jerryacheson

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I've decided to sell my 62 Electra 225 convertible to make room for other projects. This car is a great cruiser and has won its share of trophies too. Check my signature for pictures. It's powder blue with new white top and rear window. The interior and trunk have been completed re-upholstered as original. The stock radio has been re-worked to include AM-FM stereo with replacement speakers in the stock location in front and rear. It looks original and sounds great. It has new 1" whitewall radial tires on Cragar 30 spoke wire wheels. The wheels are new as well. The engine and tranny run great. I've driven it many miles on the highway and country roads without incident. It will keep up with traffic. The engine compartment has been detailed. I have converted it to updated dual master cylinder and completed renewed the braking system. It stops great and it's safe. You'll love this car for only $17,500. Contact me by email at jerryacheson@yahoo.com. Be quick; it won't be on the market long. Jerry

I haven't found a source. However, you may talk to one of your local brake shops (you know; the one that really knows what they're doing) about your issue. They can probably tell you a place that can sleeve your old ones. I nearly did that awhile back but it turned out I had a different problem.

This has been the strangest thing. I started 2 years ago with a perfectly fine car. I bought shoes, mc rebuild kit, new wheel cylinders and hardware and took it to a local shop to have the brakes rebuilt. While I've always had a firm pedal, it took a lot of leg pressure to stop the car. I always attributed this to the booster. As indicated above, I bought a universal 8" booster from Summitt and converted to dual mc. No change. I then bought a 67 Buick Electra 10.5" booster and mc and put those on (bolted right up). No change. I just put new shoes on from NAPA and the brakes are fine now. I guess I just had a bad set of shoes. All that money wasted on boosters and master cylinders. Oh well; I can't take it with me. I think my troubles are over on this project now. Now I can enjoy the car again. Thanks for all your help.

This has been the strangest thing. I started 2 years ago with a perfectly fine car. I bought shoes, mc rebuild kit, new wheel cylinders and hardware and took it to a local shop to have the brakes rebuilt. While I've always had a firm pedal, it took a lot of leg pressure to stop the car. I always attributed this to the booster. As indicated above, I bought a universal 8" booster from Summitt and converted to dual mc. No change. I then bought a 67 Buick Electra 10.5" booster and mc and put those on (bolted right up). No change. I just put new shoes on from NAPA and the brakes are fine now. I guess I just had a bad set of shoes. All that money wasted on boosters and master cylinders. Oh well; I can't take it with me. I think my troubles are over on this project now. Now I can enjoy the car again. Thanks for all your help.

Yes; the first booster I tried asked for 18" and that's what I have from the intake. I also have the vacuum reserve tank and it is solid. It has no leaks. I need to mic the drums. I'm thinking they've been cut to much and I'm not getting good contact on the shoes. The shoes don't lay flat against the drum surface. I'm going to order new ones and see how that turns out. Kanter seems to have cast iron replacements. These are aluminum.

Not so fast. I put that Summit setup on the car and had no improvement. I still have to put a lot of pressure on the pedal to stop quickly. Since we last spoke, I decided that the 8" booster from Summit wasn't big enough so I decided to go with a Buick setup. I investigated and found that 67 was the first year Buick had a dual master cylinder with drum brakes. I bought a 67 booster and master cylinder and installed them. The 67 booster is 10.5". I still have the same symptoms. At this point, I think I've been chasing the wrong components. What's left? Brake wheel cylinders? Drums? Shoes? I note that the 62 wheel cylinder (I have new ones on the car) are 1.125" in diameter and that the 67 would have 1.185" diameter. I've decided that isn't the problem. I've pulled the drums off before and didn't see anything that looked abnormal. However, I scuffed up the shoes before I noted how they were wearing. I wonder if the brake shop over-turned my drums and that the shoes aren't seeding correctly. Any thoughts? Remember that these drums are aluminum. Greasemonkey; how's your project going?

That's worth checking. It's my understanding that you don't need to use a proportioning valve if the fronts and rears are both drum.

I need your help to diagnose a power brake problem. I have a 62 Electra that had power brakes with a single master cylinder and drums all around. I had the brakes re-done, including a new master cylinder. After the repair, I noted that the brake booster wasn't working. I did the 'test' (i.e., engine off, foot on brake, start car) and the pedal pushed toward me as it was suppose to. I scratched my head and decided to put a new booster and dual master cylinder on it anyway. The booster is from Summit (8") and the master cylinder is a standard GM unit that has the same push rod style as the booster. The booster calls for 18" of vacuum which is what I have off the intake. I plumed in the vacuum canister that was in the car. The engine performs fine which would indicate to me that there is no vacuum leak. However, I still don't have power brakes. I do have manual brakes but it takes a lot of pressure to stop that big ragtop. The 'test' doesn't work on this booster. In fact, I think the pedal goes down a little bit when the car starts. What are your thoughts on my problem?

I'm sure no expert on these convertible tops. I'm just sharing what I did and how well it worked. Best of luck. Let me know when you're in town and wanting to talk Buick. I like doing that. <img src="http://forums.aaca.org/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://forums.aaca.org/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://forums.aaca.org/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Of course yours could be different since it's a year newer. There was a metal cover over my motor that I had to remove. There was a rubber plug in one end of the pump that had to be removed. I filled that hole until the fluid was even with the bottom of the hole. I don't remember what fluid I used. I'll see if I can figure it out tonite and post later. I was worried about bleeding the system but it seemed to take care of itself.

Have you checked the fluid level in the pump? I had a recent problem where my top worked sometimes and sometimes it didn't. I filled the pump and everything is fine now. Know where the pump is? On my 62 Electra it's under a piece of cloth which drapes from the rear of the back seat to where the bottom of the vinyl top ties in the the body.

Am I in the wrong forum with this question? Can someone point me toward an answer? Thanks in advance.

I'm doing some work to freshen up the engine compartment on my 62 Electra. Are the hinges cad silver or semi-gloss black or ??? Also, are the hood springs semi-gloss black? What color are the bolts that hold the springs onto the car/hood? Are the hood latch assembly components cad silver or what? Thanks for your help.

We're back on track now. Everything is going to work fine. I took the rear line lose from the block. It's 3/16". I'm using a coupler there back up to the rear plug in the master cylinder which is the same size fitting. I plugged the exposed hole in the block. I diconnected the line entering the top of the block from the old master cylinder (1/4"). The lines from the block to the front wheel cylinders are 3/16". I'm trying to decide whether to run 1/4" line from the new MC to the block or use 3/16". The block is 1/4" and the MC is 3/16". I think I'm going with the 3/16" line and an adaptor from 1/4" to 3/16". Other than that, it's just a matter of installing the brake light switch and bleading the lines. Good luck.

I'm wrestling frozen brake lines in that distribution box right now. I wish the fender wasn't on there.

We finally got it. We borrowed a drum puller from a friend. The puller and a hammer were what it took. The brakes are done and she's back on the road. Thanks for the help.

Progress Report: I received the booster (SUM-760122) and master cylinder (SUM-760100) from Summit. They're chrome. I wish I had looked a little closer to get a more natural looking setup. I'll have to paint these to look ok under the hood. There's nothing else that's chrome under there. You'll need to get their Brake Booster Rod Kit (SUM-760125) to tie the booster into the brake pedal. The booster comes with a threaded end and the 'eye' needed by the brake pedal is integrated into your old booster. I had to open the four holes for the mounting bolts just a little in the firewall just to allow them to slide in easier. I also openned the center hold for the rod just a little to let it slide in smoother. My Dramel tool made quick work of this. I've got the booster and master cylinder mounted temporarily. All that's left is to run new brake lines (piece of cake) and install the brake light switch (even easier). This is an easy conversion. While I have it apart I've decided to freshen up the firewall so I'll be down a few more days. (I have to wait for the piece for the brake pedal anyway. I'm glad I've done this. I know the purists among us won't like it but I'm sure gonna be a lot safer and I can always go back since I'm not destroying anything. We'll see how this does before I consider adding disk brakes. I suspect that this will be all I need for now but it's good to know where to get the brackets.

Need you help again. My friend's 41 Business Coupe lost the drivers side rear wheel cylinder this week. I have tried everything I can think of to pull the drum without any luck. I tried a 3 legged wheel puller with a center screw. I tried a 3 legged puller with a slide hammer. I tried heat from an aceteline torch. I tried penetrating oil. I tried my big hammer. Yes; I did pull the nut off the spindle. So; what am I missing? What are your ideas?

Hi fellow greasemonkey. I have been seeking similar information on this board for awhile without luck. I've just ordered some parts from Summit Racing that I think I can adapt to my car. I've ordered a universal booster and dual master cylinder that should be here in a few days. I'm hoping to install these and adapt the brake lines to the dual cylinder. My objectives are to resolve what I believe to be a problem with my booster and to add the extra safety of the dual master cylinder. My only concern at this time is to get the brake light switch linked in since it currently operates off the front of the master cylinder. I'll post the results of this experiment when finished. Oh; I'm working on a 62 Electra ragtop.

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">The disc brake conversion : www.DiscBrakeMike.com </div></div> Unless I missed something on this site, they don't support the 62. Anyone have another source?

Brian, I did find someone that makes brackets for front disc conversion. I can track that down for you if you like. Jerry

I'm thinking about putting a later model booster and dual master cylinder on my 62 Electra. Can you point me to a combination that works? Thanks.

A year ago I had good brakes on my 62 Electra. I had never pulled the drums so I was a little nervous about just how good they were. I was busy at work so I dropped the car off at a local shop and told them to put new shoes, hardware, master cylinder and flush the system. $1100 later, I no longer have power brakes. Sure I could take it back but how risky is that? What's wrong? I have to stand on the pedal to stop the car. It seems like the booster isn't doing anything. I did the vacuum test from the shop manual and it tells me that the vacuum is working. (I had the engine off; pumped the pedal a few times; pushed the pedal down; and started the car. The pedal relaxed under my foot. The manual tells me that's what it's suppose to do.) I ran a vacuum test at the end of the steel tube where the rubber hose attaches to go to the booster. I've got 28" of vacuum and it seems to be steady no matter what I do with the gas pedal. I've bled the wheel cylinders and they were fine. No air. The rubber vacuum hoses didn't seem tight so I replaced both; the one to the booster and the one to the reserve tank. No change. So; what's next? Where do you think the problem is? What shall I do with it? Thanks.

Must be centrifugal. Do I need to do anything to either advance to time this car?