nonstop

I THINK it's the 6 1/2 inch one... I put a bend into it with the press to clear the frame, so it's shorter.

Hey guys, just an update. I found the closest thing I could to fit in Gabriel shocks. They measure 9.6x compressed and 14.73 extended. Bolted them in and the noises are gone! They were a hair short, so I spaced the upper bump stop up about 1/4 inch. The upper arm kisses the bump stop at full droop. A little longer would still be nice for peace of mind, but I am not planning on doing anything crazy or jumping the car! If anyone wants the part number, it is 81039. Thanks for all the help! Nick

Well - I was wrong. Still clunks! I removed the spring and got a measurement of 9 1/4 inches compressed and 13 inches at ride height. That was from the top eye to the flat where the bumpstop hits, then add an inch as mentioned above. So, the shock in there is about 2 inches too long! I have been searching - will keep at it, but anybody know a shock that might work off the top of their head? Thanks!

So just a little update - I was checking under the car last night for anything loose, when I think I discovered my problem - I reused the mounting washers that were on the lower mounts (the new shock absorbers didn't include new hardware. When I looked closely, they were too large diameter and were hitting the shock body. I took off the outer washers and saw witness marks where they were rubbing. They were polished and bent in the area that was touching the shock body. I'm going to replace them today and I'll report back. I appreciate everyone pitching in to help with ideas!

I was just out measuring and thinking the same thing! Problem right now is I am in the middle of staining a fence and juggling work today and tomorrow, so I can't commit to it for a week or so. A couple of observations - my measurement from the top shock eye to the bump stop is 12 inches as the stop is now. Now adding an extra inch would bring it to 11 inches. While I was measuring, I noticed my bump stops are rock hard and chewed up. I measured them and they are less than 2 inches tall. Should I replace those first? Even if not, does anybody know how tall they should be? I have come across different numbers for different years, but not a 1954. Thanks.

Thanks guys! Looks like I'll be back to the drawing board and flipping through a boat load more shock numbers!

Thanks Don, I tried to take that into account, and these shocks are a number I came across on the board. It gives me about 3 to 3 1/2 inches of uptravel, which I thought was going to be okay (I may be wrong in thinking it's enough). I forgot to mention that it normally happens at speeds below 25 mph, if that helps. Thanks!

Hey guys! I just did the f1 shock relocation on my 54 Royal (also tried the Moog cc850 at the same time - sat too low and back with the stock springs). Anyway, replaced front wheel bearings while I was in there. I love how it rides now! It did bring me to the next question though: When I hit a bump on the right or left side, I am getting a clunk from the respective side. Does anyone else get the clunk with their set up? The wheel bearings are new and adjusted right. I made my set up using forged f1 arms, bolted to the frame with a plate on the inside and nuts welded to it. Bolts are 7/16 and torqued to 50 foot pounds with lock washers and red lock tite. The arms were bent cold in a press to keep them away from the frame. Everything is still tight and there does not appear to be any interference. I have 13.7 and 14.5 inches between shock eyes at ride height and am using Gabriel 81676 shock absorbers. The only thing I can think off of the top of my head is the noises are now being transmitted through the frame. Has anyone else had this problem? If so, how did you fix it? Thanks, Nick

These guys might be able to help: vanpeltsales.com It almost looks like some sort of auxiliary transmission bolted to the back.

Granted, my car is a little newer (1954), but I used the Scarebird kit on the front and am running 15 inch wheels. Same thing, uses parts available at any store. I used the ECI master cylinder kit and am very happy. Speedway sells an adapter for a power booster, so I am running a dual diaphragm 7 inch booster with my kit.

Mines a daily driver, and I am very happy with it. No problems at speed, sometimes faster!

And this should be the bezel http://m.ebay.com/itm/131583160538?_mwBanner=1 Part number 1345963

Is this it? http://m.ebay.com/itm/131676139391?_mwBanner=1 If so, part number is 1340254.

What? Another place disappearing?

It's Don's Antique Auto Parts, 37317 Niles Blvd, Fremont. Don is a good guy and will take the time to help you!

If the fab place can't make something up, there is guy up in Fremont that has been in business forever. He had a couple junkyards in the 60s and 70s and closed them down. Deals with nothing newer than 1970. He now just runs a shop and has a few warehouses packed with stuff. He would likely have it. I can dig up his info if interested.

I used the Scarebird disc kit and kept my 15s with a slight grind on the caliper.

Well, I was wrong! I got some sleep last night and went back to work on the car. I took off the master and bench bled it. I got a little air out of it. I mounted it to the car, but still had the same issues bleeding it. I loosened up the master from the booster and tried bleeding it. I got some air out, and they bled fast. I adjusted the booster pushrod again and it is up and running again! Thanks for the help Plymouthy, It helped fix this issue!

I am getting some fluid, but it is sputtering out a lot of air (I have put about a quart through this so far) and am not getting much pressure at all, even with pumping. I originally had problems with the pushrod length being too long, but adjusted it, so it's now within spec. This problem seems to have slowly progressed since putting on the booster. I have been running the ECI set up for a couple years with no problems in manual set up. My thought is the added pressure and travel may have messed up the seals. I'm not sure if I am on the right track, or overlooking something super simple.

On the Ford master, the piston for the discs is near the rear of the master (it's flipped from the Chevy master). I removed the master and I was able to push the piston slightly by hand. Also, I am getting fluid flow, I cracked the line at the master when pushing the pedal and fluid came out. It seems like I have pressure problems though. At one point when I was bleeding the brakes, I took the bleeder out of one of the calipers and was holding my thumb over the hole. I depressed the pedal with the engine running, even pumping it, and wasn't able to build up enough pressure to move my thumb off the hole. I repeated it on the other side and got the same results.

Thanks, I checked, and everything seems to be moving smoothly.

Hey guys, Please excuse if I am overlooking something or making this out to be big when it is simple - I am working on minimal sleep and frustration. First some background - my car is a 1954 Royal. I have a Scarebird disc conversion on the front, Bendix brakes on the rear, and an ECI dual reservoir master cylinder set up using a 1971 or so 1 inch bore Mustang master cylinder. I just recently put on a dual diaphragm vacuum booster on. So now my problem - my brakes were high and solid prior to the addition of the vacuum booster. After I put on the booster, the pedal was a lot lower, but the brakes worked pretty well. I did not crack any of the lines at this point. For a couple weeks, the brakes worked, but the pedal would be at different heights and the sensitivity seemed to vary. The other day I replaced a hard line that had a slight kink in it. I drove it for about a day and a half and it didn't seem any different, then the other day the pedal went straight to the floor and I had no front brakes, but still had rears. I have spent the past 2 days trying to bleed all the air out. I cannot get a pedal, but am still getting a lot of air out of the front bleeders. I will admit the master ran dry a couple times during the process, but I have now kept it full. I have sent almost a quart of fluid through the front brake system and still can't get a pedal. I am leaning towards a master cylinder that went out, based on the inconsistent behavior prior to having no fronts. I wanted to see if I could get come collective wisdom rather than throwing parts at this. On a side note, what are your thoughts about going to a 1 1/8 bore master to take up some of the pedal travel? Thanks for any help, Nick

Your timing light may very well work just fine with the 6 volt battery. I am using a craftsman dial back with my 6 volt and it works great. Might be able to save yourself a little bit of extra work.

Longer wires give it more length and room to flex. That's what I ran into. I made a couple of my own leads prior to replacing that wire. I started with thicker wire and it lasted longer - but still broke. One other thing about changing out to the longer wire, it was easier to work with than trying to get into that small space to tighten the lead nut.

Well, I measured, and a power booster is not going to fit on the bracket I have. There is enough room up top, but it hangs about 2 inches or so below my frame. So that moved me onto my next question.has anybody used a 7/8 inch bore master cylinder in place of a 1 inch bore master cylinder? If so, which one had to be better feel? And how much did pedal travel increase? Thanks, Nick