Reassembling 57 AGIN

[shopratwoody]

Line Lock, or Roll Control locks the front brakes so you don't roll the light when Drag Racing. Needed only
with stick shift cars.

[RICH MUISE]

Thanks Ron...learn something new everyday here.
Rich

[JPotter57]

We also use them to hold the car in place so we can do a great big fat smoky burnout too, Ron..Saves a ton of wear on the rear brakes.

[57AGIN]

Rich:

Here is a closeup of the roll control, AKA "Line Lock."  The first photo shows the Master Cylinder, the Steering Box, and the Line Lock.  The second is the line lock closeup. 

From what Rick tells me, you step on your brakes, then push the button on your stick or shift control (automatics) to engage the line lock which keeps full brake pressure on the front brakes.  Then remove your foot from the brake pedal, the front brakes stay engaged and the rear brakes release, you can then spin up your rear tires to heat'em up.  Then release the line lock button and roll up to the starting line.  Then repeating the procedure for the launch you can run the engine up to your desired launch RPM, with your finger still on the line lock button the car will not roll over the starting line, whether you are slipping the clutch or pre-loading the automatic up to stall speed.  At least I think that is the way it works, as when I have been at the drags, I never had the luxury of a line lock.

Bob
57 AGIN

[57AGIN]

Hi Again:

It's been a very productive day.  The engine, clutch, pressure plate, bellhousing and TKO 600 are now installed into the 57.  At least hooked up to the motor mounts and ready for whatever has to be done to the transmission cross member to make it work.  The next series of photos show pieces of what was done today, in between scattered showers and clear almost cloudless skys.

Photo #1 shows the bellhousing being dialed in, even though this was a reinstall and the same bellhousing that came off the engine before, with a new flywheel it was found to be out of tollerance.  With a little tweaking the bellhousing was centered up and ready for installing the clutch & pressure plate.

Photo #2 Shows the clutch being centered under the pressure plate using the too long TKO 600 input shaft as the centering tool.  To make the TKO 600 setup work with the front bench seat we had to use the rear shifter position turned around to place the shifter 4" closer to the front of the car.  I had purchased the TKO mid shift kit, but we found that it didn't need to be used.  The only thing necessary to install the TKO 600 into my Custom 300 was a shorter input shaft, as I'm using my old Lakewood SFI approved bellhousing used with the Borg Warner T-10.

Bob
57 AGIN

[57AGIN]

The next set of photos show the cutting of the tunnel and how the new shifter locates at nearly the same place as the old Hurst 4-speed shifter, the only difference is the shifter is now centered on the tunnel and not offset to the driver side.  We cut a 3 1/4" hole in the tunnel and then had to do some additional tin snipping to get some additional clearance in order to get the TKO centered up in the throughout bearing before pushing the trans forward into the clutch & pilot shaft.  We really handicapped ourselves by not having the car jacked up higher to allow more room beneath for the transmission to be mounted onto the transmission jack before being raised into mounting position.  There's aq whole lot to be said for having a car hoist when doing this kind of stuff.

Bob
57 AGIN

[57AGIN]

These two final photos show the transmission installed from a ground view and the engine as it now sits waiting for the next installment.  lol

Bob
57 AGIN

[Jeff Norwell]

Looking great Bob...Line Lock is fun.

[RICH MUISE]

Looking awesome Bob..gonna be a shame to cover all that pretty stuff with fenders! I think we could all use a friend like Rick.
Rich

[JimNolan]

Bob,
   It's looking great. I don't know if you're using the hydraulic clutch or the Z-Bar but when you first start using the transmission it'll be be sort of stiff between gears. The big thing with mine was I could not get it into 1st or reverse without first going to another gear. It was driving me crazy. I found out that the clutch adjustment needed just a hair more throw. It was shifting fine except being able to go from neutral to 1st or reverse. I would have thought that if the clutch wasn't right 2nd thru 5th would have been affected also, but it wasn't. Jim

[shopratwoody]

Bob,
Looking good. Be glad you have Rick doing this. I don't know any average Guy who center his bellhousing. (except racers).
Very nice.Looks like lots a $$$$$$ to me.

[57AGIN]

Ron:

Yes, plenty of $ going into the project.  Probably my last Hurrah, as in the near future I won't be supplementing my retirement by working part-time.  Once the extra $ dry up so will my projects, at least those involving $.  Meanwhile, I'm still on a quest to make 57 AGIN into everything my original 57 couldn't be due to lack of $ and really having a good time doing it.

Jim:

I'll be using a Z-bar setup.  A few years ago my original Z-bar failed.  The metal had crystallized and when I pushed in the clutch absolutely nothing happened.  This occurred while Rick was still working and he surprised me with a better than new one, complete with a zirc fitting to grease the ends whenever the car was being lubed.  Thanks for the info on the TKO I'm anxious to give it a try and see what surprises are in store for me when back on the road.  I'm wondering what effect the slightly wider gear ratio separation in the TKO over the close ratio T-10 will have on my quarter mile times.  But I really won't have anything to compare them against, as the blower was installed just last year and I haven't had the car on the strip since.  I know that with the blower the car really pulls strongly at any RPM above 3000, so I probably won't lose anything in the mid range.  The lower first gear will certainly help launch the car off the line better.

Rich:

You're quite right, Rick is numero ono (#1) and I'm blesses to have a friend like him.

Jeff:

I sure hope to get some use out of the Line Lock.  The way Rick has described it to me, it should make things at the starting line go smoother.  I just hope I can remember the correct sequence to do what supposed to be done, or my starting line activities will really be fun to watch.  LOL

Bob
57 AGIN

[JimNolan]

Bob,
   I forgot to tell you. I had to add about a three inch section to my Z-bar, where the rod to the throwout yoke fastens on. I wasn't getting enough throw to completely disengage the clutch. You might not have that problem. I used the original 57 Z-bar with the engine ball dropped down a little for the FE block. Jim

[57AGIN]

Jim:

Thanks for that info, too.  It won't be a problem for my 57's engine setup.  The Z-bar Rick made for me worked perfectly in conjunction with my 351W and the Lakewood (SFI) bellhousing for the past 7 years. 

Bob
57 AGIN

[Custom300Madman]

All I can say is wow! What a awesome car!