- Hello again! It's been a while, but I've been through a lot of frustration during the summer so far... I'm going to explain part of it here, and the rest in a separate update that will be coming soon...
- I love my new brakes, I really do... They are gorgeous... But they don't stop the car very well!!!! Now, that's not Wilwood's fault, or any problem with the pieces I have. It's just that apparantly my master cylinder is too large! I've finally accepted this as truth, but it took a LOT of convincing!!! I am currently using a Master Power Brakes 1 1/8" unit from a Corvette (I believe) with 4-wheel disk brakes. That unit simply cannot generate enough pressure to squeeze the front calipers that I'm using. I need a smaller master cylinder.
- I had multiple people tell me to get the late model F-Body master cylinder, as it is a 15/16" bore unit, and supposedly the 6-piston calipers were designed for just that size. Ok, so I did. After I received it, I discovered that the hydraulic fittings are metric and not SAE. Hmm... No big deal I thought, I'll just get some adapters. Ha!
- After phone calls or trips to every brake supply house in 3 cities, I finally gave up and hit the net. Godman Performance in Memphis, Tn sells all kinds of good adapters and brake/fuel type fittings. I tell them what I have, and they send me adapters. Great, right?
- WRONG! They sent me a 10mm hydraulic adapter. It appears that my caliper needs an 11mm adapter. Well, of course they don't have those... Grr...
- About this time I see an article in Chevy High Performance showing a Baer brake kit install on a 2nd gen Camaro. They show a picture of a new master cylinder that's used, and they say it's a 15/16" bore unit. Great! So I call up Baer to ask about purchasing one of these... The guy tells me no problem, just go to my local store and buy a master cylinder for a 1977 Chevy Malibu with MANUAL brakes. That's the one they use. COOL!
- So I do this. The local Autozone orders it up for me, and it shows up about 2 days later. I pick it up, and it looks nothing like the one in the CHP picture. I call up Baer to make certain I got the right piece, and they said yeah, they have no idea what the one in the picture is from... No big deal, this one actually looks more original, and I kinda like that...
- There's just one problem. I measure the input piston, and it's 1.125", not 15/16" as it's supposed to be! One phone call to Raybestos (try and find their phone number on their web page, NOT EASY!) and I discover I have the power brake master cylinder, not the manual brake one. I get the correct part number and go back to Autozone. The guy checks, and sure enough it was wrong in their computer. Moral of this story, always double-check whenever possible!!!
- So they order me the correct part, which was of course about $50 more expensive, and it comes in a couple of days later. I bring it home and start to put it on, when I notice the next problem. The input piston has a hole bored in it, and the thing comes with a new pushrod to hook up to the pedal. Apparantly, the manual units need this hole so the pushrod doesn't fall out when the pedal comes up. Makes perfect sense, but I have no idea how my power booster is supposed to push this thing. Time for another call to Baer.
- The Baer tech guy tells me that this is normal, and they machine a piece to put in the hole to solve this problem. Great! So, how do I go about getting one... Hmm, appears that's a problem, as they are almost out, and they won't have another batch made for 2-3 weeks.... I can't wait that long.
- Thus, now I am back to my late model F-Body master cylinder... I called up Inline Tube and talked to a tech guy about my problem. He said they can make me some lines with the correct hydraulic fitting and metric bubble flare on them! COOL! Send me a pair so I can bend them for my car. No problem he says, they shipped out last Thursday. Should be here Tuesday or so... Well, or course, today is Thursday of the next week, and I still don't have them. Appears that I have one lazy ass Fed Ex Ground delivery person, because the package has been on a truck in Raleigh since Monday, and they have yet to make the first delivery attempt to my house... How pissed off am I at that?!?!?!?
- So that is the end of my rant for now... I'm going to attempt to install the new master cylinder over the weekend I hope, assuming that my brake lines show up!!! We'll see how that all works out. I'll put an update up when I have working brakes again...
