brake bleeding ??s

[TX Mudder]

If memory serves me correctly, I did not bench bleed my master cylinder when I put it on about 2 years ago.
It really didn't have a big effect on breaking with my 3/4 ton axles - no problems.
I now have a d60 up front with new calipers and the brakes suck. I have to press ALL the way down to get ANY braking effect and even then it only feels like what it should with the pedal maybe half way or less.

The point is that I think I need to bench bleed my MC. Is this OK to do since it's not new? I think the MC came with these little plastic jobbers that screwed into where the brake lines went,. I no longer have these. What do I use?

Also, another dumb question - can I buy a reseal or rebuild kit for a dana 60 front caliper? Mine are new, but I think the seal around the piston is leaking. I would just return the caliper but already have it ground down for 15s and wouyld rather spend the money for seals than the time for another caliper grinding.

-- Mike

 

[DieselDan]

Go to the junk yard and unscrew the brake lines from another truck master cylinder. Cut about a foot of brake line (tubing) from the fitting. Presto! Bench bleeding tools.

Caliper rebuild kits were available at NAPA, although they may not stock them. Nobody rebuilds their own anymore. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[MudNurI]

I might be wrong- but I thought anytime you removed the master cylinder you had to bench bleed it- which would lead me to believe that you could remove it and do so without any harm.........????????someone verify that.

Brandy

 

[DieselDan]

I believe that bench bleeding is only usefull for a dry/empty master cylinder. The only danger in bench bleeding a used (older) master would be extending the piston past any corrosion that may be in the bore. I change my brake fluid annually to keep moisture out of the system.

But it sure sounds like there's air in there, somewhere /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[MudNurI]

I wasnt 100% sure either.....cud very well be wrong....

Brandy

 

[ntsqd]

If you have air in the line it will feel mushy, period.

Sounds to me like your m/c bore size is too small for the D60 calipers. They have more piston area than the calipers that came off. It is taking more of the available pedal stroke just to move the pads up against the rotor. Check into what bore size you have now, I'll guess it's smaller than the m/c bore size that a 1 ton that would have come with those calipers on it would have.

 

[uglychevyZZ4]

Bench Bleeding- used to remove air, whether its new or not.

Without little plastic thingy's- better off, they suck, jam a piece of hose in the holes and the other end into the master UNDER the fluid, (underwater) and pump slow, and itll go 1,000X faster than those pieces of garbage /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif

if you are having mush still, are you pumping it b4 you open the bleeder? if you are STOP ! it esentially takes one bubble and blows it into 1 ZILLION more,

1---have friend at pedal and make him follow directions, a hammer usually helps the submission /forums/images/graemlins/rotfl.gif YOU open the bleeder FIRST and then yell " DOWN" when the fluid stops then close it, and do this at each wheel a few times in the right sequence, and stop the pumping stuff. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[TX Mudder]

I thought that the k30s used a different vacuum booster (isn't that what they are called) and so I can't just go out and buy a MC for a k30.

Can anyone verify that?

My MC/brake booster is 1976 k10. My pedals are too, is that makes a difference.
-- Mike

 

[outlaw612]

Im running a MC from a K30 on my K10 and it works great. There was a big difference just from swapping MC's.

 

[K5MONSTERCHEV]

When you put on the new calipers, did you get the left and right sides mixedup?? Because that would give you no front brakes.

 

[TX Mudder]

I looked up the MC for a 77 k30. The computer wanted to know if it had JB8 or JB7 braking system.
I then looked up the MC for a 76 k20 (which is what I have on there now.) It wanted to know if i had JB7 or JB6 braking.

I told the computer both times I had the 7 (and not the 6 or the 8) and it returned the same part no.

What I am getting at is that I think I already have the JB7 MC on there so it may not be an issue of the MC size.

As far as putting the calipers on backwards - I don't see how i would have done that and still had the brake bleeded pointing up?

I need to go buy some hose to fit on the bleeder nipple and get to bleeding....

Thanks for the input.
-- Mike