brake shop/company guru?

[nac593]

Anybody know of good brake shop or companys I can call to get some answers? I called ECE a few times, but it's not really helping.

[Cyclone]

Great info here, they answered my tech question email quickly. What's going on w/your brakes?

[nac593]

Thanks for the fast response. I bought front and rear disc brakes from them. I did the fronts a couple months ago with no problems. I just did the rears and its turned into a little nightmare. It has not been just a bolt on deal. I got 4 bad calipers which took a long time to get straight, and now that it's together the pedal almost touches the ground. All the air is bled. Plus I cant figure out the parking brake.

[Cyclone]

Add a link to this post to the kit you bought, I'm sure someone else has dealt w/this kit & similar issues before and will chime in.

[nac593]

They don't show the rear discs on their website. I called and ordered. They've tried to be helpful, but said they only installed 1 rear kit at their shop. It would be great to talk to someone else that has installed this kit.

[68gmsee]

Originally Posted by nac593

Thanks for the fast response. I bought front and rear disc brakes from them. I did the fronts a couple months ago with no problems. I just did the rears and its turned into a little nightmare. It has not been just a bolt on deal. I got 4 bad calipers which took a long time to get straight, and now that it's together the pedal almost touches the ground. All the air is bled. Plus I cant figure out the parking brake.

What do you mean when you say the pedal almost touches the ground?
Are you saying that it "keeps going down after you encounter resistance?
Or does it actually work stop moving and works okay but the pedal is too low?

The answer to these questions can help determine what your problem is...

[nac593]

When I installed the front discs, I had a shop bleed the brakes to make sure I installed everything correctly. I also installed new brake booster, master cylinder, and prop valve. I had to cut the rod on the booster to make it fit.
When I got it back from the shop, the pedal didn't feel very firm. It seemed like the first 1/3 or1/2 of travel didn't work. The pedal wouldn't go all the way to the floor, but it seemed close. It didn't feel that great, but the shop guy said it's the way discs feel compared to drums.
Now I put on the rear discs, and bled it using the info from this site and manuals. The pedal feels like before. Not very firm. And it seems to engage about 1/2 way thru the travel. By the time it engages fully the pedal is almost touching the floor. Sorry so long.

[Brento]

With the power brakes it will feel a little vague due to the expansion of the rubber lines and piston seal flex. That is only with the vaccum assist. Once you've turned the engine off and released the vaccum assist by pumping the pedal or disconnecting the booster before the check valve, the brakes should feel dang near rock hard. All your initial diagnostics on the brakes should be done without power assist due to that vaguenes you get from the assist. If you got the front kit, then added the rear, you will want to make sure you have the correct proportioning valve. Disc/drum vs disc/disc require different proportioning valves. Also if you pumped any air through the master cylinder when you added the rears, it will need to be removed and bench bled again to make sure you get full piston travel to get all the air out. Those are a couple of basics you will need to guarantee before making more decisions. Here is a link to the company I used for my power conversion. http://www.classicperform.com/

[68gmsee]

Some good info to help you get started on trouble shooting. Cyclone's link is a good starting point. I put in on my favorites Brake info folder. Thanks.

Since hydraulic fluid does not compress the only thing that can cause a mushy feeling brake pedal is either a mechanical adjustment, a leaking seal inside the master cylider or trapped air in the lines some where.

Other things that may be the problem is the brake booster, brake booster adjustments and/or master cylinder. Could be a combination of both.