In a message dated 5/5/03 12:50:45 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
kinderlehrer@mindspring.com writes:
<< One of the
things they can't get is brake fluid, so they make do with a mixture of
mostly dish washing soap. >>
I think early ( pre 40's ) hydraulic brake systems used glycerin. With a
drum brake system, boiling fluid isn't much of a problem.
Disc brakes heat the fluid much more due to the friction material in close
contact to the caliper pistons. Modern brake fluid contains Glycol, yep the
same stuff in antifreeze. If I was stranded on a desert island that 4 out of
5 doctors prefer, I'd be real tempted to use straight antifreeze.
Regular brake fluid has a additive to swell rubber seals a bit. The
interesting thing is that brake rubber is fine with brake fluid but will
expand to super size when in contact with motor oil/transmission fluid.
Regular rubber will swell when in contact with brake fluid. The "Automatic
Trans Fix in a Can" contains mostly brake fluid. ( same smell ) BTW, the
stuff will make a trans run a few more miles only if the internal seals are
too hard. The down side is that the seals will tend to stick in their bores
and cause clutches to burn up causing even more damage $$$.
Harold
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