how tight should new clutch packs be on an a518?

[cmann250]

Some folks swear by sanding steels. Definitely knock the glaze off, but don't go crazy and drastically alter the thickness. Of course clean them good afterwards.

[sloppy2nds000]

ok checked the gaps on my clutch packs. and here they are.
before rebuild, front .110, rear .55
rebuild, front .015, rear .040
now after my locked up issue, front .105, rear .040

the original front steels were way thicker than the new oe spec ones i replace it with. my issue was i saw the difference between them and opted for the old steels with the new frictions, way too tight, so now im new steels and new frictions. and right in the middle of the allowable air gap.
as for the rears its all new steels and all new frictions.
i guess the other day when i put bought the steels i should a just run them.

so im gonna put it back together and put it back in the truck
keep my fingers crossed
and cry like a baby if it fails me this time

[sloppy2nds000]

problem solved. i plowed my barn yard and opened my driveway last night for 5 hrs. drive was 2 feet deep for 600 feet. combined effort with tractor and truck.

so the problem was even though the clutch pack i pulled out of the truck when i did the torque converter looked to be the same fibers, they werent, and they werent badly worn either, but since i was there i replaced them. however they were a fair amount thinner, and the steels look to be about .020 thicker. so when i put the new frictions in they were alot thicker and since my kit didnt come with new steels, i ran the old ones. became way too tight so tight i couldnt get the snap ring to fit. so i said the heck with it and put the old fibers in and saved the new fibers for my full rebuild this summer.

so when i blew the reverse servo/band/drum i figured it would be a good time to replace the steels, so i ordered some, a full kit. new steels were thinner which made the pack thinner than it was before. new steels in hand i decided to put the new parts to the front plus the new steels in the rear. well when i put it together i thought it was way too loose so i tossed in an old steel from the rear pack. figured it would be fine. nope, not at all.

so now its all good, fresh steels and fibers in the front drum and i did put new steel in the rear drum while i had the od housing off to clean the trash out of it from the band catastrophe.

thanks a bunch guys

[1973crewcab4x4!]

The thick clutch spacer under the snap ring is tapered on one side. Trans shops or any old 727 can be a donor for a second tapered spacer allowing an extra friction or custom combo. Or you can machine the one you already have