clutch woes...

[Shane]

Howdy all...

I went to start our 1962 BT7 up to take Holly to see the gorgeous Missouri/Illinois fall leaves and the clutch dropped straight to the floor. I checked the brake/clutch fluid reservoir and the center cylinder was empty. I added fresh fluid, pumped the pedal around 30 times and never got any resistance. The fluid in the reservoir never moved, either.

I then crawled underneath by the pedals and pushed the pedal down again and heard a little slurping noise, and noticed some dried up fluid around the rubber seal. I then checked under the hood and noticed the same dried up fluid where it leaked from the master cylinder.

I noticed a repair kit offered by Moss and I was wondering if anyone has used one of these to replace their seals. I also noticed a similiar repair kit for the slave cylinder and was thinking replacing those seals as well. I didn't notice any leakage around it, maybe if it ain't broke, don't fix it?

Any suggestions would be appreciated...

shane

[ 11-09-2002: Message edited by: Holly and Shane ]

[ 11-09-2002: Message edited by: Holly and Shane ]</p>

 

[w. scott brunkhurst]

This is just my opinion, but I would replace the seals on the slave cylinder and possibly the brake master cylinder too. If you don't know the history of the car you may want to go through the whole hydraulic system. Moss seals should be as good as any. I just refuse to do business with them.

SB

 

[Shane]

Thanks Scott,

The overall braking system is supposed to be my winter project, I might as well replace those seals as well. As far as Moss goes, I'll probably order through Victoria British, I just can't find the catalog. They've been really good to me so far.

Thanks again...

shane

 

[aeronca65t]

For what it's worth, I just did this on my Sprite...it was pretty easy and cheap (for my car, the seal kit was less than $5 and a new slave cylinder was $60+.....so I was finacially motivated to try the kit first).

I'd suggest you make sure the cylinder bore is nice and clean before putting in the new seal. I cleaned mine up with a piece of Scotch-Brite on the end of a wooden dowel (soaked in brake fluid)...spun the dowel in a cordless drill, giving the cylinder a nice "honed" effect. Not sure if this is really "by-the-book", but it worked well.

I agree that you should look at other hydraulic stuff during the winter.

I've ordered from both VB and Moss....service from both has been fine.

Hope you can get out and see the leaves before they're all gone (our "peak" time for colors was last week).

 

[RF Thom]

Before you order parts take both the master and slave cylinders apart, and examine their bores for wear / scores, and also the sealing porjection at the bottom of the master cylinder bore. If there are any signs of scratching, pits, etc, then a seal kit will not heal these, I'm afraid new cylinder are in your future. Also I would recommend refilling the hydraulic system with synthetic fluid, [not to be confused with silicone fluid] This new fluid on the market is compatable with the old type of sealing rubber and will not absorb moisture which is the downfall of the old, commonly available petrolium based fluids. The cost is not prohibitive : Petrolium fluid $3.74 / litre, Silicone fluid $25 / litre, Synthetic fluid $5 / litre { Valvoline @ AutoZone].
If you have power brakes don't forget to have the engine running when you bleed the brakes, or you won't be able to expel all the trapped air inside the booster master cylinder. It took me three tries before I could get any firm peddle, I forgot about the tandum cylinders.

Regards
Bob

 

[John Turney]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by RF Thom:
Also I would recommend refilling the hydraulic system with synthetic fluid, [not to be confused with silicone fluid] This new fluid on the market is compatable with the old type of sealing rubber and will not absorb moisture which is the downfall of the old, commonly available petrolium based fluids. The cost is not prohibitive : Petrolium fluid $3.74 / litre, Silicone fluid $25 / litre, Synthetic fluid $5 / litre { Valvoline @ AutoZone].
<hr></blockquote>

Bob,

Question - Does the synthetic fluid react with paint? When I rebuilt my hydraulic systems, I put in silicone fluid because it doesn't absorb water and it doesn't react with with paint (in case I spill some - who would ever do that?) Because I rebuilt everything, I've had no trouble with the rubber. Silicone fluid can absorb air, which can make it harder to get the air out.

John

 

[ThomP]

I'm afraid that the synthetic fluid does, indeed, dissolve paint.

My Mini has Silicone thru and thru, and like John, I love it. If I were to ever rebuild the entire system in my Healey I would switch over, but fortunately I have only had to maintain the hydraulics on the Healey, so I'm using the synthetic stuff. In my opinion, for a classic car, the benefits of silicone far out weigh the $17.00 price tag for a quart when purchased at the local auto parts dealer.

By the way, the old stuff is NOT petroleum based, it is Glycol based and petroleum products should NEVER be used near natural rubber parts. Therefore don't use a kerosene based degreaser (shop style parts washer) unless you like rebuilding brakes. It will cause premature failure. Use soap and water to wash the old parts or commercial brake cleaner. I like the commercial stuff @ $3.00 a can myself. It seems to require less elbow grease to get the parts looking good.