[Parenn911]

Great info. Matt. Thanks for chiming in .

[Steelspine]

New master cylinder is mostly installed, had a bad hard line going to the front left brake. When I pulled the floorboard off the pedal cluster I encountered a frightening amount of rust on every surface, looked like something brought up from the Bismark. I hope the new MC and brake line do the trick!

[Trak Ratt]

Leaky seals on doors & sunroof can lead to water in cabin, which can lead to service rust under floorboards. Especially in cars stored for any period out side. I recommend you remove pedal cluster & rebuild while you are replacing the master cylinder. Also clean the “floor pan” under the cluster & test w/a screwdriver for more than just service rust. Use the bronze bushes not the OEM. one size works really well on the throttle linkage too.

[Steelspine]

Thanks Dave, I was looking at the cluster last night and I'm just hoping I can get it out! Pelican has a service that rebuilds the pedal cluster (with the brass bushings) for $125 bucks. The floor pan looks good other than the cluster rust.

I bought a generic brake line yesterday and I had to eyeball the dimensions since I couldn't find a reference to the O.D. or I.D. in the workshop manuals or the Haynes.

[Trak Ratt]

Peddle cluster rebuild is real simple & you have to take it off to send to anyone else anyway! Replacement brake lines are sold by length & fitting type, not OD/ID. Make sure, real sure you have the right fitting on the ends before trying to install I had to replace the hard line on my ’84 2 weeks ago & ended having to settle for one that was to long. Used the one from the other side as a guide & just bent the new one around a jack handle. Put 2 coils in it, fits real nice, looks like a small “cooler” 8)

[}{arlequin]

This board is timely as always. I'm about to go through the same process. Still haven't fully identified my problem but to be on the safe side, a rebuilt cluster is going in as soon as the new master arrives. Also, can you bench bleed the master w/ a Motive, or is it a strictly manual job?

I've heard a lot of people screwing up (delaying) the job by messing up the hard lines. Is that something that happens rather often? How? How to avoid/prevent it? (Where can I get a hard line, locally, if I find myself in a pinch?) Are they prone to failure? I know that *everything* can fail, but how likely are the hardlines ever the culprit?

Don't want to be at anyone's garage (wink wink), have the car apart, and realize that a lack of $10 replacement part is preventing me from driving away...

[}{arlequin]

I'm going to be replacing my master/brake switch/pedal cluster this weekend. Is there anything in particular I should *try* to avoid in order not to screw it up?

How do I avoid messing up the hardlines? Do I need flare nut wrenches or will regular wrenches work just fine?

thanks.

[Steelspine]

Dave,

It really wasn't that difficult, the only part I found trying was plugging the hoses from the reservoir into the top of the MC. I have big hands and small hands would have worked better.

[Jazzbass]

The is a chance you could mess up the hard lines, but I don't think its a very high chance if you take your time and be careful. The thing you have going for you is that your hard lines are steel, not the Copper-Nickel alloy they used on later cars (like mine). With the later lines, the flare nut likes to fuse to the line, causing the line to rupture when you twist the nut (ask me how I know).

You can get away with regular wrenches, but I'd hgihly recommend getting a flare nut wrench for this. Given how old your lines are, you may need some force to loosen them, and the chances of rounding over the exisiting lines is greating in this case. Besides, you should be able to get an 11mm flare nut wrench for $5.

[}{arlequin]

That sounds like music to my ears guys. Thanks. I'll be looking for that 11mm shortly.

P.S. Since I'll be browsing the flare nut wrenches, what sizes will I need for a fuel filter replacement?