Long brake pedal travel

[JamesW]

I’ve had car (1969 Minor) laid up for 12 months. When tried to drive it found front offside wheel semi seized. Eventually managed to remove drum and replaced both slave cylinders and drum. Shoes look ok with plenty left on them. Bled brakes and adjusted shoes to lightly scuffing. However still can’t get brake pedal to feel right. First pedal pump goes to floor , second pump gives good hard pedal. Car has Lockheed servo. How do I resolve this? Suggestions??

[Bill_qaz]

1st initial suggestion is to bleed all 4 wheels as you may have introduced air into the system
2nd have you adjusted all 4 brakes?

[oliver90owner]

No need to adjust the rear brakes to bleed the system. Just apply the handbrake and that will/should ensure the shoes are tight against the drums.

[Sleeper]

"Lockheed servo" , has it been fitted in the right orientation ?

servo orientation.jpeg (53.13 KiB) Viewed 406 times

John ;-)

[JamesW]

I’ve bled all brakes and adjusted shoes to lightly scuffing contact with drum. One question I have is this- the brake hose enters the first brake cylinder (front cylinder) at the cylinder’s TOP port and the cylinder’s BOTTOM port connects to the rear cylinder’s BOTTOM port. Is that correct? It looks like an air pocket could get trapped in front cylinder.

[JamesW]

Regarding the servo orientation in the diagram - I assume it’s that way because the outlet port is higher than the inlet so it expels any trapped air when bleeding??
I’ll check this when I get home.

[Sleeper]

Not just the slave port but also the air-valve..

John ;-)

[TonyTorque]

First pump to the floor then a good hard one usually points at shoe clearance more than air. Air tends to feel spongy rather than hard on the second go. Quick test, pump it up hard, wait a minute and press again. If it's long again the shoes are pulling back too far from the drums. If it stays high and firm it's more likely air. On the front each shoe has its own adjuster, so two per wheel, and both need setting. New cylinders and a new drum can need a few firm stops to settle and then another adjust. On the pipe order I'm not 100% sure of the Minor layout so I'll leave that to someone who's had one apart. If you think air is sitting in the top of that cylinder, a pressure bleeder on the reservoir often shifts it better than pedal bleeding.

[JamesW]

I’m at home now taking a closer look at how the servo has been installed. The inlet port has been put at the top I.e. in the 12 o’clock position and the centreline of the servo is pretty much exactly horizontal and certainly not inclined. I need to do a bit of servo reorientation tomorrow. Thanks guys for the guidance…….

[TonyTorque]

Good find James. Once it's turned round give the whole system a fresh bleed, servo included. Air trapped in the servo is a classic cause of a long pedal.