Myers Depot Metal Detectors

Mechanical Adventure

Mud-puppy

Mud-puppy

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Joined
Oct 15, 2015
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12,591
Location
West Michigan area
Off I go before Sun-up to hunt a group of parks 25 miles away....fixing to bust some clad...laid out the route via Mapquest and was over the fence and down the road! Navigating through rush hour traffic, Brakes felt a little bit mushy....not long later my 'brake' light came on, by the time I rolled into the first place, I was thinking something was just not right!

I popped the hood and noticed my brake fluid reservoir was low, trying to always Be Prepared, I got into my trunk and poured some Dot 3 in...started hunting at 8:02...the place was picked cleaner than I remember it ever being...It took me an hour just to find this stuff...scattered and random in places Nobody would hunt...

Disgusted, I got back into Rosie to head to the next and Holy Bleep! NO BRAKES! Well, I pulled over and took a look, brake fluid dripping down from somewhere...I evaluated my options...I could pinch that line off and get home, or I could just go home using the other mechanicals as 'slowing features'...I decided to go home where I have all my tools and stuff..

I was very very cautious.. I timed the lights perfectly and green lighted one signal heavy stretch, I caught red lights in my little town, even though Rosie is an automatic, I would downshift into 2 and then into 1 to slow myself, as well as turning on the AC to rob more HP from the engine! It behaves like some sort of Jake Brake! :laughing:

So then I fixed the main problem and took care of another that was ready to fail...$16 for parts...I bled the lines utilizing a plastic tube inserted into a brake fluid can on one end, and over the brake bleed fitting on the other, pumped for old glory, then dashed back to close the little valve...seems to work...Good to Go Tomorrow!:laughing:
 

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worm12ga said:
Please go back and repair the brake lines correctly before you cause an accident.
Click to expand...

I spliced in a piece of steel brake line with those compression fittings...surely that will work on this little front drive car? I did not have a flare tool handy....which would have been another way to go...anyhow, please jump in and teach us something here...might save somebody....

I just put new tires on this rig a week ago, a guy has to have good tires and trustworthy brakes, and of course pay attention and drive as conditions merit to avoid causing accidents.....So let us know why this patch will fail?!
 
Mud-puppy said:
I spliced in a piece of steel brake line with those compression fittings...surely that will work on this little front drive car? I did not have a flare tool handy....which would have been another way to go...anyhow, please jump in and teach us something here...might save somebody....

I just put new tires on this rig a week ago, a guy has to have good tires and trustworthy brakes, and of course pay attention and drive as conditions merit to avoid causing accidents.....So let us know why this patch will fail?!
Click to expand...

Many states no longer allow compression fittings on brake lines, I know my state does not (NY).
Personally as a mechanic for 30+ years I have much more faith in a compression fitting than a flubbed up flaring job. A heavy application of undercoating in that area will make it a non issue.
 
Mud-puppy said:
I spliced in a piece of steel brake line with those compression fittings...surely that will work on this little front drive car? I did not have a flare tool handy....which would have been another way to go...anyhow, please jump in and teach us something here...might save somebody....

I just put new tires on this rig a week ago, a guy has to have good tires and trustworthy brakes, and of course pay attention and drive as conditions merit to avoid causing accidents.....So let us know why this patch will fail?!
Click to expand...

As Choppadude said, they will not pass inspection in most states, for good reason. Compression fittings, especially brass ones, are not designed for the pressures in a brake system. When they fail, they will fail all at once, causing a complete and sudden loss of braking ability. This will usually be at the worst possible moment. The only time compression fittings are appropriate in a brake system are as an emergency fix to get the vehicle somewhere it can be properly repaired or towed.
 
You're giving me flashbacks from last year. Cancer got into my breaks as I pulling into work 25 mile from home. Had to run the mechanicals all the way home. Not fun, Did wind up getting all the lines replaced. They were in pretty bad shape anyway and a patch job would not of held up long.
 
Oh geez, talk about stress hoping no one gets on front of you while driving. We've all had hair raisibg experiences like that with brake pads wearing out and someone stopping short. It is better to get those lines replaced correctly, but hell of an intuitive fix for sure. It'll take a lot of pressure for it to come off, but not sure how much weathering it can handle would be my only worry as compared to a solid brake line. Obviously time can degrade anything, even us.

BTW...I have NEVER seen any vehicle inspectors look over brake lines, not even once personally or professionally when working as a mechanic. We would catch them and replace when up on the lift at the auto shop, but never seen an inspector check while literally having hundreds of cars inspected for customers.
 
Not having any brakes is scary. If it had happened to you while descending a steep mountain grade, you'd would have looked like Steve Martin did in the scene, You're Going The Wrong Way in the movie Trains, Planes and Automobiles!

beephead
 
Well, this is my Detecting vehicle, a 2001 Chevy Prizm...only paid 2k for it several years ago, it had 80k...I've put another 80k on it, and figure to clock at least 250k out of it or more...I can keep junk running for a very long time with baling wire and duct tape...I put 400k on a 92 Ranger once! I'm pretty gentle on vehicles :laughing:

I do all my own mechanics so this rig is not likely to ever see a 'certified mechanic, or an inspector, so I only got myself to blame if worse comes to worse...Thanks for all the additions regarding this quick cheap patch job!
 
Yeah Mud I do all my own wrenching too,,,,, those compression fittings will probably outlast the car if you snugged 'em up right.
I have rolls of nickle copper brake tubing and have a hydraulic double flare tool, I just run up the road to the brake specialty shop for the fittings. The copper nickle bends very nicely and don't rust.
Living on the beach here is tough on brake, fuel lines and basically eats the car up.

Just did all the lines on my GMC Z71, as well as front Diff seals, front hub bearings, rotors and calipers, transmission shift control valve, and a nice Flow Master welded in with all stainless exhaust tubing.

Wonder why I haven't been out digging in the dirt??

Now bay scallop season just opened, been out everyday this week, catch 'em in the morning, get back to the dock and shuck for another couple hours.
 
Mud-puppy said:
Well, this is my Detecting vehicle, a 2001 Chevy Prizm...only paid 2k for it several years ago, it had 80k...I've put another 80k on it, and figure to clock at least 250k out of it or more...I can keep junk running for a very long time with baling wire and duct tape...I put 400k on a 92 Ranger once! I'm pretty gentle on vehicles :laughing:

I do all my own mechanics so this rig is not likely to ever see a 'certified mechanic, or an inspector, so I only got myself to blame if worse comes to worse...Thanks for all the additions regarding this quick cheap patch job!
Click to expand...

So it doesn't owe you anything- why not spend the money to get the job done correctly (either paying someone, or buying the correct parts and tools and doing it yourself)? You're right, you'll only have yourself to blame when you cause an accident. The courts will also only blame you for damages.

I can hold a vehicle together with baling wire and duct tape too, I do it on the farm all the time. Those vehicles never leave the property and rarely are operated by anyone but myself.

Brakes are not something to half-ass, and are not all that expensive or difficult to repair correctly.
 
worm12ga said:
So it doesn't owe you anything- why not spend the money to get the job done correctly (either paying someone, or buying the correct parts and tools and doing it yourself)? You're right, you'll only have yourself to blame when you cause an accident. The courts will also only blame you for damages.

I can hold a vehicle together with baling wire and duct tape too, I do it on the farm all the time. Those vehicles never leave the property and rarely are operated by anyone but myself.

Brakes are not something to half-ass, and are not all that expensive or difficult to repair correctly.
Click to expand...

Dude.....its just me and my detecting gear in this car, nobody else...Theres no big down grades in Mich like you have to deal with...we do have lots of deer and ice though...deer collisions are 50k per yr in Mich...Ice? no amount of brakes will help if a guy gets on it....I have gotten into two little fender benders twice in my lifetime on the ice, ('87 and 78) I've never hit a deer, I've got well over 2 million miles driven all over this Country with no speeding tickets or accidents...so Hey, I am the least of anybodies concerns out there on the roads, even driving rigs like this...I think this fix will be fine...plus, I have liability insurance!...

I appreciate your concern, but in the World, theres all sorts of dangers on the road, most are driving top shelf gear and talking on their cellphones or drunk...
 
No amount of liability insurance is going to help you after killing a ten-year old kid from blowing a stop sign and t-boning a mini-van. Get the compression fittings out of there and repair it correctly, if not for yourself, then for everybody else.

Roger
 
GTS225 said:
No amount of liability insurance is going to help you after killing a ten-year old kid from blowing a stop sign and t-boning a mini-van. Get the compression fittings out of there and repair it correctly, if not for yourself, then for everybody else.

Roger
Click to expand...

Ok...I dont want anybody to worry about poor old Mud wiping out a bus full of kids on their way to a Safe Space...or maybe hitting a poor deer even? Think of all the other things that could happen too!

So I will get this thing towed from the house and fixed by a certified mechanic TODAY! OK? Everybody cool with that? Everybody feel safer? End of discussion? I do feel pretty lucky to have lived this long being such a complete booboo evidently...:laughing:
 
Mud-puppy said:
I was very very cautious.. I timed the lights perfectly and green lighted one signal heavy stretch, I caught red lights in my little town, even though Rosie is an automatic, I would downshift into 2 and then into 1 to slow myself, as well as turning on the AC to rob more HP from the engine! It behaves like some sort of Jake Brake! :laughing:
Click to expand...

I am just dying here. :lol: jake brake with air conditioning!! hahaha. your a trip sometimes. I would have just clamped her down like a Neanderthal with a rock. Nice job piloting her home!
 
In my experience the most important step in any repair, build, etc. is; "NEVER tell the internet how it was done!". Someone will always inform you that you are about to go out and kill, maim and destroy the universe.

Growing up on a small farm in the 50's/60's I learned that if something breaks, you either fix it, or do without it. We did lots of "dangerous" repairs, none of them ever caused any kind of mayhem. Our "safe space" was any field not occupied by the big mean and always angry jersey bull, rattle snakes, rabid wolves and coyotes, hornets, etc.

At 68 years old I have only had a mechanic touch my vehicle two or three times in my life. I do all my own work, usually without the "required" special tools and training that would make it possible for me to accomplish the job "safely". I hate computerized cars which require stealership intervention to keep them going because they use equipment that cost more than the vehicle that they use it on just to program the blasted thing.

So I stopped arguing with the "experts" years ago as, in their mind, their "knowledge" trumps my experience any day.
 
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