# How clutch plates are made?



## Putt-Rite (Jul 13, 2013)

Does anybody know how clutch plates were made in the olden days, like the early a 1900's?


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## Tin Falcon (Jul 13, 2013)

Off hand would only be guessing . but check internet archives they have lots of digitized books printed at that time with lots of info on engines and automotive technology of the time worth a search. 
Tin


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## Lakc (Jul 13, 2013)

Istr band and shoe type clutches were in use long before todays clutch disc became popular. First stuff was mostly wood and horse glue I believe.
Thats one to submit to the history channel.


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## chipenter (Jul 13, 2013)

My first motor cycle clutch was cork inserts between steel plates , A 1949 B S A .


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## ShopShoe (Jul 13, 2013)

Based on some things I have seen from ca: 1910 and later, I would not be surprised to see leather and cork as well as wood.


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## enfieldbullet (Jul 13, 2013)

mostly what the guys have said. wood, leather, rubber.

i have to do a little research, but i believe straight plates are a rather 'new' kind of clutch. conical clutches or dog clutches were predominant in the old days.

also note that for some time people used direct drive from engines, no clutches. i think they evolved a lot when engines became mobile and started being used to propel vehicles such as trains and trucks.


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## Jordan (Jul 13, 2013)

chipenter said:


> My first motor cycle clutch was cork inserts between steel plates , A 1949 B S A .



I still recork my bikes' clutches. It's cheap and simple to do.
Cork has some advantages over later materials, including a higher co-efficient of friction. That means you get a lighter action for the same grip. The downside is, being tree bark, it can burn if abused by excessive slipping, so was replaced by asbestos and other high temp stuff.

Jordan


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## Charles Lamont (Jul 13, 2013)

Many years ago I spent quite some time looking after and driving a 1902 veteran car, which had a cast-iron/cast-iron cone clutch. It was of course very sensitive and took a while to get used to.


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## Putt-Rite (Jul 13, 2013)

Holy cow thanks you guys!

This cork you speak of, can you make plates out of regular 1/8" craft cork sheets?


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## Hopper (Jul 14, 2013)

Putt-Rite said:


> Holy cow thanks you guys!
> 
> This cork you speak of, can you make plates out of regular 1/8" craft cork sheets?



The usual way it is done with old motorbike clutches is to use bottle corks inserted in the wedge shaped holes in the clutch plate, then cut them down to size with a pocket knife and finish face them in the lathe. Some guys like to soak the corks first then bake them after installation.

EG, here http://johnjenkinson.tripod.com/clutch.html

As for cork sheeting, what is the application? Small model? Lathe drive? Other?


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## Jordan (Jul 14, 2013)

Putt-Rite said:


> This cork you speak of, can you make plates out of regular 1/8" craft cork sheets?



You need something rigid to hold cork inserts. Steel plates with circular holes would work, but tapered holes are more common.
I'm not confident that reconstituted cork sheet would work, due to adhesive used to bond particles together.

Here's how I reline cork clutch plates (4 photos) :
*http://tinyurl.com/q89dvyo*


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## Jordan (Jul 14, 2013)

enfieldbullet said:


> mostly what the guys have said. wood, leather, rubber.



Once I repaired a small machine that had a single rigid friction plate (an annular disc) that had cracked in half. Having nothing better to hand, I made a copy out of some thin MDF particle board, which worked fine for this light-duty application.

Jordan


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## steamboat willie (Jul 26, 2013)

The clutches in my vintage and veteran Fiats are multi-plate metal plates - 29 plates or so of them in each clutch assembly. They are made out of a particular grade of steel and needed to be frequently lubricated with a kerosene/oil mixture. Lubrication was done by way of a syringe type affair injecting the solution into a hole specially provided in the clutch housing for the purpose. The owners' manual (both 1910 and 1922) gives strict instructions as to how frequently this job had to be done. (every 3 months).
In recent times some here in Australia have tried to have these plates remade, using laser cutting technology to remanufacture the inner and outer rebates to fit the splines of the output shaft and the input shaft to the gearbox. This has generally met with failure, as the laser apparently generates micro-cracks all the way along the cutting edge of the path of the laser. The ones that I have are 90 years old, and I have recently 'deglazed'  the surfaces (read patience and very fine engineering tape) to restore them to top condition.
When driven with the respect that the car deserves, the clutch works very smoothly, but pays you back if you try to hurry a gear change, which also has a lot to do with the 62kg flywheel on a rather spindly and whippy crankshaft.
Bill.


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## OrangeAlpine (Jul 26, 2013)

Hudsons used single plate cork clutches running in oil.  The corks were of the bottle stopper type and the oil was "Hudsonite", which came in a very small can, I'd guess about 4 oz.  I would guess it was simply hydraulic oil.  

They were very smooth and able to handle the 308 cu. in. Twin H sixes, which put out about 160 hp.

Bill


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## KLG (Jul 29, 2013)

Most of the British bike clutches that I saw were made of cork in the truncated wedge form, but they ran in an oil bath which also splash lubricated the primary drive train.
Cheers,
Kerry from Oz


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## Jordan (Jul 29, 2013)

Not just for lubrication, the oil in chaincases cools both the clutch and the chain. The hot chain dips in the cooler oil at the bottom of the chaincase, which gets picked up and flung onto the inside surfaces of the case. Heat is then picked up by the case and is conducted through it to the outside surface, and is then lost to the passing air stream by convection. Typically an uncased motorbike rear chain can survive with scant lubrication, because it's in the airstream.
A dry cork clutch can be used if it's not enclosed, but don't try it in a case unless it has oil in it. If it's doing real work, it could get very smoky in there.


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