Got it, I will remove the tank and clean it, instead of spending the $150 on a new one! Definable will replace the rear rubber sections of hose. Did the front ones when I did the fuel pump.
If needed, you can buy new preformed brake lines, complete with rock guard, from places like Fine Lines or Inline Tube.
Got it! I am going to try the new booster/master cylinder/wheel cylinders first and see what happens. 3 quick questions: -Can I bleed the brakes with the drums on but wheels off? Does having the wheels on or off matter? -I received some sort of boot with my master cylinder. Where does this go? I'm going to have to take the master cylinder off anyhow to re-bench bleed it and I assume this boot is supposed to go in between the booster and the maser cylinder? How doers it fit? -Must I adjust the pushrod length with the master cylinder detached or can I just install it and adjust the length at the brake pedal? Thanks all!
So I pulled the old master cylinder and booster apart to try and see what's what with the boot. The one that came out it much shorter and looks like it will actually fit my booster. Other than the fact the it was partially covered in brake fluid, the rubber seems to be in good shape. Should I reuse it? Here's a pic of the two, old on left, new on right:
Update: Went with the small boot, it fit and the rubber seemed fine. Took out the master and bench bled it again (accidentally let the level go to low yesterday). Did both rear wheel cylinders and bled them. Now I know how to take apart and put together drum brakes! :idea2:Excellent guide here if anybody needs it: http://www.78ta.com/HTAF/index.php?topic=41163.0 Moved that car to access the fronts and already the brakes feel waaaaaay better. I started on a front wheel cylinder today and found the old one leaking so I'm glad I'm going through the brakes. The fronts are much more of a PITA due to the spindle and angled fittings! Hopefully will have them done tomorrow then I can move on to cleaning the gas tank using the ATF, BBs, and carb cleaner.
Eastwood has a kit with all you need to clean and seal the tank. From your posts, I take it the underside of the car is pretty dirty. If you have access to a powerwasher, I'd run it up on ramps (or up, solidly, on jackstands) and clean the underside, front and rear. Makes life much easier than having crap fall into your eyeballs when under the car.
Yup the car is definitely dirty under there, unfortunately I don't have a power washer. I wonder what would happen if I went to the self serve car wash place down the street with a jack . . . :grin: And yes I will either reseal the old tank with the Eastwood kit or the like, or if the tank is really bad just buy a new one. $150 on eBay is pretty tempting!
I've done that, at a self-serve wash. Just bring ramps and/or GOOD jackstands and an old jacket that you don't care about and can throw in the trunk when you're done. And...........lots of quarters!
Thanks for the drum brake write up. It's book marked and I will be using it soon enough to redo my brakes. Good luck with the build. Have fun.
Heh heh ok i will give it a shot! Thanks and no problem! The one thing I noticed about that write up is he says that the long shoe goes towards the front of the car, maybe this is the case for F-bodies but I believe for us the long shoe goes towards the rear. Can anyone confirm that? Also the process for the front drums is almost the same, but the shoe retainer is fixed. Also removing and replacing the hard-line that goes to the wheel cylinder is much more of a PITA due to the spindle being in the way and the angled fittings. When I did the passenger side (in the process of doing the driver's) I also replaced the rubber flex line ($12 part) since the rubber on mine was ripping. Good luck!
I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving! Took out the fuel tank yesterday and cleaning it today with the carb cleaner/ATF/BBs method. Lookee what I found!!!: :beer Never really read a build sheet before. How come some of the options have stars next to them and some don't? Any tips on reading this? What does high perf GRP and stuff like that mean? Any info appreciated. Haha it looks like Hatfield Buick is still a dealership!
Also, Here are some pictures I took of the inside of the tank after the washing. Sorry it was with my cell phone and a flash light! Does this look good enough to use? Also how the hell do you get all the BBs out??!! :af:
From the pics it looks okay. Just keep shaking the tank around and they will fall out... Get a bunch of crud out of that tank?
Ya know the tank looks pretty much the way it did before I washed it, and my "cleaning solution" came out the same way it came in. So either I'm missing something or my tank was pretty clean to begin with. The best way I can describe how it looks is "streaky". I just want to make sure what I'm seeing isn't rust, but it looks more like a streaky discoloration, the metal seems to be smooth with out that rust "texture". Got all but the last BB out. Had to buy a magnetic pickup tool with a built-in light on the end. Pretty handy! Still working on that last f$%cking BB . . . Been shaking this tank all day!
Well it is good news that there does not seem to be rust in the tank. I apologize if it was frustrating getting the BB's out, I never had an issue with getting them out when I did it myself. At least now you will know you have a clean tank to work with, you never know sometimes they are full of crap and or rust.
