<VV> How much should pressure plate fingers compress?

[Steve Brennan]

In response to my earlier clutch/throw out bearing posting, Doug Mackintosh
was kind enough to send me the following tip he had previously received from
Larry Claypool:

 "as mentioned in my article in the tech guide, you should always check how
much the fingers of the pressure plate move when you tighten the bolts. if
the fingers move more than 1/2 " at the center, you can be assured you will
have problems getting it to release; less than 1/4'' and it will begin to
slip after a little wear. assuming the step in the flywheel is at the
correct depth, the difference is almost always in how the pressure was built
up. the thickness of the disc also comes into play, but much less so than
the p/plate."

So, as the first step in the reassembly process, I measured the movement of
the p/plate fingers before and after tightening, and was shocked to find
they move (compress) approximately 7/8".  Does this mean I have a problem
with one or more of the relevant parts, or were Larry's numbers for the bent
finger p/plate?  I was planning on putting the car back together and test
driving it today, but now I'm not sure what to do.

Thanks in advance,
Steve

1962 Spyder Coupe