Hydraulic clutch setup - slave cylinder vs hyd throwout bearing

[Hampshire]

I have a TKO 5spd going behind a mild 350 in a 1949 AD. The guy doing the work has been building hydraulic clutch set-ups in vintage trace cars & has me interested. When sourcing parts, I didn't like what I was seeing/hearing about regarding leaks & failures with hydraulic throwout bearings - especially when a repair often means removing the tranny.

..so, when I started hearing about people using an external slave instead - I got real interested. When I used to fix imported crates during my college days, I removed/replaced/rebuilt many an external slave.

Ease of maintenance & no $$$ hyd. throwout bearing has it's appeal -

opinions?

Experience?

Fitment problems with an under the frame power booster already in place?

Let me know....

[focusedontheprize]

I am running a 292 in my '49 with a T5 behind it. I end up putting an external slave cylinder on it and really like it a lot. I really did my research on the hydraulic throw-out bearing setup, but like you my biggest issue is having to remove the transmission if a leak was to occur.

So overall, I am a +1 for the hydraulic external slave setup.

[Hampshire]

That's good to hear - after going over it with my guy & showing him some pics, he's all for it. Just have to work out the new crossmember with the space we have left.

[roger55]

I've got a Ram Clutches brand hydraulic throwout in my '55 Bel Air and a T56 Magnum.
It was easy to set up and very clean without having to mount a slave.

5K trouble-free miles on it so far.