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I need to replace the Master Clutch Cylinder. Under the dash I have removed the retainer clip on the end of the short rod that connects the fork/clevis on the end of cylinder to clutch pedal. The small rod is frozen in place. Tried to use a punch and screwdriver to push towards the opposite end..trying to punch out toward the left front. Will not budge. Tried spraying "Freeze-Off" penetrate on the rod but no success. Any Thoughts would be appreciated.

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Using a small c-clamp and closed end of a box wrench, couldn't get a small socket to fit, tried to press the rod/pin out of the clevis....no luck. Totally frozen in the clevis/clutch pedal hole...will not budge. Going to carefully heat the rod with a torch and let cool to see if that will help loosen the rod. If that doesn't work will try to cut out.....I looked at removing the whole assembly and would be very difficult. I believe I would run into the same problems when trying to remove the other pins/rods for the brake and accelerator pedals...

The two things that make Pantera cross pin removal 'interesting' are- wear of the mild steel pin which raises a burr around the pin and also creates an egg-shaped depression in the pin and the lever. Sometimes corrosion intrudes as well. That whole 50+ yr old area is metal-on-metal & is never lubricated- maybe not even at the factory. This all makes it difficult to force the pin out- which ideally is a simple finger-push fit in the lever.

Look closely at the exploded parts illustration to figure out exactly what you're dealing with. Some of the levers are steel and a few are cast steel which breaks like cast iron if forced too much. Can't remember which yours is. Because of the pedal forces involved, broken cast levers don't weld repair.

If the pin simply won't move either way, and you can't get a thin saw blade or grinding disc alongside the clevis to cut the pin in 3 pieces, I suggest removing the pedal plate, lever, shaft etc and DRILL the pin out in a mill or drill press, before you break something spendy or set something on fire. If things ARE that badly worn, after its out you may have to weld & redrill or bush the pin holes- which would be a second nightmare to do in the car. I use hardenable drill rod for replacement pins so there's no reoccurrance. Good luck.

Thanks Bosswrench, your detailed explanation is spot on... I was able to get a small Dremel drill with metal cutting disc up to the one side of the Clevis and cut off...note pic looking up from floorboard. I was able to remove the small cut clevis piece from end of frozen pin which exposed a larger section of pin. Using a lot of penetrating spray and small vice grip wrench I was able to finally loosen the pin from the clutch pedal. It took me a couple days of wrestling with this off n on to get free....I was thinking of using a small torch to heat the pin but decided against this for a number of reasons...Terrible job to replace in place but no other option with pin frozen to clutch pedal. Removing the two bolts that hold the master clutch cylinder to trunk box is another story but finally got out without the help of another person to hold nuts on trunk side.. waiting for new cylinder to arrive, have deburred the clutch pedal access hole that pin connects using a small round file.. For me this was a 10 out of 10 on scale of difficulty based on access to frozen pin. Thanks for all the comments!
Ron

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@lf-tp2511 posted:

These are a couple of changes I did the last time I had to work with the clutch master cylinder.

Larry

Larry, Thanks for sharing, having just been through this to rebuild my clutch master cylinder, I had thoughts of creating something similar to hold the bolt heads, seeing your solution is the nudge I needed!

Thanks for ideas and photos. Was thinking of something similar to connect clevis to pedal. What about a bolt and nylon threaded nut instead of pin, or would this possible make connection too tight if torqued a bit tight? Any other ideas on affixing bolt to hold cylinder instead of fab bracket/tack welding bolt head? Great idea but can't do with pedal assembly in place. Was thinking of using a Hillman washer and regular nut with lock washer on trunk side. Think I could hand tighten enough so that Hillman washer holds to torque nut. Or, just replace the same way I took out with needle nose vice grips holding nut as I used a swivel socket to tighten under dash. I'm a one man show...... Thanks, Ron

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