Bleeding Brakes

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blue_cortina
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Posts: 83
Joined: Wed May 27, 2020 1:27 pm
Location: Essex
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Re: Bleeding Brakes

Post by blue_cortina »

Myrtles Man wrote: Wed Jul 06, 2022 2:08 pm
blue_cortina wrote: Wed Jul 06, 2022 12:10 pm After the initial half inch free play there is still inch and half of travel before pedal is firm and that only an inch or so away from the floor. I tried it at low speed and brakes seemed poor, certainly not at road test quality yet.


Have you tried pumping the brake pedal and if so, does the firmness come back up the pedal's travel?
Pumping the brakes seems to make no obvious difference.
Helping my son with his Morris Minor 1970 Panda Car Replica (both club members)
blue_cortina
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Posts: 83
Joined: Wed May 27, 2020 1:27 pm
Location: Essex
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Re: Bleeding Brakes

Post by blue_cortina »

ManyMinors wrote: Wed Jul 06, 2022 12:53 pm I wouldn't worry TOO much about the pedal travel at this stage. I've just read through this thread again and you mention having fitted new shoes front and back I think? That is something I try to avoid for exactly this reason because I have found that the brakes generally have poor feel and long travel for a few hundred miles until the new shoes have bedded in and then been re-adjusted. Some brakes parts are cheap and poor quality too and don't give the best braking but I would say that if you get a firm pedal before the it reaches the floor, then that it a good start and perhaps you should try driving the car a bit and then re-adjusting later after adding some mileage? One more thing you could try...Have you tried clamping off one flexible hose at a time to eliminate that part of the system? That might give an indication of where the most travel is coming from.
Don't give up. Keep persevering and you'll get there in the end :wink:
New cylinders (lockhead), drums (the better ones) and shoes (mintex) at the back. The front cylinders are new & shoes look fairly low milage.

I get what you re saying about bedding in - it could be as simple as that ?

I tried clamping off each of the three hoses in turn ( I don't usually like using clamps but the hoses are new and should survive it ok). There was no obvious difference in behaviour
Helping my son with his Morris Minor 1970 Panda Car Replica (both club members)
blue_cortina
Minor Friendly
Posts: 83
Joined: Wed May 27, 2020 1:27 pm
Location: Essex
MMOC Member: Yes

Re: Bleeding Brakes

Post by blue_cortina »

So I remeasure the distances on the pedal travel.

There is a generous half inch at the pedal of freeplay - I understand this as complete freeplay before the actuating rod touches the piston in the mc.
There is then 2 & 1/8 Inch movement until pedal firm
Firm pedal at 2 & 3/4 Inch from the floor.

How does that compare ?
Helping my son with his Morris Minor 1970 Panda Car Replica (both club members)
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