[Spridgets] 78 dual brake master cylinder

[Karl Vacek]

Hi - I'm back after many months off the list.

I'm finally working on my wife's 78 Midget - the 14,000 mile Wheel of Fortune
car.  I need to redo all hydraulics, and have done the clutch cylinders, but
when I disassembled the dual-line brake master cylinder I scratched the outer
portion of the piston a bit removing the snap ring.  That ring was actually
too big, making it not really fit in the annular space between the piston and
cylinder.  Not the kind of engineering that you'd see on an earlier car...

Anyway, it really looks to me like the outer seal isn't actually necessary -
not the outer boot, but the first seal inside of that.  There are two more
seals after that, that do the actual hydraulic pumping, and it looks to me
like the first seal (which mates to the piston in the area I scratched) is
just a second cleanliness seal.

Peter C told me I can't get a new piston.  I could of course just put it
together and try it, but I don't want to bother and waste the rebuild kit if
it's definitely an ill-fated attempt.

Anyone BTDT ??

Thanks!
Karl Vacek