My son just bought a '86 Ranger 2.9, 5 spd, 4x4, x-cab.
It had no brakes when he bought it. Was told that it had a leaking line. And it had sat for 6 years.
We replaced all lines to rear and new wheel cylinders.
Also new master cylinder that we bench bleed.

We have tried to bleed rears for several hours in the bleed process and only got a small amount of brake fluid out.

What have we missed? I see no valves between master cylinder and the rear t.
Also no links in the line and we blew out before we made the connections.
Any help would be awesome.
Thanks!

Iowa-Rob

 

I see you don't have any replies so I'll try & get things started.
Good idea to replace the lines, wheel cylinders & flush the system with new fluid.
Motorcraft fluid is recommended as its of high quality. Flushing the system every 2-3 years is recommended for these reasons Why Change Brake Fluid .

When you replaced the rear lines, was it from the master cylinder to the proportioning valve, then to the rear wheel cylinders, or just from the proportioning valve back to the wheel cylinders? If the latter, & the old proportioning valve wasn't also replaced, the line to it from the master cylinder, the old valve & any sludge in it, bends in the new lines that might have kinked during installation, or become clogged with sludge/rust, gunk from the old valve & fluid in it that was at least 6 years old & who knows how long it had been in the system before it sat, all belong on your suspect list.
Some thoughts for consideration, let us know what you find.

 

Thanks PawPaw.

So we ran a brand new line from the front port on the master cylinder to a new rear hose that has the T that is on the rear axle as well as new lines out to both rear wheels.
BUT I do not see a portioning valve or abs valve between the master cylinder and rear T.
I did NOT connect to one when I ran the new line and I went back thru looking at the old line since I didn't remove it 100% and I don't see a proportioning valve anywhere. And most of the line looks original
Also the line to the front brakes (back port on master cylinder) goes to a T then to each front brake.
Can the rear brakes work without a proportioning valve?

Thanks again.

 

I know just enough to be dangerous about whats in the 86 Ranger brake system. lol
Just where the proportioning, equalization or whatever Ford was calling the valve then, is, on this system I don't know. If the system appears not to have been messed with before & you not having seen one installed in the old line routing, maybe its been incorporated into the new master cyl & if so wouldn't likely figure in on not being able to bleed the rear brake wheel cyls.
SO, lets think about this some more. Since both rear wheels produce just a dribble of fluid, have you loosened the brake line into the "T", to see if you have good flow into it??? If flow & pressure is good into the "T" & you have new brake hoses from the "T" to each new wheel cyl, then it seems to me the "T" being rusted/clogged up inside with gunk, belongs on your suspect list.
Seems to me with the front brakes doing most of the work stopping a vehicle, we wouldn't want the rear brakes to have as much braking, lest they lock up when the load shifts forward on a stop.
Where does your repair manual show the proportioning, equalization valve, or what ever Ford was calling it back then, to be located???? I think most were located on the drivers side frame rail about under the drivers side cab.

 

I did install a new hose and T at the rear wheels while we were doing so it's not that.

I don't have a service manual and have not been able to find a brake line diagram for this truck.
I also assumed the proportioning valve would be near the driver's door or drivers feet but I see nothing.

Any idea if the system can and will work without a proportioning valve?

 

I think it'll work, just that under aggressive braking when the load shifts forward & the front end wants to dive, the rear wheels will likely lock up unless braking pressure to the rear wheels is compensated for. This can make for tricky braking on slippery surfaces.
I don't have any braking system info on that vintage Ranger but maybe a member reading this that does, will chime in & enlighten us on how this system is plumbed.

 

So, the lines, "T", hoses & rear wheel cylinders are new, with nothing old in between, so something has to be stopped up, maybe the T, if your just getting a dribble of fluid from each wheel cyl. So loosen the line going into the "T" & see if you get a good squirt of fluid out when the brake pedal is pushed. If so, suspect something is restricted inside the "T", like maybe the machining or cleaning operation wasn't complete, or a section of tubing had something in it that's clogged up the "T" inside. Let us know what you find.

 

Like you suggested I took off one line at the T. Nothing more than a little air.
So I took the line loose where it connects to that hose that has the T-block on the end of it. Again just some air. I connected a bleeder hose onto it into a can of fluid and tried it several times.
When you depress the pedal some air then let up and sucks enough fluid out of the can all the way to the hose. So tells me we have no obstructions. Agree??
Other ideas??

 

I decided to bench bleed master cylinder but left it on the truck. Soon as I disconnect the brake lines and put the little line on the pedal started going all the way to the floor. Which seemed weird.
So I put brake line on for back brakes and pedal still going to the floor. So then put the line on for front brakes and pedal quit going all the way to the floor. So it must have an obstruction. So took that line off and ran a hose back into master cylinder and then was able to get fluid at back brakes and successfully bled them.
NOW to figure out what is wrong with the front brakes. Seems like lines maybe full of crap and turned solid?

Thoughts?

 

As I posted earlier, if it sat for 6 years & who knows how long the fluid was in there before that & brake fluid absorbs moisture, it likely has plenty of rust & sludge in the system, so no surprise that the front system has problems also.
Good to hear you finally got a bleed on the rear wheel cyls.

 

Yes thank you so much for your help.
We pulled front calipers and brake lines and blew the metal metal lines out.
The calipers look frozen so I guessing that's the culprit cause when we broke the lines fluid came out and when we blew them out we got fluid out.
So a couple new hoses, new calipers and new pads and should be good. My son wants to try and just reuse the rotors. We'll see.
Thanks again PawPaw.

 

OK, good trouble shooting find & feedback.
Good idea to redo the front brakes too imo.
If you come to think you need new rotors, consider going to http://www.retailmenot.com/view/advanceautoparts.com & look up some discount codes at Advance Auto or the like & maybe be able to save 20-50% depending on how much & where you spend your gold. Order on line with in store pick up & save shipping charges. If the parts you need are in stock locally, Advance says we can order on line & pick up in the store in 30min.
One year ago I did this to save some of my gold on a nice set of ceramic pads & Wagner rotors for my 94 Taurus. The rotors were a nice piece of work, packaged separately & nicely sealed in a heavy plastic bag so they were ready to use right out of the packing. No nicks, dings, rust, dirt, or anti-rust coating to remove. I just sprayed them down with brake degreaser after mounting to remove hand prints. Solved my long standing on/off again pulsating problems the front OEM rotors developed. Ceramic pads don't make as much dust & what they do make isn't as visible. Nice smoooooth stops now.
Flushed the Taurus brake system with Motorcraft DOT-3 fluid as its really good quality. I do this every 3 years on All of my vehicles after visiting the website I posted above about brake fluid boiling point, so now I know where I am on the curve!!!!
Let us know how this resurrection project goes.

 

I don't know if this applies or applied in the situation described, but wheel cylinders have the drilled port just adjacent to a piston. If the adjusters aren't expanded, the brakes against the drum somewhat at least, the piston may cover this port and no fluid gets inside. It's good practice therefore to run the star wheel out all the way so the shoes are tight against the drum. Then bleed the system. This way the cylinders will be as full as possible. Back adjusters off till a slight drag is felt when turning the wheel.