Question about 5 speed tranny-

hello fellas thanks to all the info on this board i flushed my radiator it was terrible installed a new manifold gasket and now trying to track down a clutch problem, anyway i bought this 94 escort lx from my cousin for 600.00 it is awesome I love it, I already bleed the clutch line and only fluid came out no air but when it is running it is kinda difficult to put into first gear and if I push down the clutch peddle and wait 5 seconds and try putting it into reverse it grinds a little not much though, when I am sitting still and it is in gear with the clutch peddle pushed down someone can rock the car back and forth indicating to me the clutch is not dragging, just not disengaging totally, I have read all the threads pertaining to clutch and tranny trouble and several have suggested in past posts that it could be the clutch master cylinder or the slave cylinder, is there anyway to test these two? any idea how much either of them are? when i am driving the tranny shifts fine it does not pop out of gear or do anything funny, I was curious if these 5 speeds have synchronisers in them and maybe that is what is going on with mine? any suggestions are greatly appreciated thanks in advance fellas you guys are great

Check your freeplay in the clutch. If it is too much it might not disengage fully. To do this push in the clutch with your hand until you feel resistance. It should go in 1/4 to 1/2 inch until you feel it. If it goes in too far you need to adjust the clutch by loosening the pushrod lock nut. Lengthen the pushrod to adjust and then lock the nut. The disengagement point is about 2 inches from the floorboard. I doubt that the synchros are bad in your tranny.

wellfellas I checked my peddle free play and it was at 1 inch so I loosened the adjusting bolt and turned it out so the clutch peddle had 1/2 inch of travel before i felt pressure on it started the car and it shifted like new, went around the block came back and it was doing it again so I measured it and it was back to 1 inch so i set it again to 1/2 inch worked great went around the block and same thing back to 1 inch, I am starting to think I that one of the cylinders is bad, either the master or slave, if the slave was bad it would leak out the rubber boot correct? so I am thinking it must be the master, how much are they to replace and how difficult? there are no leaks or drips anywhere in the system, thanks so much for telling me about the adjusting bolt on the peddle I could not have found it with out you, any advice is greatly appreciated, is there a way to test and see which cylinder is bad?

oh yeah one more thing when my kid was pushing the clutch peddle and I was under the hood with the engine of I could hear a light popping in the bellhousing when he was working the clutch, maybe a pressure plate spring but it only sounds like one and if it is one would it effect the engaging of the shifter into reverse? but it is not slipping or dragging when stopped at a light,

Does it work better if you pump the clutch pedal? Are you losing fluid? How old is the flex line going to the slave cylinder?

no sir it does not work better if i pump the clutch peddle, no I am not loosing any fluid and I am sure it is the hose that the car came with from the factory, it is a 94, thanks for replying, I had my old lady go down and listen to the clutch while I operated it and she said the noise sounds like a heavy spring being streatched, it sqeakes instead of popping like I thought she is correct once again, not a loud sqeak just a faint hint of one, any advice is appreciated, thanks fellas

Replace the master cylinder for the clutch I just had the same thing happen to mine. I replaced both (the master and slave) due to I've got 186K miles on car.

i have a question. i have a 88 mercury tracer with a 5 spd tranny. it has the 1.6 engine. will that tranny that i have bolt up to a 1.9 h.o?