TKO 600 has a Front leak

[Tugboat]

I have a TKO600 that I put a McCleod Hyd. throwout bearing on and it leaks from the front of the trans from the throwout bearing. Not alot but a dang nuisance. I had the dealer send me a rebuild kit thinking it was the throwout bearing but once removed discovered it was fluid from the trans and not the throwout bearing. Rebuilt the throwout bearing anyway and replaced with fingers crossed. No Luck, still leaks. The throwout bearing kit didn't supply the National seal #470712 whick runs on the input shaft. I have ordered this seal and preparing to do it all over again. Has anyone else ever been thru this? The trans people say to coat the back of the throwout bearing with black permatex and replace it on the trans and let it dry before filling. I didn't do this so next time maybe that will help also.
Thanks for any experiences.

Larry Boatner

[mikeforte]

Hi Larry,
Your plight is common with hydraulic throw out bearings. The bearing retainer should be sealed with anaerobic sealer and NOT RTV. The anaerobic sealer needs to be completely removed with carb cleaner & a razor blade. Be sure to install the proper shims that preload the front bearing.
I have developed many external billet slave/ fork combos so hydraulic throw out bearings are not used. When the hydraulic t/ob fails it will be a hugh headache just like you have learned.
Call me with any questions....

[Cashburn]

We abandoned use of the Mcleod units pretty quickly... when a new part comes with a set of seals to rebuild it, it's like them telling you it will fail.

From a hydraulic t/o angle we have used the Tilton units very successfully. Still prefer a well setup external unit though.

[maurice19]

Larry,

The bolts that hold the base of the throw out bearing to the trans. need to be coated with loctite because they screw into the trans fluid area.

No coat, great chance of leak

Maurice

[Tugboat]

Maurice, Jay and Mike

Thankyou so much for your answers.

Mike, you were on my list to call today!! Will talk to you soon about this trans. I am thinking of changing the final drive gear so that I turn less RPM at 60. At this point I am running 2700 rpm at 60 with 17" tires and 373 gears. Is this a major undertaking for you? And is it very expensive? Also I am not sure that McCleod T/O bearing does have the front bearing shims correct!

Jay, I agree with your thoughts. Once bought and installed I thought I would try to get this one fixed. I have a friend who has the Tilton and it is a great unit. It maybe my next purchase. And Having a lift in my garage helps with remove / replace. But, it does seem that when I was younger these transmissions were alot lighter. haha

Maurice, I think that you may have hit the nail on the head with your statement. I did not seal the bolts and that could be the source of some if not all the leak. It is a small leak but a real pain is the A**. After driving it may leak 5 - 10m drops.

[66CobraGuy]

I just finished installing a Tilton 6000 Hydraulic Clutch release and since I was in there I replaced the clutch, pressure plate and flywheel (all McCleod) Once apart I noticed that the outer sleeve on the bearing retainer didn't look so hot so I also replaced it and put it all back together. Took it for a test run and the clutch release works so good that it feels like a different car. The next day I jacked it up and found a small puddle of what I thought was brake fluid but nope it was red and def trans fluid. I crawled underneath to find the whole bottom of the trans wet with fluid so I wiped it all off and found that it was leaking from between the front of the trans and the rear of the bellhousing. Looks like I should have used sealant on the inside of the bearing retainer. Soo I'll need to pull it and correct the problem.. No big deal it's only the 3rd time I've had the trans out....lol Maybe I'll install a zipper while I'm at it!...hahahaha