Hyd throwout bearing ... and clutch pedal effort, in general

[jocko]

Anyone out there using a hyd throwout bearing like the ones offered with Tremecs or factory stuff? (only asking about the hyd throwout bearing - not a hyd slave unit like on a 62 chev truck, for instance).

I've heard some nightmare stories about challenges bleeding them, etc.

I guess my goal is reduced clutch pedal effort as I swap over to a 5-speed from my 3 on the tree, and I realize there are many ways to go about doing that (hyd throwout, hyd slave assist, clutch/pressure plate choice, etc). Off the top of my head, I don't really think a hyd throwout bearing is really worth the extra $$ and effort, especially if it's prone to minor bleeding problems, etc.

Does a hyd slave assist (to a manual actuation of the normal throwout bearing) help in reducing pedal effort? I was never really sure why chevy did away with it in 63 (or 64, or whenever it was). Probably in favor of mechanical simplicity - which tells me maybe they had problems with it, but I really don't know. I have considered adding it back in using a 62 master+slave cylinder (this crazy idear part of a plan to mount kugel 90 deg stuff under dash for disk brakes and keep a dummy old school single master cylinder in the eng compartment... it's a recurring dream I have, sorry). But just not sure it'd be worth it.

Finally - I see several clutch/pressure plate combos "advertise" reduced pedal effort. That'd be my preferred route, but to be honest, I'm not sure which type offers the best or most clutch pedal effort reduction bang for the buck.

Interested in you thoughts on those 3 things (regarding pedal effort reduction):
- hyd throwout bearing
- hyd slave assist (like originally came in a 62, for instance)
- clutch disk/pressure plate combo that provides a noticeable reduced pedal effort

Thanks gents!
jocko

(now back to Da Bears!....)

OH YEAH - while on the subj (kinda) wanted to ask about flywheels. Stock Steel vs Alum vs Billet Steel (advantages/disadvantages). My motor will be well south of 400 hp (probably south of 300 if I'm honest with myself!) so I really just plan on a stock steel one, but was always curious about the differences and why you'd want one over another, etc) Thanks.