South Bend Clutch Info Thread

[turboboy4]

I have an SS pressure plate and the OFE Feramic/Organic combo and I love it. No slipping issues and easy engagement. Car made 415ft torque and 1.7 60ft's no problems

 

[crash89]

Thats interesting that they are made by Exedy, I have heard good about them on the internet but a local with a SBC Clutch and a Holeset was having slipping issues..

I bought an Exedy "stage 2" clutch one time and the splines on the disc stripped out in less then 500 miles..

On another note, have any of you ran an ACT 2100 and this one? Which one would you recommend? What about running an OE disc with one of these Pressure plates?

 

[daren_p]

I will be running the SS TZ/FE setup this summer. Last clutch I ran was the Fidanza 4.3, it held great for abit under 10K but started to slip on launches. It was babied for 3-4K of that as I was beaing very easy on the new tranny. Hopefully this one will last longer & possibly cure the annoying coast down noise I've been having.

 

[donniekak]

I'm almost willing to try one of these disks, but i've had horrible issues with kevlar disks in my stealth tt. I have never been able to get anything but a puck disk to hold after a good launch, without a higher than i am comfortable running on a 4g63 pressure plate. My 2600# pressure plate could hold the power all day with a street, or kevlar disk, but if i put some heat to it, the slipping ensued. On the other hand, in my galant i ran an hx40 on I never had any problems with a cheap brand puck setup. The only negative is the eventual wear caused by the pucks on the pp, and flywheel, and the spline wear because of it being solid hub. I don't mind working on my car when parts fail, as long as they worked in the first place. My question is, can one of these disks hold up to heat, and not glaze, while holding as much power as the puck disks, with the same pp?

 

[twicks69]

Simple response? It holds up fantastic. The TZ/FE dual friction disk does substantially better at high temp resistance to glazing if you know how to drive your car. If you are riding the clutch or don't have it properly adjusted you can glaze any disk, especially a kevlar unit that requires material to be bedded on the pressure plate and flywheel friction surfaces to properly grab and function under load.

Which clutch did you have in the 3si? An old RPS clutch? I probably wouldn't have gone with a full-face kevlar disk on a heavy car like the 3si unless it was being driven gently. I would have likely suggested a carbon/carbon or ceramic/feramic clutch to handle the high load, torque capacity and heat better.

For a fiber/carbon clutch disk to try, I would look at the Clutchnet fiber/carbon sprung-hub disk -- http://www.clutchnet.com/product.php?productid=10654&cat=0&page=1

For a carbon/feramic clutch disk to try, I would do a South Bend Clutch custom ceramic/feramic puck sprung-hub clutch disk. This product I would order directly from South Bend Clutch.

The reason why I really like the kevlar/feramic clutch disks (TZ/FE series disk from South Bend Clutch) is the fact that it has a better temperature capacity than the full-face TZ-Series kevlar disk yet still has excellent wear life and very smooth streetability. Engagement is slightly crisper than the TZ-Series kevlar disk, but it is really only noticable when you are doing aggressive shifting.

The important thing is that the vehicle application, vehicle weight, driver style and vehicle purpose will dramatically affect which clutch option to recommend. With that said, the best I can do is recommend a unit and give it a try. That is what I had to do for many years of trying out clutches to find out which one did the best for my application. I ended up going through alot of them to find the ones that worked out the best.

 

[Artago]

On another note, have any of you ran an ACT 2100 and this one? Which one would you recommend?

I had a ACT 2600 (Broke fingers, my fault), ACT 2100 (PP cracked, not my fault) and the SS by SBC. I like the SS pressure plate more than the 2100. It's slightly softer and the pedal feel on engagement and disengagement is more consistent and smooth. Overall, I like the SS plate the best out of the 3.

I have the SS-TZ combo.

The disk is also good but if you intentionally slip it, it will over heat and you will smell it. Just don't ride the clutch and you'll be fine.

It's a great PP and disk combo and I love it.

 

[crash89]

I had a ACT 2600 (Broke fingers, my fault), ACT 2100 (PP cracked, not my fault) and the SS by SBC. I like the SS pressure plate more than the 2100. It's slightly softer and the pedal feel on engagement and disengagement is more consistent and smooth. Overall, I like the SS plate the best out of the 3.

I have the SS-TZ combo.

The disk is also good but if you intentionally slip it, it will over heat and you will smell it. Just don't ride the clutch and you'll be fine.

It's a great PP and disk combo and I love it.

Thanks for the reply buddy! I just bought the SS pressure plate and TZ/fe disc this morning! Recommendation from Tim Zimmer himself! Ill let you guys in on how I like it after I get it and install it!

 

[donniekak]

I'm putting in a dxd f tomorrow. It is the ss pressure plate with a 6-puck disk. I usually hate the puck/spring combo, but they have almost totally encapsulated the springs in their disk, to avoid them popping out. I'll pop back in here in a few weeks for an update.

 

[Artago]

I'm putting in a dxd f tomorrow. It is the ss pressure plate with a 6-puck disk. I usually hate the puck/spring combo, but they have almost totally encapsulated the springs in their disk, to avoid them popping out. I'll pop back in here in a few weeks for an update.

Can you post pics of the PP and disk for others as a reference?

 

[donniekak]

Can you post pics of the PP and disk for others as a reference?

To late now. I'll get some pics the next time my trans has to come off. Probably all to soon.

 

[Imback]

I wonder how much cool off time tim would recommend between passes since on my set up 2600pp with a tz disk and a act FW after the pass it feels overheated and like it wants to slip. Or maybe i need a stronger PP or there other disk they offer.

 

[twicks69]

I wonder how much cool off time tim would recommend between passes since on my set up 2600pp with a tz disk and a act FW after the pass it feels overheated and like it wants to slip. Or maybe i need a stronger PP or there other disk they offer.

I like to have at least 30 minutes-1 hour of cooldown time between passes when you are at the higher power levels with the kevlar disk on a 2600PP and ACT flywheel. The problem with doing heavy launches on a kevlar disk is that you will wipe the friction surface clean and you need to re-bed the clutch. If it is acting like it is slipping, let it cool down and then drive it normal for a bit or do some mild clutch slipping (like when you leave from a stop during street driving) and some regular shifting for a bit. Once the clutch is re-bedded (broken in), it will be fine. That is the nice thing about overheating a kevlar clutch; let it cool down and break it back in again and it goes back to normal.

I found my limits in the Mid-10-second/low-11-second time range on the ACT 2600 with the TZ-kevlar clutch disk. It would do fine, but would slip after 1 or 2 heavy passes requiring cooldown before it would work again. With that said, it lasted a LONG time in my car and still is in Mr. Peeper's car to this day and he runs 11.0's on a used clutch!

 

[Imback]

Your right about the kevlar materiel i have always been able to rebed it by driving normal for a bit. Now since the track is about an hour and half away and after gas tolls and fee to get in it's kinda expensive so i would like to get more the 3 runs in on a test and tune night. What would you recommend?

 

[crash89]

I found my limits in the Mid-10-second/low-11-second time range on the ACT 2600 with the TZ-kevlar clutch disk. It would do fine, but would slip after 1 or 2 heavy passes requiring cooldown before it would work again. With that said, it lasted a LONG time in my car and still is in Mr. Peeper's car to this day and he runs 11.0's on a used clutch!

I didnt know Matt was on a used clutch! Thats awesome news for me and this new clutch! Im sure he'll be in the 10s this season too! He was damn close late in the season and managed to make it to the dyno and bump the car up a couple psi!

 

[donniekak]

The dxd-f i have is excellent! It's the ss pressure plate, with a ferramic puck disk. Holds power great, launches great, and doesn't slip no matter how hot it gets. Engagement is fine.

 

[forcefed86]

I've been having some issues with my SouthBend Kevlar/Feramic (TZ/FE) install.

Using a fidanza alum flywheel with new insert. These are claimed to be stepped at .610". Like a fool I didn't measure mine before install.

Details can be seen here.

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/dri...ngagement-issues-southbend.html#post152782839

 

[dsm_92_fwd]

Ok so the break in period is complete and I love this clutch.

Grips hard and fasts! I highly recommend it.

Now the long term durability test begins.

Cheers.

Tom

How many miles on your break in? Ive read mixed opinions. Let me know, Thanks

 

[Artago]

How many miles on your break in? Ive read mixed opinions. Let me know, Thanks

Geez, not really sure. 5000-ish worry free miles so far.

I'll be doing a tranny rebuild soon so I'll inspect the clutch while I'm at it, check back later for photos.

Tom

 

[forcefed86]

I'm running the feramic/kevlar full face. Mine took a good 1000 miles to break in properly. Still doesn't feel perfect. Taken it to the track a few times. There is a fine line between launching to hard (clutch slips) and launching to easy (bogs). Great for daily driving though and seems to hold all the power I throw at it. 450-500ish now with a 2600PP. Not bad for a full face disc!