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[Autoquick]

I have a '65 with 1147cc engine and original transmission.  And the clutch seems to be slipping under load.  I noticed that the clutch disengages right at the top of the clutch peddle.  Where would the adjustment for this be?  The slave cylinder has a cutback to hold position.  Is there a adjustment on the fork or something?

Still learning this car.

[Mark Jones]

There is no adjustment.  It's probably wear in the clutch pivots within the bellhousing.  It doesn't take much wear to affect the engagement and disengagement of the clutch.

[Autoquick]

I think I know what the problem is.  It seems that the previous owner was a bit of tinkerer and used the same master cylinder for both the clutch and brake.  And from what I'm seeing the slave cylinder on the clutch is throwing out too far.  I have made a 1/8th spacer for the clutch slave cylinder to keep the throw from going to far.  But I should source the correct master cylinder so it operates correctly.

[herald948]

Originally, there was no difference at all between the brake and clutch master cylinders on a Spitfire beyond the fact that original brake cylinders would've had a taller (and therefore larger) reservoir. They were the same bore, etc., otherwise. Note that there are different clutch slave cylinders relative to the early coil-spring clutch or the later diaphragm clutches (Mk2 on). Any "respacing" of the cylinder mounts or changing actuator rod lengths is pretty much a band-aid that might temporarily mask the problem; ultimately it makes more sense to ensure the right components are matched to each other and that wear on various components (such as the pivot mentioned above) isn't causing problems.