Well I volunteered to help out Rodney Dickman with some R&D with his new Getrag 5spd slave cylinder rebuild kit http://rodneydickman.com/ca....php?products_id=288 and I was very impressed with it so now I’m going to share with you. First let me say this rebuild process is very simple and straightforward. On a scale of 1 to 5, it’s a 1 and anybody can do it. The only special tool you need is a pair of snap-ring pliers and if you don’t already have one, HF has them for about $4.

Ok so here’s my slave…yuck! It looks pretty bad doesn’t it? Good thing that heat shield was hiding it!


Ok first thing we need to do it clean it off, then open it up. Wow, that’s worse than the out side! The bleeder was very tight so I clamped the slave in my vise, gave it a good blast of Liquid Wrench and let it sit overnight. I probably could have forced it but didn’t want to snap it off.


Here’s the original mess next to Rodney’s kit. You can see the difference in the seals on the piston and why this is a great kit; double seals versus the original 1 seal. That and everything looks to be better quality than OEM.

[This message has been edited by DLCLK87GT (edited 09-01-2010).]

OK my next problem is the inner cylinder walls are pretty nasty and even a spot or two of rust…somehow water must have gotten in. Hopefully you don’t have this issue but if you do you can use a brake cylinder-honing tool to clean it up. Or you can even use a makeshift honer by wrapping some sandpaper on a screwdriver handle, stick it into a drill and use that. You want to make sure it’s very clean and smooth inside so as to not ruin the new piston seals. I couldn’t get a good picture of the inside but trust me, it was bad.
OK, so after I took care of the inside and some time in the parts cleaner, this seemed like the perfect time to play with my powder coater. So a little grinding of the corners, rough spots more cleaning and wall-la!


OK so now that it’s cleaned up and ready to go, time for reassembly. First the new spring on the backside of the piston, then you’ll want to pre-lube the seals so they’ll slide in a little easier and create a good seal. I found the piston to be a nice snug fit. I’m sure there will be no leaks here!


Now you can have a helper push in on the piston if needed while you put the new snap ring on




Now a quick cleaning of the shaft, a touch of paint on the exposed end and it’s ready to slide into the new boot from the kit


Now that’s done all that’s left to do it slide the boot onto the end being careful not to rip it or anything and you’re all done, piece of cake!


If it wasn’t for the frozen bleeder screw or the rust I’d say I could have easily done this in less than an hour. If it’s a POS like mine was and you want to paint or PC it, figure a couple hours but even with the issues I ran into, it was still a very simple job to do.
One thing I would recommend is changing the bleeder screw. Rodney has them for a couple bucks and while you’ve got it off, you might as well. Much easier now, then later when it’s back on the car especially if it’s frozen & rusty like mine was.

I think Rodney is still in the R&D stage with this rebuild kit but when it’s available I highly recommend it. It was about as simple a job as it gets, should prove to be superior to the OEM setup and for $16.95 it’ll be well worth it.

[This message has been edited by DLCLK87GT (edited 09-01-2010).]

Looks like Rodney has done it again. I would rather rebuild mine than take a chance on an aftermarket piece.

I didn't get any pics, but his Isuzu rebuild kit is identical to that save for it's sized for the Isuzu slave cylinder. If his Getrag S/C kit is like his Isuzu S/C kit(it's Rodney, so it's only going to be of the highest craftsmanship), you'll be able to beat on it (I do) and not have any problems.

I now have these available on my web page:

http://rodneydickman.com/ca...h=61&products_id=288

These were made to rebuild my aluminum Getrag slave cylinders but they also seem to fit the GM slave and the aftermarket cast iron slaves.

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Rodney Dickman

Fiero Parts And Acc's Web Page:
All new web page!:www.rodneydickman.com
Rodney Dickman's Fiero accessories
7604 Treeview Drive
Caledonia, WI 53108
Phone/Fax (262) 835-9575

quote Originally posted by Rodney: I now have these available on my web page: http://rodneydickman.com/ca...h=61&products_id=288 These were made to rebuild my aluminum Getrag slave cylinders but they also seem to fit the GM slave and the aftermarket cast iron slaves.

Yessir, they do. They work beautifully in GM and aftermarket cast irons.

I just did a rebuild with this kit on a Getrag's OEM steel tube slave cylinder.
I also had to clean up the cylinder's bore with a brake hone first.

Excellent kit!

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