Power Steering, Master Cylinder, Parking Brake, and More (Part 5)

A portion of this project is replacing the Raybestos MC36440 master cylinder which I installed back in 2008.  The master cylinder is a common replacement when switching to a front disc brake system without manual brakes in part due to the 15/16" bore.  I'm replacing it with a Wilwood 260-14157 which also has a 15/16" bore but has a better sealing lid.  The Raybestos lid would never seal properly and caused brake fluid to spill out down the side of the master cylinder causing it to rust and then the fluid would get on the firewall and steering column below causing the paint to peel off.  A side benefit is that the Wilwood unit is a nice aluminum piece which weights 2.5 lbs compared to the cast iron version which is 5.4 lbs.

I've test fit the Wilwood master cylinder and there are no issues.  However, I'll need to make new brake lines to the proportioning valve because the master cylinder ports are in slightly different places and use different side fittings.  My plan is to bend new lines using 3/16" fittings at the master cylinder as that size will then be consistent front and back and could be adapted to large sizes later if needed.

I purchased some brake lines, fittings, and then rented a flaring tool from AutoZone.  After attempting 8 flares with the rented tool, I recalled why I hated using it so much many years ago.  I then purchased a Lisle 33260 flaring tool on Amazon which changed the process greatly.  Every flare I made with the Lisle tool was perfect so it was definitely a good purchase and I'm glad to have it on hand in the event I need to do more brake lines again.

I was a bit tired of dealing with brake lines at the end of the day and the routing of the lines is not exactly as I envisioned but they are done.  After the test fit, I set these all aside in a safe place to work on the test fit of other items.  The plan is to work through each portion of this project testing fitting everything.  Once that is done, I'll clean and paint the firewall, and then finish it all out with clean and ready to install parts.