I have nothing constructive to add, other than if Brad Z ' is giving you advice on the clutch and trans setup of a stickshift class car, you need to listen.. Very, very intently.
Funny this should thread should come up, and Mr. Z should be so kind as to reply and give so much info.... A legendary SS racer and I were just talking late last year incidentally, on how absolutely exquisitely the "Z" family's stick cars leave. Its literally poetry in motion... If you didn't hear all the RPM on the starting line, and the gear changes, you'd swear the car had an auto and a dead on dialed in converter. No tire shock/shake, no engine RPM bog.. Dead smooth, RPMs held constant, and wicked fast wheels up launch. I smile ear to ear every time I watch any of the "Pollock's" cars leave!
Kevin