The Ford Barn

adavis · 08-14-2018, 11:08 AM

My 1940 Tudor is a blast to drive, but the brakes are driving me crazy. The brakes are great....as long as you pump the pedal 1 time. The first press of the pedal is soft, but the second and every consecutive pump after that is rock solid. Everything is new including master cylinder, wheel cylinders, and lines....all stock. I've done quite a bit of reading on here about brake issues and found several people swearing by residual valves, so I installed them in the front and rear lines but not change. There are no leaks visable and no damp locations that I can see anywhere. The fluid level in the MC has not dropped. Last night I removed the sections that have the residual valves and retightened everything....just to make sure. I bled all the brakes again (went through another bottle of fluid just to make sure I got ALL the air out) and still have the same result.

I press on the pedal and its soft, but on the second press its firm. This happens every single time. I even counted to 5 and tried it again....same result....first pump is soft second and all subsequent are firm. If I wait 5 seconds the first pump is soft again.

Anyone have any suggestion on what to try next? Is this a sign of a bad MC or maybe I just didn't get it bench bled correctly? Any input is greatly appreciated......

08-14-2018, 11:08 AM	#1
adavis Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Washington State Posts: 289	1940 brake issue.... My 1940 Tudor is a blast to drive, but the brakes are driving me crazy. The brakes are great....as long as you pump the pedal 1 time. The first press of the pedal is soft, but the second and every consecutive pump after that is rock solid. Everything is new including master cylinder, wheel cylinders, and lines....all stock. I've done quite a bit of reading on here about brake issues and found several people swearing by residual valves, so I installed them in the front and rear lines but not change. There are no leaks visable and no damp locations that I can see anywhere. The fluid level in the MC has not dropped. Last night I removed the sections that have the residual valves and retightened everything....just to make sure. I bled all the brakes again (went through another bottle of fluid just to make sure I got ALL the air out) and still have the same result. I press on the pedal and its soft, but on the second press its firm. This happens every single time. I even counted to 5 and tried it again....same result....first pump is soft second and all subsequent are firm. If I wait 5 seconds the first pump is soft again. Anyone have any suggestion on what to try next? Is this a sign of a bad MC or maybe I just didn't get it bench bled correctly? Any input is greatly appreciated......