Well, I've finally got the brakes finished at long last on my '57 6400. I'm not sure that I've got everything as it should be, though. The pedal has a lot of travel. It will go down to within 4" of the floor. The hydraulics are in perfect condition and they are well bled. When it does develop pressure, the pedal is nice and firm and doesn't drift down. It will have a higher pedal on the second stroke, so that tells me that it's taking up mechanical slack some place. I've carefully adjusted all the shoes per the manual and I really don't think I can snug them up any more without causing a serious drag. I've also got the free travel on the master set at about a 1/4". Is there anything I'm missing or is this typical on these old trucks? I really don't have any point of reference as the brakes never did work right when I got the truck. I haven't driven it or had it running yet either, so things may change a bit once the HydroVac comes into play. With 4 big 'ole wheel cylinders out back and two little ones in the front, I guess it would take some piston travel in that one little master to supply them all with fluid. The manual says it's time for adjustment when the pedal goes to within 2" of the floor, so maybe it's just me. I'm probably just spoiled by the high pedal on the more modern cars. Any thoughts?
Last edited by 1herrick1; 08/24/2008 8:55 PM.
