mcloud bell or standard tremec bell??

DemonGT

Founding Member
May 24, 2002
855
49
49
Sparta,WI
need a bell housing for my TKO and i cant deside on a mcloud or a standard tremec bell...car is mostly a street car...might see a dyno session...cant really take it to the track..to far away to drive to and back from safely....is it worth it to get the mcloud...its more money and sounds like it would be a PITA to get in there with my 3 inch collectors
 
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With your motor?!? Jeez dude, that's a no brainer. The first time you do a hard launch at a stoplight and end up picking clutch disc fragments out of you legs, you'll wish you had gotten the Scattershield. Not to mention, the McCloud comes with a steel plate on the other side too- to protect you engine block and internals. It's a little bigger, but the main PIA is that the stock clutch fork doesn't stick out very far so getting your cable on and off, or adjusted if you have that kind, is kinda tough. There are extended forks made for it though. I don't know if this pic will help you any since I don't have long tubes, but with my 2.5" custom bent H-pipe there's still quite a lot of room around it and if you have 3" collectors, it isn't much bigger.
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id get a extended fork also if i do get one...im just worryed that installing it will be a huge PITA...iv heard bad storys about installing them...alot of clearence probs around the starter area or something?
 
I didn't have any, I'm using a Powermaster gear reduction starter though. It's pretty tiny, may make a difference. As long as you get the right dowel pins for the 351 block and the TKO, you shouldn't have any trouble getting the bell it strait. Everything fit fine, lined up the first time and went in pretty easy. Will you be working on a lift? I'm sure that made a difference for us too. Regardless, the aluminum one the TTC comes with leaves a lot to be desired on the safety end. I would recommend it even if I broke fingers putting it in, which I didn't :nice:
 
Personaly, i like my feet. :) Get the steel bell. I like the McLeod over the Lakewood. You can run either a T-5 or Tremec with it...easier to install, and fits better also. I don't even check runout before installing it. Some headers clear, some don't. You just need to do some minor trimming if its needed. No big deal. I use the Pro Motion extended clutch fork with it also. :nice:
 
Crap! I said I have a McCloud didn't I. I had a McCloud clutch- my scattershield is a Lakewood- sorry if there was any confusion. Glad NoSlo90 posted, or I may not have caught that. Still, never having used or seen the McCloud one, I was very happy with every aspect of the one I have from install on out. Been in there about two years, still great. Been off a few times, never had any problems. All around good piece.
 
ill also be using a powermaster starter..the XS one?? i think its called...i only drove my car with the new motor about 5 times in two weeks and the stock starter burned out and i got a HT mini and that went out before i could even drive it..huh...crap...so now im steping up to the powermaster one..think its arond 200 bucks from summit

if i get the mcloud id also get the pro motion fork...with the mcloud do you still use the stock style dust plate that goes between the flywheel and block?? mine is all bent and s**ty and i think thats what caused my starters to crap out...think it was mis aligning the starter

also..for ppl with a TKO...how hard is it to switch the yoke on the end of the driveshaft and put on the one that comes with the tranny? i think its called the yoke??
 
Don't know, I just got a new driveshaft with the right yolk on it already. I don't imagine it's too hard, but I wouldn't let anyone but a pro mess with the universals on my aluminum DS. I've seen too many people F* them up. I don't know about the McCloud, but my Lakewood came with what you're calling the dustplate- that's what I was referring to about the part protecting the block and internals. It's a serious piece of steel, real nice. If the clutch blows in this car, I'll have every piece sitting right ther in the bell- totally quarantined in solitary confinement :D
 
Yeah the McLeods block plate is a serious chunk of steel. It completely encases the clutch/flywheel. One thing that sorta sucks about this bell...the lakewood too, is all the damn bolts holding it on. I swear everytime i take it off i start to get pissed on about the 5th or 6th bolt,lol. Its worth it tho.