Tractor Repair: 1175 clutch, heavy duty clutch, tractor clutches

Question
Our neighbor has a Case 1175 tractor with loader he wants to sell us. It is an earlier model and has a standard transmission. The problem is that the clutch pedal is very hard to push down. He said it was good until he put a new clutch in it recently. He thinks it might be stiff because he put a heavy duty clutch in it. I checked the Case parts site and it looks like the clutch is identical on the standard 1070. I have drove a couple of standard 1070's and the clutch was easy to push. Any idea what the problem might be? Do the new clutch springs gradually break in?

Answer
  A heavy duty clutch will probably have stronger springs in the pressure plate than a regular one, as well as a different type of friction material on the disk.  There are many different aftermarket clutches available so it's hard to say what type or brand was installed.  It's also unknown what additional work was done or if anything could have been installed incorrectly.  With a loader on it, you need the heaviest duty clutch you can get or it won't last very long.  I have had several loader tractor clutches that lasted less than a year.  The springs may get a little weaker with use, but probably not enough to be noticable on the pedal.  If the linkage moves freely without binding, it is probably a characteristic of that particular clutch.