The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Big Bolts Hydrovac Rebuild Kit

Evening folks,
Does anyone have any idea where I could get rebuild kit or parts for a bendix hydrovac out of My 50 chevy 2 ton? I'm not having much luck. Re-builders happy to take it on for small fortune but would rather do myself. Appreciate yall, Doug

Check this SITE you may find what you need.
Harold

Thanks Harold, Found lots of info on hydroboost for 60's and up on google but nothing specific to 50's hydrovacs as of yet.

Some members have had good luck with Reman-Inc out of Indianapolis IN. Best bet is to call direct, they aren't great on answering emails in my experience.

http://www.remaninc.com/

There is also a company out of Wisconsin of which the name escapes me. I've spoken with them and then can do masters and some hydro-vacs.

I have one other as well, but the paperwork I have for them is out in the barn. Ill grab it in the morning and post back with that info for you.

Brake and Equipment Warehouse in Minneapolis is good too. https://brakeandequipment.com/ I think it is best to call them also.

Thanks for replies fellas...., re-man inc was no answer (left email) and brake and equipment was a no dice. So the search goes on. Lol

You might find these slides useful.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/advance-design_parts_co/albums/72157651726866618
https://www.flickr.com/photos/advance-design_parts_co/albums/72157635961538965

Thanks Brad, that's very helpful.

Those are great, I have never seen them before.

Doug,
I may be grasping for straws here, but give Will Samples a call. He rebuilt the booster on my 1955 Mercedes. It looks almost identical to the one used by GM.
He might be able to point you in the right direction. There is an exploded view of the booster on his web site.
Good luck.
Harold

Tks harold, I'll give him a try. Update: Well I got a hold of Rick today at reman-inc via email and he's trying to put a kit together for me...fingers crossed. In the mean time I took mine apart and glad i did. Someones had it apart before and lubed piston and power cylinder with vasoline/.... not a drop of oil in it which I know is recommended. Theres some light scratching to cylinder but not deep...hopefully i can smooth them out. Good news is no rust or pitting.

Just an FYI for anyone who may be looking to rebuild their hydrovac. Rick from reman-inc was able to set me up with a kit. Thanks all for your help...much appreciated. Doug

Late reply, but I finally tracked down the other company. They don't have a website aside from a single webpage deal here: http://rebuildersenterprises.com/

They are the only known supplier for the 2 speed diaphrams for the axle shifters and they specialize in brakes. You can try and give them a call. I need to as well regarding an old 1.25" master rebuild. Ill report back after I talk to them.

Update for you:

Over the past 10 weeks I have had zero luck with RemainInc listed above. Just got off the phone with REI (above post) and they can pretty much do anything. They buy their parts in bulk based on sizing, not unit part numbers, thus you can't order kits from them. You ship in master/hydrovac/steering box/ etc and they will tear it down and use the old seals to match to new ones and then rebuild the unit for you.

I was told to simply box up the parts and include a paper with my number and the necessary info, ship it to them, and once received they will inspect, call, discuss with you and then rebuild the unit and return. Seems simple enough. They seemed fine with including double/triple of the parts used to rebuild in the return box to have on hand as spares so you can rebuild it yourself again in the coming years depending on how heavily used the truck will be.

Located in Chicago, address at the link in my prior post directly above. Hope it helps

Not sure if they sell rebuild kits but I just had my 1955 Chevy first 6400 hydrovac rebuilt by A1Cardone. Price will vary depending on what they replace but I paid $240 + shipping. One year warranty. Seemed pretty reasonable considering the complexity of all the valves, pistons, springs etc. I haul firewood out of the mountains so I like knowing it's done right. I bought the truck one year age and replaced all the brake components with new. Drum brakes are scary at best going down steep mountain roads with 6000 lb load. Reading the recent posts about converting to disc brakes has got me considering it. Just hauled my first load last weekend and I could smell the brakes getting hot on a 65 degree day. Not a good feeling. $240 on the hydrovac is cheap insurance. Good luck on your project.

One other thing I did was painting the brake drums with Zycoat ceramic paint. It's mainly used of exhaust headers. It's very efficient at conducting heat away from metel.

I bought a rebuilt unit from Reman, great customer service, unit looked new, there is a core charge if you buy a rebuilt unit. Pretty sure they offer parts tool. Good luck!