Finally had some quality time with my '77 Midget yesterday afternoon.
We got the front calipers off, very dirty and the pistons seem to be pretty
tight. We cleaned the outsides and will tackle disassembly next time. Got
two of three brake hoses off. The RF is soaking! That's the one that comes
thru the fender wall under the rad. overflow tank. A tough reach, so I will
probably remove the tank. The tank is held on the plate with a coily spring!
I will try to make a strap for it out of some sheet metal.
Decided I'll have to replace the starter solenoid. The bottom contact is very
rusted and the cable boot is melted. Indications of a loose connection.
Old tires are removed so now I can get the Rostyles blasted, painted, and buy
new tires.
Also decided that all the brake lines should be replaced. PO broke one
(unavoidably) when removing the master cyl. and I broke one removing the rear
brake hose. Other breaks are imminent! Plus they all show surface rust.
Better to be safe so I'll order a set.
What type of brake lines do you all recommend? Moss has copper/nickel alloy,
SICP sells copper (which I would suppose is also an alloy) but they haven't
had any in stock for over a year, and VB has steel brake lines. I'm leaning
toward the Moss set because they say they are clearly marked with a coded
instruction sheet ($69.95). Copper/nickel alloy doesn't sound like it will
rust like steel.
Rear brakes. Couldn't easily remove the drums but the screws came out without
a fuss. Couldn't turn the adjusters with my little open end 5/32" so the
adjusters are soaking in PB Blaster. Maybe I'll buy the brake adjuster
wrench. Apologies to the homeless spider that crawled out of the drum!
Only banged my head twice so it was a GOOD DAY!
Allen Hefner
'77 Midget
'92 Mitsubishi Expo LRV Sport
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