The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Big Bolts 1954 Chevy 4100 Wheel Cylinder Size?

I’m hoping someone with a factory parts book or firsthand experience with the heavy-duty Advance Design trucks can help clear up some confusion.

I’m restoring the front brakes on my 1954 Chevrolet 4100. It has Bendix brakes with 2.5” wide front shoes.

The front wheel cylinders currently on the truck:

* GM casting number 5454385
* Bore is cast/stamped 7/8
* I measured the bore with calipers and confirmed it is 7/8”
* Both left and right cylinders are identical

The truck appears to be largely original, but I’m trying to determine whether these are the correct factory cylinders or if a previous owner may have installed smaller cylinders because the originals weren’t available.

The confusing part is that many online parts catalogs seem to list 1” or even larger front wheel cylinders for 1954 trucks, while my original cylinders are clearly 7/8”.

My questions are:

1. Was a 7/8” front wheel cylinder actually factory-correct for a 1954 4100 with Bendix brakes and 2.5” shoes?
2. Does anyone have a GM Master Parts Catalog or Shop Manual that lists the correct front wheel cylinder bore or part number for this application?
3. Has anyone run across casting number 5454385 and can confirm what truck it belongs to?

I’d like to rebuild and keep the original cylinders if they’re correct, but I don’t want to rebuild the wrong parts if the truck should have had a different bore from the factory.

Thanks in advance for any information or factory documentation you can share.

I somehow originally missed that there is a link in here to the old car manual project. Now, doing a deep dive in there, the 54 Chevrolet Truck Shop Manual does indicate a 1” cylinder on 1st design and 7/8” on 2nd design for the fronts on a ‘54.

That is a fantastic resource that I’ll be referencing more often I’m sure.

Here's what I found. Apparently the first 2500 trucks in '54 used 1" wheel cylinders and then switched to the 7/8" cylinders that you have. This is from the March 57 Parts and Accessories Catalog.

Based on that, I think you'd be fine with 7/8" diameter wheel cylinders. Or with 1" cylinders if that's all you can find. There's a note saying that at the bottom that listing.

Perfect. Thanks for the additional info.

ShopRag - Glad you noticed the "old car manual project" link. There is so much resource info in there, including not just the shop manuals, but Master Parts Books too.

Take a long meander around the different linked resource in that main page. You will be amazed at how much info is in there, and all as close a your finger tips.

PS - That was your 4th approved post, so from here out you can post without further moderation. Welcome to full 'Bolt membership status!!!

I’m hoping someone with access to older GM, Delco Moraine, Wagner, Raybestos, or NAPA paper parts catalogs can help identify a cross-reference for an original wheel cylinder.

The truck is a 1954 Chevrolet 4100 with the original Bendix hydraulic brakes.

The wheel cylinder is stamped Delco Moraine and has the casting number 5454385. The bore is clearly stamped 7/8”.

Here are the dimensions I’ve measured:

* Bore: 7/8”
* Pilot boss (locating register that fits into the backing plate): 1.500” diameter
* Mounting ear bolt spacing: approx 1.69” center-to-center
* The 1.50” pilot boss slides into the matching hole in the backing plate—it is not just the flange diameter.

I’ve searched the usual online catalogs, but they either show a 1” bore cylinder or don’t list the pilot boss diameter or mounting dimensions, making it impossible to verify a match.

I’d also be interested in knowing if this cylinder was shared with another Chevrolet or GMC medium-duty truck application.

If no replacement exists, I’ll likely have my original Delco Moraine cylinders sleeved and rebuilt, but I’d like to exhaust the cross-reference search first.

Thanks in advance for any help or catalog lookups!

I did some deep diving through various Chevy Master Parts Books, a 1963 Delco Moraine Hydraulic Brake Parts Catalog and some web surfing to find out the following:

Original Casting# = GM Part# 5455482 for a 7/8" bore front wheel cylinders used on 1954-59 1-1/2 and 2 ton trucks. Same part for both sides. I found one NOS GM# 5455482 in this evlbay ad. The 2nd picture in the ad confirms the casting is a 7/8" bore, but the item looks pretty rough and I'd question condition.

A search of the Delco Moraine 1963 Catalog lists the front wheel cylinders for Late 1954-1959 40 thru 60 Series Models 1-1/2-2 Ton as "W19944", which cross references to the later Raybestos replacement # "WC19944". A look at the wheel cylinder specification details confirms these are 7/8" bore units.

I found one evilbay ad for an NORS Raybestos WC 19944 wheel cylinder, and a second RAYBESTOS WC19944 WHEEL CYLINDER. Although neither of these ads confirm the bore size, you could contact the sellers to ask for further confirmation before deciding your next step.

Lastly, Kanter lists a WC19944 Wheel cylinder, but indicates you should call to confirm vehicle application and fit.

Best of luck getting what you need.

If you have a lathe and a die grinder, sleeving brake cylinders is a pretty simple procedure. Sleeving with seamless stainless steel tubing makes an original cylinder "better than new" and it will outlive most of us without ever having to worry about pitting or corrosion.
Jerry

Hotrod do they ever use brass?

Gdads51,
Thanks for taking the time to do that search. Very much appreciated.

It's quite likely to be this one.. https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=18727057&cc=3442520&pt=1952&jsn=8 although they seem to be out of stock on the left front. I still bought one of these along with all four of my rear wheel cylinders, just to have in stock for later.

For that price I could buy several and use the internals on mine after I hone them. Cheaper than most rebuild kits. Thanks for the heads up.

Wow, I hadn't thought of that-I should have bought two of them for parts!

Yes, brass is also used to sleeve wheel cylinders, that's what White Post Restoration uses...

Mike B

Just an FYI
I ordered and received the one Tronman posted a link to above from Rockauto. Fits perfectly. Too bad they are all out of the drivers side. At just under $17 shipped it’s a pretty good bargain. Keeping my originals for possible future re lining.

Brass tubing is hard to find, and it's subject to corrosion. There are lots of sizes of thinwall stainless tubing available on Ebay, and it's easier to work with, and more durable than brass.
Jerry