btw, my car is SN 4119. The story I'm told is that its one of 8 European spec 72 GTS's that were imported as a special exemption in 74. Its showing 70K kilometers and all the gauges are in Italian. It looks to have the factory fender flares etc. I don't know if the story is true but it seems to hang together.

I was also told informally that all 8 cars went to execs within Ford Motor Company. Some prelim research after my purchase (in Texas) indicated that the original owner was a chap by the name of Dominick Vermet. The registration was in Detroit and it seems that he was an employee of Ford at the time. I intend to contact him and hopefully get a little more insight on the history of the car.

Thanks again to everyone for all the help !

Tony