unsure of where clutch issues lie
 

so i'm trying to do some research as to what could have gone wrong with my car this friday, and i'm not entirely sure, reted says its almost impossible to bend the clutch fork on the turbo transmission, and many say the pivot ball is exceptionally weak and proned to breaking with these act xt pp's.

but i'm not sure, i have some clutch pressure, and i can see the clutch fork actuating. clutch reservoir is full, fluid is darker than normal, but not very dark. clutch slave cylinder is brand new, clutch master cylinder isn't leaking to the inside which is from what i've read, is one of the first signs of it failing.
( https://i.imgur.com/so3Q1mM.jpg )

from what i've read, the act xt's tend to break the pivot ball and/or fork, but some say its unlikely the fork will break.

is there any way to find out manually if the pivot ball has broken without dropping the transmission?

i should also note, on one particularly cold morning, the clutch pedal was almost to the floor before the clutch disengaged, which makes me think it could possibly be the clutch master.

anyone have an idea what it could be?

If in doubt change the master as well. It's $20 at autozone and if it isn't the problem. It can't hurt.

What is actually going on? I haven't seen an actual problem stated. Did you just install the clutch?

BTW, I've had 3 (each) autozone/advance/oreilly master and slave cylinders fail... the only one that has lasted me is the latest one I've installed, which is made by Dorman. Taiwan>>China.

well pedal moves, clutch slave moves as well(had someone push the pedal while i watched it), reservoir is full, but not that dirty, more so fluid is just dark/darker.

there is pressure/resistance when pushing the pedal, but not so much that you think the clutch is being released.

clutch slave cylinder was one from napa. as is the clutch master i have, also from napa.

Seems to me that if you unbolted the slave cylinder, you'd be able to wiggle the fork around and see if it's still pivoting on the ball.
Just a guess though, I've not tried this myself (because I've never had to).

Has it been bled properly? Mine sinks to the floor and requires me to pull it back up. Its low on fluid but ill try topping it off as I bleed it and see if that solves the problem.

OK well its the fork or pivot ball I guess. Fork moves side to side and in certain positions there's a grinding feel in the pedal. I was hoping it wasn't that.

so what i'm gonna do is after i replace my pivot ball, before it goes in, i'm gonna take some dimensions, and machine out one in D2 tool steel and make the neck a little beefier, heat treat it, and then put in later on.

some simple measurements of the diameter of the radial area should give me a radius, oal, length from end of piece to end of threads, and a few other measurements. i'll probably be drawing it up in mastercam. so if anyone wants the prints later on down the line to machine their own, or have me do it for them at a local shop. it will be available.

If you haven't bled the clutch hydraulics I'd try that first.

got it fixed today. broken pivot ball was the fault.

I'm glad you let us know the outcome!