Re: IML: '62 Brake System Repair
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Re: IML: '62 Brake System Repair



The car did not come with a proportioning valve, and I think you will have to make you own metal lines. I haven't seen any NOS made for the Imperial in recent years. Get a tube bender, they are not difficult to make. Be sure to clean out the brass "T" s as they can collect crap which could spoil your brake job once it travels through the system.

Paul W.


-----Original Message-----
From: Joe Strickland <jwstrick426@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Wed, 8 Aug 2007 9:52 am
Subject: IML: '62 Brake System Repair



To all who responded - Thanks.

No, I did not mean to imply that I was going to re-use what was there, just that I am curious to see what shape they are in. All the wheel cylinders had been replaced back in '99 on this car. The master cylinder was sent out to a repair facility which advertised in Hemmings and was re-sleeved with stainless steel at that time. I don't think new master cylinders are avialable, but I will check. I intend to replace wheel cylinders if I can find new ones. If not it might be time to send them off to be re-sleeved too. In any case all the internal parts would have to be replaced to get good sealing under load. I plan to check with my local NAPA store or AutoZone or O'Reiley's to see what I can find as new replacements. If I don't find parts available locally, then it will probably be Andy Bernbaum or others listed on the club website. NAPA charged $61.37 plus
tax for a set of flex hoses.

I was successful in removing the left rear drum this morning. The hub/drum puller worked its magic. The drum came off relatively easily. There was much less struggle that when Jim Payne and I worked on his 61 Le Baron using a J. C. Whitney hub/drum puller. Not only was there less struggle, the pressure applying bolt stayed centered on the axle shaft like it should have. Once I had enough pressure applied I used light taps of a 3 lb. sledge hammer all the way around the stamped steel portion of the drum assembly and also near the lug studs and it popped loose. The large castle nut and washer kept it from flying off. Then some additional pressure from the bolt on the puller got the drum off
after the castle nut and washer had been removed.

It might be a good idea to take wheel cylinders along when I try to get parts ordered. Sometimes parts catalogs of vendors show pictures as well as listing in a table. Here are the Chrysler part numbers that I believe are correct for
the '62 Imperial:
    Rear Wheel Cylinders   1857 051, both left and right
    Front Wheel Cylinders  1857 055, Front upper left
                           1857 053, Front lower left
                           1857 054, Front upper right
                           1857 052, Front lower right

The left rear wheel cylinder bore shows considerable rust along the bottom edge toward the extreme travel position of one of the pistons. It looks bad enough that honing would probably not correct the pitting. I expect the other wheel
cylinders will be in similar condition.

An interesting discovery I made when I got the left rear drum off was that the rear leading shoe wheel cylinder boot was cooked to the point of being cracked and brittle. The rear following shoe wheel cylinder boot was not quite so damaged. The the leading shoe showed almost no wear, but the following shoe showed considerable wear and some evidence of overheating. I believe that when Preston Chrysler worked on the car years ago that the mechanic who serviced it did not know how to properly adjust the rear following shoes and had them too tight. That is probably why the brakes smoked badly when I drove it home. At the time I did not have a service manual for the car and did not bother to check the adjustment of each wheel myself. I wish I had now. I may have bee enjoying the car for the last eight years instead of letting it sit and deteriorate.

All rear brake adjusters seem to have adequate resistance to turning. I don't think the tension on them is bad. I do think it would be best to have new brake shoe return springs on the car, especially the rear brakes. After getting the rear brake drums so hot it may have caused the springs to loose some of their
tension.

One of my biggest fears at this point is that both rear drums may have been warped by the drive home after the dealer worked on it. By the time I got the
car home smoke was pouring out from both rear wheels.  The front brakes
continued to enable me to stop OK. I did get some replacement rear drums from
Bob Hoffmeister years ago.

I have a friend who said he would help me make new brake line tubes, unless one of our vendors listed on the club website has reproductions available. Has
anyone checked for brake lines on the '62 models?

I haven't looked yet, but is there a proportioning valve for front to rear brake pressure balance? I am guessing that it would have been made of brass and not too likely to go bad. Ditto for the rear axle "T". I don't want to crawl
around under the car anymore than I have to at this point.

Joseph W. Strickland
1021 Vaughan Lane
Tioga, TX 76271-2937

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