Brake Update ***New question***

[wiseman79]

Well I swapped out the Wilwood Master cylinder that I suspected was bad with a new one. Went in fine. Bled the brakes OK. I now have brakes!

Now the bad news, (you didn't expect it to go perfect did you?)... I'm not happy with the performance. I couldn't lock up the brakes no matter how hard I tried, I didn't even feel safe enough to take it out of the neighborhood. It does stop, but expected performance at least in the ballpark of the stock power MC I removed. I moved the push rod up to the stock manual hole like some have mentioned on the forum, a little better but still not going to cut it.

So...is this what you get with the wilwood MC and an otherwise stock brake system? Or is there stll something not right? I have asked several times, but haven't gotten a definitive answer, should I still be using the stock combo valve? Something else?

Oh, finally, I learned not to fling open a cowl hood on a very windy day. So now I can add a new windshield to the list of things left to do to finish the car. All in all, the day was one huge kick in the b@lls.

 

[Supe]

Still not sure why these brakes are giving you fits. Mine are working just fine, maybe a hair softer than the stock power setup. Had no problems slowing down at the track, and that's with my lines still backwards on the master itself. Again, all I've got is the 12lbs residual valve, no combo/prop valve, and my fronts are plumbed right through the line lock.

 

[wiseman79]

I think I'll try removing the combo, put the residual back in, and see what happens. I guess I would need a metering valve too, but will see what happens before I buy more parts. Any other input?

 

[Supe]

Can't see what else you'd need. I'm going straight from the master to the block at the 9", with the residual valve being the only thing in it's path.

 

[Anonymous]

What size line do you run down the side of the car supe? I ran the stock 1/4 size line. Does the line for the rear come out of the front or rear of the master cylinder. I have a Wilwood master cylinder too and my car doesn't stop worth a damn. I have a 10 pound residual pressure valve inline with the rear brakes and a proportioning valve. Stock front discs and drums in the back.

 

[wiseman79]

The front port on the MC is the rear, rear port is the front.

 

[wiseman79]

I emailed Travis today about the problem. And to my surprise I got a call several hours later, on a Saturday no less. After talking to him for a while, he says I have a ton of air still in the lines. Like I said, the system IS working now, just the performance sucks. He's saying more bleeding will do the trick. I gotta say it's cool to get such good customer service, I was expecting a return email on Monday at best. Now I got some info and am a little more confident about trying again in the morning.

 

[Anonymous]

Are they squishy? If they're tight, like mine, it's not air in the lines.

 

[wiseman79]

Travis said that tight brakes are from huge pockets of air. After most of the air is gone and you're left with small pockets of air, you get the squishy pedal, then when all the air is gone, you get a firm pedal and you're set. He says he's installed this kit on tons of cars and has been at this point before. He suggested letting them gravity bleed for a while, then try and finish them off with the normal bleeding procedure. We'll see in the morning.

 

[GreenDragginBu]

John.....this is exactly how my brakes are also.....I cant really mess with mine much now because of weather....but i suspect air is one of my problems.

Keep me updated, and hopefully i can get mine sorted also...And yes Travis is great about customer service.....