Alright, for those who don't know my truck was in a bit of an accident many months ago. Though there was no body damage it broke everything else that has the potential to leak.

The rear main seal, the water pump (and it's one that's not in reproduction or one that the rebuild kit works on, the engine is a 272HD, and apparently that HD means a unique water pump), and the fuel pump. All leaked like a sieve.

So I managed to fix all of those, it no longer leaks and I got it running a whole lot better, so it drives great. Unfortunately it doesn't stop anymore. Thankfully I was just driving back a bit to check if I was leaking (leaked more when driving than idling) and then nope, no brakes. Master cylinder was empty. I looked for leaks but couldn't find any, I should have checked the MC for them before adding more fluid as now I can't tell... but I'm pretty sure it's the MC. It's the original, and this thing did a lot of work in it's life. I had planned on swapping it out when I did my axles and had disc brakes...



I swear if I get that fixed and the axle seizes or something my head might literally explode. lol...

Ah well, least it looks pretty besides my house. Ok end rant, lol.

 

Does it have Air Brakes? - You might have a booster full of fluid

 

It did but they swapped it back to hydraulics, haven't seen a booster on it.

 

Nearly happened to me a couple months ago. It was just that the drums hadn't been adjusted in 4 years. Refilled, adjusted brakes, better than ever. There was no sign of leakage.

 

If I put my Ford Exploder up on ramps or jackstands on one side only for an hour or so my brakes go almost to the floor - I let it set for an hour or so and they come back - If I try to bleed them setting flat I get no air - If I put it back up on the stands and bleed them I get air - Both ways the master cyl is full, before and after - It's that magic Doo-Doo (it won't let me say ****)

 

Stephen, Ive been following your trials and tribulations since the wreck. Im not alone when I tell you how bad I feel for you, each post you share, your frustration just leaps off the screen, and makes me wish there was something I could do to help. Keep at it my friend, it will all come together at some point.

 

considering the size of yer beast , i'd hate too see what the other vehicle looked like ! the old line , more metal in one fender than in any modern vehicle really at times seems true ! my 53 before being parked and torn down did the same dain thing with the brakes , they were in adjustment and all the lines were new , filled and bled etc. . never figured out why. the 52 customline did the same dain thing too for awhile but now were fine , other than the issue we were having a little while ago . i had that fancy new dot 1,000,000 fluid ( products seem to jump in great leaps and bounds in tech and so forth ! ) or whatever it was in the 52 and 53 . switched back to the old school stuff dot 2 i think it was , and no more problems . i was wondering if the newer stuff was synthetic . i have had issues with other synthetic products finding nearly impossible ways to locate leaking and or just seemingly evaporate .... who knows . as of late though i think all of my rides are cursed so ....... by the way i added another fine 1 owner vehicle to my fleet and it looks and acts just like the rest 'o' them .....

 

First I would verify you really don't have a leak. After refilling the MC, pull the drums and peel back the rubber boots on the wheel cylinders, if there is any sign of fluid behind the rubber, that cylinder is leaking. Next pump the pedal a couple times press hard and hold it for a couple minutes. if the pedal drops at all, go look for the leak. A layer of newspaper under the entire truck will make a leak location obvious. A pinhole in a line can leak under pressure onto the ground without leaving any obvious sign. If there isn't a leak, then Ross can be correct, especially if the drums came off without needing the shoes loosened. If still not comfortable, replace the MC with a new or remanufactured dual chamber one with the same piston diameter and originally on a disk/drum or disk/disk application without a built in proportioning valve. That way you will be ready when you swap to disks and have the security of back up redundancy. Replace all the lines, hard and flex when you replace the MC, and plumb in the correct residual valves in each circuit.

 

Thanks guys, hopefully it won't be too big a problem. The brakes where very loose when I bought it but I did adjust them and they worked pretty well... or rather they worked, lol. It's raining these next few days but once it quits hopefully I can find the problem.

The annoying part about it all is everything I'm having a problem with I plan on changing out anyways, the problem is I need a whole lot of parts at once before I start. Engine/Transmission (and everything that will be needed to put a newer engine in), transfercase, set of 1-ton 4x4 axles, wheels, tires, steering, brakes, wiring, and heck at that point I should probably clean up and paint everything that's off that I can't get to easy enough. I'd just like to drive it in the mean time, lol. I have learned though why people who have done a couple builds just reach the point where they just stripe everything out and re-do every last thing, because if it hasn't failed, it will soon enough, lol.


Thanks again for the help.

 

Hi Stephen,
It was suggested to remove the brake drums and check the wheel cylinders for leakage which is good advise but before you do that pull the rubber boot off the front of the master cylinder to see if any fluid has been leaking past the cup. There shouldn't be any brake fluid in or behind that boot. If there is and providing the master cylinder is rebuild able a kit should be readily available from Napa for a reasonable cost. This would probably get you by until you decide what you want to do.
By the way, I like the look of your truck as it is. It has me thinking that I should put a pick up box on my M-350.
Good Luck.

 

Hi again,
I think it unusual that you don't have a hydro-vac on a F-600. Is there anything on your truck that looks like this?