I've checked the archives but wasn't able to find this particular problem.
It seems that I'm unable to bleed my brakes (classic method - Bentley) since
the pedal meets resistance about halfway down. (halfway meaning about
halfway from normal resistance to hitting the floor)
I suspect I may have done something wrong during the following sequence:
1. Rebuilt PDWA - new o-rings, centered the piston, etc.
2. Installed rebuilt Servo from Partco (Ohio)
3. Installed new clutch cylinder
4. Installed new brake M/C (from TRF)
5. Filled resevoirs with Castrol LMA
6. Bled the clutch cylinder (gravity method)..no problems
7. Put car up on jack stands..removed all wheels.
8. Started with passenger side rear per manual, however pedal was not
pumping any fluid. It seemed to go to the floor pretty easily according to
my assistant.
9. I then decided to try the front brake (passenger side) and was able to
get fluid pumping into the glass jar.
10. Went back to the rear brake again (passenger side) and this time the
pedal only wants to go down halfway? (don't want to upset the PDWA so I
didn't push too hard) Still no fluid. I even tried my Mityvac and couldn't
coax any fluid out.
11. I then noticed the parking brake was on...dumb me...not sure if this
caused anything or not.
12. Tried the rear (passenger side) again and same result...pedal goes down
halfway.
13. Tried the rear (drivers side) and same result...pedal goes down halfway.
Anyway, it started to get dark so I drove the car back into the shed.
So, now I'm asking myself (and the list) -
Should I have bench bled the M/C prior to install? I read in the archives
that the gravtiy method works for the brakes as well as the clutch.
Could the PDWA (if not centered) cause this symptom? Per Bentley, if the
brake light and oil light glow dimly then it's OK. I checked several times
and the oil light and brake light both glow. Also, there is no leaking fluid
from the PDWA...like there was before I installed new orings.
I've bled a lot of brake systems in the past and never experienced this type
of problem.
Has anyone else experienced this?
Thank you in advance for any replies.
Don Becker, 74 Mallard Blue CF19716U
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