Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

Ogre, Kim, and Hi....what are the pedal ratios and bore diameters of the MCs on your setups? I understand that these are important factors in these setups.

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

i used the stock pedal ratio from 1958.
after setting up my system i realized i was only using the top 2'' of the pedal.
as i am tall with gimpy legs i cut off 3.5'' of the pedal and re-welded the pedal to the arm.
my pedal now sits lower to the floor, when i push hard it is stil a couple inches from the floor.

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

If my MC bore size is 1 1/4" can I use the Nissan Quest MC of 1 1/8"? will that cause an issue? My setup is from a 96 Astro Van.

Tri5

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

Dave is that a servi-car

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My pedal should have the stock ratio as it was a replacement for my year of truck.
As far as the bore diameter I haven't checked it yet. My unit came out of a 2005 chevy truck.
Kim

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

no idea, i would think a ford part wouldn't fit on the gm mc.
i looked at your build, did not see any pics of the mc
nice truck by the way tri5

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

Yes its a Servi-Car early 60's frankinbike. I had to mount the box for them

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

I made this conversion a while back on the firewall but the parts are the same

http://www.thehollisterroadcompany.com/hydroboost.html

This may be helpful for part numbers

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

Well picked up my Hydro boost today it came out of a 04 mustang mach 1. I chose this one over one out of a 03 suburban because of the master cylinder tank was smaller and I think it will fit under the cab better.

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

get the remote reservoir parts off a mercury villager or nissan quest.
i'll try to get a picture of the tank tomorrow

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

Ok thanks. Do you know what the two bleeders are for on the side?

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

for bleeding the mc.

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

took these pictures of the remote reservoir removed from a nissan quest or mercury villager.
i bought the mc, tank and lines for $35, had to add 2- 3' lines to it.
i tried to keep the firewall clean, but had to add this item.
the lines exit out of the back at an angle down, so i managed to keep it low as possible.

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/n...0113121243.jpg

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/n...0113121241.jpg

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

Anyone running Astro van parts?
Any one else want to throw pic's of whatever they are running for HB?
I spent a shade under $75 on Astro van HB / MC setup (at under $75, why not?) and am now day dreaming about how to make it work. The reservoir on the MC is tall, though I think it could still be done under floor. If not, I can always firewall mount it...

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

I'd like to know why it's called "Hydro Boost" which would infer a water operated system and not "Hydra Boost" which would describe a hydraulically operated system (which it is). Can someone enlighten me?;)

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Kim,
I don't mean to be dense or critical but why was it necessary to put the MC so far back in the chassis? Not just to access the fill cap, was it? Because it seems like Ogre's remote res would have been a LOT less work than a tilting bed!:lol:

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

I'm not Ogre or Kim, but you are very right that bore diameter is important.
When I installed Hydroboost in my 1995 Blazer a couple of years ago I did a fair amount of research at the parts store with catalog and part in hand. All of the GM hydro-boost master cylinders that I checked at that time were 1.25" diameter straight bore including the old integral reservoir steel versions and the hybrid G van aluminum reservoir / steel master types. Increasing bore size reduces pressure applied to the wheel cylinders / calipers. OTOH increasing caliper piston or wheel cylinder diameter delivers more braking force to the drums/rotors with the same pedal effort.

Thy Hydro-boost booster can easily generate a large amount of force at the master cylinder even with the large diameter piston. If the Quest cylinder fits you will be delivering very high amounts of force to the wheels which could result in touchy brakes. GM boosters use a slightly larger master cylinder bolt pattern than Ford or Dodge units and from personal experience, most of the GM vacuum booster master cylinders do not attach properly to the GM hydroboost booster. I will add that it's important to add a cooler to the PS return line if using Hydro-boost. The 97+ one ton vans in our fleet come with a 3" by 10" factory cooler which is insufficient for the type of driving we do (school buses). Until I replaced the coolers with larger units we had a lot of trouble with the pumps seizing and shearing the main shaft. My Blazer PS return line is plumbed through a trans cooler large enough for a 10k lb truck.

Here's my Blazer swap.
http://www.s10forum.com/forum/f14/fi...-notes-332547/

I have an Astro booster. Since all master cyls were the same bore, I used a reman from a 95 c 2500 w/ 6.5 diesel. It was $30 and maybe core charge was another $10. IIRC the fittings are larger so you may need to head to a good parts store and pick up specialty fittings to connect your 3/16" and / or 1/4" brake lines. The plastic reservoir on that master (and on your Astro master) will interchange with many other models. It just pops off. My Blazer is using the stock Blazer reservoir.

4X4 guys can get pretty crazy with brake swaps and there is probably a year's worth of reading at pirate4X4.com just relating to Hydroboost. Add in the very good tech on designing and sizing your brakes or your vehicle (the brake bible) and there's no excuse for putting together a system that doesn't work right "out of the box."

Sure. It's called "Hydro-boost" to differentiate it from "Hydro-vac." ;)

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

I tilted the bed so I wouldn't have to drop the rear end out to get the tires (18.5" wide) on and off. Being able to access the master cylinder was just an added plus.
Kim

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

apache: here are the adapters i got from the nissan quest or ford villager
the mc tank pulls out of rubber adapters and these slide in
you can also see the outlets on the tank behind the mc

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/n...0702011504.jpg

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

I just wanted to really thank everyone who helped in this thread,tons of great information here.

As this thread is a couple years old...Any of you guys have any follow-ups on how everything is working,as you put on the miles?Anyone make any changes or modifications to their original setups?

Re: Hydro Boost Pics
 

I usually call it hydra boost for the reasons you state but Bendix calls is Hydro boost. We normally think of hydro as water but it can mean liquid or fluid as well.

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I'm running the pedal assembly sold by Speedway Motors and I mounted my Astro Van hydro boost to it. I'm using an Astro MC, too, but I had to switch to an S10 reservoir for clearance to the cab floor. Owing to the length between my PS pump and the HB unit, I had custom lines made ($35, hydraulic shop) and they could fit better length wise but they work.
I think a 70s C10 master cylinder with the integrated iron reservoir would fit better for under-cab clearance but I haven't verified this. It's my only kvetch in a system that seems to work damned well.
The 6 lug front disc swap I bought uses 12" rotors & GM "large" calipers. The rears are factory '57 drums. This closely mirrors the Astro Van's brake caliper / MC / wheel cylinder sizes and it works. Pedal feel is good, stopping is excellent.
Not to ramble on too long, here, but I sized things relative to each other using factory brake systems as a guideline. The closer you can match an OEM setup the better. There's some wiggle room in the MC selection but not a ton - and I believe Chevy's engineers knew what they were doing most of the time. Any case, the Astro junk works nicely with 1" wheel cylinders and GM "large" calipers.