[connecticut mike]

Good Evening,

First, thanks to all who responded to my (first-time) clutch replacement questions. I'm making progress - the new disc, pressure plate, transmission and U-joint are back in. Removing the pilot bearing was a struggle. My home-made puller didn't do the job, nor did the grease trick. I finally succeeded with a pilot bearing puller borrowed from Advance Auto Parts. The old pilot bearing seemed OK, but the throwout bearing was badly worn. I also adjusted the fingers of the pressure plate, after much review of postings on the subject. Very messy project, though. I seem to spend two hours cleaning for every hour of wrenching.

My question today is about lubricating the ball of the radius rod. I replaced the felt pad inside of the bell housing. I'm guessing that the pad absorbs oil that leaks from the transmission and passes it on to the ball(?). For initial lubrication should the felt pad be saturated with oil, or should the ball be greased?

Thanks, Mike