Anyone using an aluminum brake m/c? - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

LeesTruk · 03-15-2016, 10:53 AM

I'd like to use a Mopar style brake m/c and am wondering if anyone has taken this approach. There was an early posting by Pyrotechnic on doing this, but there was never any follow-up if it worked or not. Thanks

KQQL IT · 03-15-2016, 11:01 AM

I just ordered on for a 85 , aluminum body and plastic Reservoir

Keith Seymore · 03-15-2016, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LeesTruk

I'd like to use a Mopar style brake m/c and am wondering if anyone has taken this approach. There was an early posting by Pyrotechnic on doing this, but there was never any follow-up if it worked or not. Thanks

'85 and beyond came with the aluminum master/plastic reservoir.

Make sure the rear of the master cylinder fits inside your booster; the QTU ("quick take up") master cylinders are larger in diameter than the non-QTU units.

Also make sure you plumb the larger port/portion of the reservoir (regardless of whether its in the front or rear of the master) to the front discs.

K

Axle · 03-15-2016, 10:37 PM

My (Canadian) '83 C10 and '81 GMC both came with the aluminum master.

Alex.

nonstop · 03-15-2016, 11:42 PM

Just curious - why the Mopar one and not an aluminum GM one?

Pontiac1976 · 03-16-2016, 01:21 AM

you will have to make your on line or at least change the ends at the master metric 81-87GM fitting the 73-80 are SAE fitting, Unless you change the proportioning valve same YR. brake down then make half and half brake line to the rubber lines.
There two sizes small reservoir. or larger reservoir. the one in the pic above looks like the larger one.

KQQL IT · 03-16-2016, 03:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pontiac1976

you will have to make your on line or at least change the ends at the master metric 81-87GM fitting the 73-80 are SAE fitting, Unless you change the proportioning valve same YR. brake down then make half and half brake line to the rubber lines.
There two sizes small reservoir. or larger reservoir. the one in the pic above looks like the larger one.

Negative on the metric fitting with this one.

http://www.dormanproducts.com/itemde...&SEName=m39589

LeesTruk · 03-16-2016, 06:08 AM

My reason for wanting a Mopar piece is purely aesthetic, and bending/reconstructing brake lines is easy to do, since that was one of the daily repairs done to many a truck at the repair shop I worked at, here in New England (Thank you D.O.T.). Currently I have a cast iron Corvette/Chevelle unit that does its' thing well. I like it better than the boxy unit that came from the factory. But, being that it's cast iron, it loses its' nice cast color and slowly turns to oxide red, and when I open the hood to show off the 5.3L, the first thing you see is the rusting M/C. I don't want to paint the M/C, because when fluid gets under the paint and starts to "lift" it , it's ugly. I'm a little leery about powder coating, afraid that maybe some sand would get into something (sandblasting, part of the pre-coat process). BTW, my truck is an '80, so it isn't equipped with the QTU system

It's not like my truck is a show piece. It ain't. It's just a "driver". I just want it to be neat and clean

Damien · 03-26-2016, 10:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LeesTruk

My reason for wanting a Mopar piece is purely aesthetic, and bending/reconstructing brake lines is easy to do, since that was one of the daily repairs done to many a truck at the repair shop I worked at, here in New England (Thank you D.O.T.). Currently I have a cast iron Corvette/Chevelle unit that does its' thing well. I like it better than the boxy unit that came from the factory. But, being that it's cast iron, it loses its' nice cast color and slowly turns to oxide red, and when I open the hood to show off the 5.3L, the first thing you see is the rusting M/C. I don't want to paint the M/C, because when fluid gets under the paint and starts to "lift" it , it's ugly. I'm a little leery about powder coating, afraid that maybe some sand would get into something (sandblasting, part of the pre-coat process). BTW, my truck is an '80, so it isn't equipped with the QTU system

It's not like my truck is a show piece. It ain't. It's just a "driver". I just want it to be neat and clean

Speedway Motors has an aluminum Corvette style master cylinder that might work.

http://www.speedwaymotors.com/Shop/Speedway/11.html

blazer2007 · 03-16-2016, 11:40 AM

could switch to syn. brake fluid,it,s not supposed to eat paint

**hatzie** · 03-16-2016, 12:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blazer2007

could switch to syn. brake fluid,it,s not supposed to eat paint

DOT 5 Silicone brake fluid is a can of worms. More harm than good in anything that's not purely for show or racing.

Be careful. Some clown decided it was a good idea to use the same naming scheme for Silicone as Glycol so there are two DOT5 fluids. DOT5 is Silicone DOT5.1 is the latest generation of Glycol.

If you have Glycol DOT3, DOT4, DOT5.1 keep it. If you want to upgrade your brake fluid to higher wet boiling point go to the next higher Glycol fluid number.
Maintenance is key. Flush the system with fresh new fluid every 2 years and you will have zero issues with Glycol based fluid.

wraprail · 03-26-2016, 01:56 PM

This is probably what you are talking about. I have had this setup for 4 years and works great. I have 4 wheel disc, the master is for a dodge shadow shelby iirc because they came with 4 wheel disc. Takes regular 3/16 brake line and 3/8-24 fittings, modified push rod and cost like $24 at autozone. One inch bore size.

LeesTruk · 03-26-2016, 04:11 PM

Yeah, that's the one (or similar to it). What's different with my truck, though, is it has power brakes, so I'd need a larger cylinder bore (1 1/8), and the piston would be different. Whereas yours has a deep impression to hold the brake pedal pushrod, a power m/c has just a dimple for the booster pushrod to push against. Making a bullet to fit the deep piston wouldn't be a problem. My concern would be the Mopar mounting footprint and whether or not it would fit within the power booster orifice. BTW, nice plumbing on your set up and I see you have a hydraulic clutch as well

wraprail · 03-26-2016, 04:59 PM

Yea I have always liked manual brakes, especially with the stick. This one has the T56 and without the booster you can just line up a wilwood type master with the stock clutch pedal and works out real nice. With this master and the stock brake calipers (rears are stock ford sliding single piston same size as the fronts) it really doesn't take much pedal effort at all to stop. Even towing my car trailer with a 4000 pound car it ain't bad. Seemed kinda weird using a master from a tiny little car but piston size and pedal ratio vs caliper size all worked out in my case.
If you want to stay with the power booster maybe you could just use the mopar booster? Maybe one from a small car would be easy to adapt?

03-15-2016, 10:53 AM	#1
LeesTruk Registered User Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Manchester, CT Posts: 433	Anyone using an aluminum brake m/c? I'd like to use a Mopar style brake m/c and am wondering if anyone has taken this approach. There was an early posting by Pyrotechnic on doing this, but there was never any follow-up if it worked or not. Thanks

03-15-2016, 11:01 AM	#2
KQQL IT At the body shop. Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Land of fruits and nuts. Posts: 5,254	Re: Anyone using an aluminum brake m/c? I just ordered on for a 85 , aluminum body and plastic Reservoir __________________ " That didnt make it any newer " " Dont antique the equipment "

03-15-2016, 10:37 PM	#4
Axle Registered User Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: SW Ontario Posts: 1,212	Re: Anyone using an aluminum brake m/c? My (Canadian) '83 C10 and '81 GMC both came with the aluminum master. Alex.

03-15-2016, 11:42 PM	#5
nonstop Registered User Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: Northern California Posts: 422	Re: Anyone using an aluminum brake m/c? Just curious - why the Mopar one and not an aluminum GM one?

03-16-2016, 01:21 AM	#6
Pontiac1976 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Posts: 766	Re: Anyone using an aluminum brake m/c? you will have to make your on line or at least change the ends at the master metric 81-87GM fitting the 73-80 are SAE fitting, Unless you change the proportioning valve same YR. brake down then make half and half brake line to the rubber lines. There two sizes small reservoir. or larger reservoir. the one in the pic above looks like the larger one. __________________ 1977 REG cab Long Bed with a 1984 Front Clip, 82 305 .60 over 9.0.1 flat top pistons, 4bbl, TH350, w/84 SS-intake & cam , w/ 1977 big block rad, 1975 gear box, 1984 master w/ metric fittings top & SAE fitting @ portion block, 1975 3.42 gear open diff. Duel 77-87 Factory air cleaner, duel inlet from rad support . Down sized 9' to new 8' Steel flat bed Was a 77 454 w/308 gear. Taken out 550 lbs. up front with motor clip change.

03-16-2016, 06:08 AM	#8
LeesTruk Registered User Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Manchester, CT Posts: 433	Re: Anyone using an aluminum brake m/c? My reason for wanting a Mopar piece is purely aesthetic, and bending/reconstructing brake lines is easy to do, since that was one of the daily repairs done to many a truck at the repair shop I worked at, here in New England (Thank you D.O.T.). Currently I have a cast iron Corvette/Chevelle unit that does its' thing well. I like it better than the boxy unit that came from the factory. But, being that it's cast iron, it loses its' nice cast color and slowly turns to oxide red, and when I open the hood to show off the 5.3L, the first thing you see is the rusting M/C. I don't want to paint the M/C, because when fluid gets under the paint and starts to "lift" it , it's ugly. I'm a little leery about powder coating, afraid that maybe some sand would get into something (sandblasting, part of the pre-coat process). BTW, my truck is an '80, so it isn't equipped with the QTU system It's not like my truck is a show piece. It ain't. It's just a "driver". I just want it to be neat and clean

03-16-2016, 11:40 AM	#10
blazer2007 Registered User Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: vernon b.c. Posts: 3,022	Re: Anyone using an aluminum brake m/c? could switch to syn. brake fluid,it,s not supposed to eat paint

03-26-2016, 01:56 PM	#12
wraprail Registered User Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Lake Havasu City Arizona Posts: 863	Re: Anyone using an aluminum brake m/c? This is probably what you are talking about. I have had this setup for 4 years and works great. I have 4 wheel disc, the master is for a dodge shadow shelby iirc because they came with 4 wheel disc. Takes regular 3/16 brake line and 3/8-24 fittings, modified push rod and cost like $24 at autozone. One inch bore size. __________________

03-26-2016, 04:11 PM	#13
LeesTruk Registered User Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Manchester, CT Posts: 433	Re: Anyone using an aluminum brake m/c? Yeah, that's the one (or similar to it). What's different with my truck, though, is it has power brakes, so I'd need a larger cylinder bore (1 1/8), and the piston would be different. Whereas yours has a deep impression to hold the brake pedal pushrod, a power m/c has just a dimple for the booster pushrod to push against. Making a bullet to fit the deep piston wouldn't be a problem. My concern would be the Mopar mounting footprint and whether or not it would fit within the power booster orifice. BTW, nice plumbing on your set up and I see you have a hydraulic clutch as well

03-26-2016, 04:59 PM	#14
wraprail Registered User Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Lake Havasu City Arizona Posts: 863	Re: Anyone using an aluminum brake m/c? Yea I have always liked manual brakes, especially with the stick. This one has the T56 and without the booster you can just line up a wilwood type master with the stock clutch pedal and works out real nice. With this master and the stock brake calipers (rears are stock ford sliding single piston same size as the fronts) it really doesn't take much pedal effort at all to stop. Even towing my car trailer with a 4000 pound car it ain't bad. Seemed kinda weird using a master from a tiny little car but piston size and pedal ratio vs caliper size all worked out in my case. If you want to stay with the power booster maybe you could just use the mopar booster? Maybe one from a small car would be easy to adapt? __________________



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