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Re: Bugeye rear brake upgrade and clutch problems.

To: Bryan.Vandiver@Eng.Sun.COM, macleans@earthlink.net
Subject: Re: Bugeye rear brake upgrade and clutch problems.
From: Bryan Vandiver <Bryan.Vandiver@Eng.Sun.COM>
Date: Thu, 15 Jul 1999 11:47:37 -0700 (PDT)
Cc: spridgets@autox.team.net
Reply-to: Bryan Vandiver <Bryan.Vandiver@Eng.Sun.COM>
Sender: owner-spridgets@autox.team.net
BTW - The lines were flushed individually off the car, and blown out with 
compressed air, and left in the sun to dry. I didn't want everyone to think I 
actually fill up the master with carb cleaner, and flushed the entire system 
that way ;-)

 - Bryan
>X-Accept-Language: en
>MIME-Version: 1.0
>To: Bryan Vandiver <Bryan.Vandiver@eng.sun.com>
>CC: spridgets@autox.team.net
>Subject: Re: Bugeye rear brake upgrade and clutch problems.
>
>Bryan,
>   In my experience, you should NOT flush the brake lines with anything other 
than
>brake fluid.  If there is still too much gunk inside, you might consider new 
steel
>brake lines.  Not as daunting a task as it sounds.  There are several options
>available to replace them.  You can get them bre-bent from Classic Tube, get a 
kit
>of lines from Moss Motors that you bend into shape by copying the original 
lines or
>you can buy a flaring tool from MiniMania and Classic tube will sell you any 
length
>of 1/8th steel tubing and make your own kit.
>     As to the synthetic brake fluid, if you are using Lockheed RUBBER parts 
>in 
your
>master cylinder and slave cylinders, you might be experiencing swelling of the
>rubber.  Synthetic fluid and rubber parts don't seem to mix very well.
>     If you go back and flush the system out a couple of times with Castrol LMA
>Brake Fluid, rebuild the master cylinder and slave cylinders with new rubber 
kits
>and use the Castrol fluid exclusively, I think your brake problem will be 
solved.
>Mike MacLean-60 Sprite
>
>Bryan Vandiver wrote:
>
>> Hello,
>>
>> I'm just putting the finishing touches on my bugeye restoration project, and
>> have run into some issues with the rear brakes, and clutch.
>>
>> I am using a rebuilt 7/8 inch dual master, that was bead-blasted, and honed. 
I
>> cleaned out all the brake and clutch lines with carb cleaner, and then blew 
them
>> out with compressed air. Since I was upgrading to front disk brakes, I 
thought
>> it would be best to upgrade the rear as well, so I pulled the brake backing
>> plates off a '78 rb midget (as well as the parking brake linkages), and
>> installed a new set of 3/4" brake cylinders. I am using my 'original' bearing
>> hubs, and brake drums ( dated 7/58). once I installed everything, and bolted 
on
>> the wheels, I noticed a lot of binding on the rear wheels ( in fact, I could
>> barely push the car out of the garage). After taking off both drums, they 
both
>> appear to be contacting the later brake backing plates. I compared my early
>> brake drums to later ones, and they have the same exact distance from the 
back
>> lip of the drum to the mounting surface. Has anyone done this, or run into 
this
>> problem??
>>
>> As for the clutch...
>> This is the 'stiffest' clutch I have experience in any car, is that typical 
of
>> sprites??
>> I have a ribcase trans, but the new clutch slave cylinder is the 'early 
style'
>> 7/8" (moss 180-655), to be compatible with my original clutch line and 
master.
>> All other clutch components are '1275 type' including the slave cyl 
'push-rod'.
>> The 'new' clutch kit was part# COM710/kit from MiniMania.
>> Besides being very tough to bleed, are these clutches really that hard to
>> disengage? I can't imaging driving with this in traffic!
>>
>> BTW - I am using 'sythetic brake fluid' since I am using all new components, 
and
>> all lines were'flushed' first.
>>
>> Regards - Bryan Vandiver (San Jose, CA)
>


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