VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND NEWER 1949-1954 Master Cylinder Removal

I need to remove and rebuid the Master Cylinder on my 1950 Chevrolet Belair. Can someone walk me throught the best way to remove it? Now remember, I have to do this laying under the car NOT standing under it. Thanks.

If you roll the car over on its side then access is far easier. Might be expensive and require several other fellas to get in on its side. As long as they have a couple of beers they will get the job done especially when it is a prerequisite for more beer.

Otherwise, get it as high as you can safely. Make sure it is well supported on jack stands. A creeper or other means to move around is a plus. Be sure to use a flare nut wrench on the brake lines. It may be necessary to apply a little heat or penetrating oil (PB Blaster) to get the nuts to rotate independently of the tubing. Take a couple of photos so you will know how the brake pedal linkage goes back together.

Do you have a service manual?
Here is the online manual. Page ahead to get the text for the master cylinder.
http://chevy.oldcarmanualproject.com/shop/1949_53/05brakes/5_14.HTM

Thanks Chipper and Keith for the information. I put some Blaster on the fastners about a week ago. Had to go out of town so hopefully I will get back to it today. Still need to raise the car up a little more. Can't get under it on a creeper. I may just have to go to Chipper's first plan and put the car on its side. I will let you know my progress. Thanks again.

On second thought it might be more prudent to find someone with a lift that you can borrow or rent. Of course you can always pay someone to change out the MC. Biggest problem is finding someone that has the first clue to the location under the floor and not hanging on the booster on the firewall. Of course if you do it yourself and take your time you have a much better chance of not twisting off one of the lines. Liberal use of PB Blaster and maybe a little heat can prevent replacing the line.

I have to wrench on commercial turf equipment every day, and they just don't make lifts for this stuff. Many times there is not enough room to work on a creeper underneath these things. My solution for this, and working on my '51 Stylineline Deluxe is a nice big chunk of cardboard. It is really quite comfortable

Ditto on the cardboard; done it often. A large tarp folded over a few times also works well. But if you get a set of truck jack stands, you can lift the car about 18" off the cement. Unless you need to do a serious diet, you should be able to fit under there on a creeper. I'm a bit portly, and I do... It does help to use four stands so the car is level. And a couple of good hydraulic jacks to get it up there safely is also a good thing to have.

I'm 76 and have never been under one without jack stands! In my teens, a fellow was killed by a car falling on him (no stands!). I promised myself then.

That cardboard works great. around here we call it an "Alabama Creeper". 'Got one with wheels but I prefer cardboard. It doesn't move around when you don't want it to. Those wheels have a mind of their own.

Good luck with the M cyl.

I lost my cousin in 1957 when he used a bumper jack to put on tire chains with snow hanging down under the car. I use jack stands or 6X8 wooden blocks under the tires. My son always tells me he always uses them because I hammered it in to his head when he was a teen.

I was able to raise the car safely and get to the master cylinder. But I hit a snag. The lock ring is different than the one shown in the manual online. I have attached a photo of it. Any ideas has to how to remove it?

Spray some penetrating oil in around the pin. Try and clean some of the rust and dirt out of the small hole in the center. Then take a punch and put it in the hole and work the pin in and out, keep spraying it with penetrating oil and you should be able to work it out.

I believe it is threaded 5/16" but don't remember is fine or standard; fine, I think. Anyway, screw a bolt into it and pull it out.

Can also get hold of it with a thin nose vise grip and yank it out. There is nothing holding it in. It just holds the brake and clutch pedal bars in place.

I was able to remove the clip with a fine threaded bolt. I removed the master cylinder from the car, disassembled it, cleaned it up and rebuilt it. Now, am I suppose to bench bleed it or put it back on the car an bleed it? If I am suppose to bench bleed it, how do I do that. Thanks to everyone who have tried to educate me along the way.

Don't know what's right, but I reinstalled mine and then bled it, hooked it up and bled the wheel cylinders.