Is it ok to dent a booster???

[no1udknow]

Hey guys, just installed a 85 booster and mc on my 68 and I have found that the shifter arm barely makes contact with it when I put it in park. I do not want to risk it popping out of park or wearing a hole in the booster, so I was going to pull it and give it a few whacks to put a nice concave in it.

Is it a go, or is it a no no?

[brown7373]

Some boosters are pretty thick, with various curves, which might prove difficult to dent. And you might just distort it enough so the booster will leak, making it useless. Why not get the right booster?

[Grumpy old man]

Ditto , it's only money you'll make more ! I'm always looking for a deal ,BUT sometimes saving a hundred could cost you way more than your ready to give !

[no1udknow]

because it is literally about an 1/16-1/8". as i said, i can get it in park but I can tell it has pressure on it. i was also considering elongating the mounting holes on the bracket a bit to make it up. why not get another one? Easy to say if you make enough money. this one was free, it matches the rest of the system, and it is near new. I am tapped right now but I need this truck put together and to get it out of my work. But if I take it home, and the awesome local police come by again, I have to prove it runs and is moveable to be parked in my driveway, so I cant wait long enough to save the couple hundred dollars to buy the so called "right one" because I imagine that would also require a different master cyl.

[hugger6933]

Pull that sucker off and make the "clearance" bump it needs

[mechanicalman]

Can you bend the shift arm coming out of the column? Just a little? Then you might need to re-adjust it a little maybe.

[terry b]

Wack that thing!!!!!

[BRL]

Originally Posted by hugger6933

Pull that sucker off and make the "clearance" bump it needs

Originally Posted by terry b

Wack that thing!!!!!

So you say it was free, so why not give it a small clearance whack or two, and then if it doesn't work you're out about $0.00 plus labor.

[Katrina/10]

I have one of the big smooth boosters off a later model truck, and had the same problem. So I took it off and knocked a pretty big dent in it. Two years later, it still works fine.

[no1udknow]

Thanks guys, I was kind of wondering if someone would chime in who has done it.

That said, I called a few shops today that make custom boosters and asked them. They both told me that it is ok to "clearance dent" it They both said in different ways no larger than the hemisphere of a golf ball. anything larger than that and I risk damaging the diaphram and or changing the boost pressure.

If it was a no go, I was considering fabbing a new shift arm like a l shaped bracket so I could maintain the same swing, but in a lower location.