Technical Neutralizing Brake Fluid

Master Cylinder [Wilwood tandem 260-7563 Tandem 1" Bore Master Cylinder] started leaking from the piston. Brake fluid [Dot4] ran down the outside and inside of the firewall, into every nook and cranny down to the floor of the garage. Big mess to clean, a lot of bubbled paint. Any way to keep it from seeping back out from around brackets and stuff after I clean and repaint? I figure about the only course I got is to clean/flush every where with Brake Clean and hope for the best? Should I rebuild or replace the MC?

 

Hot soapy water scrub , rinse, repeat .

I would use air to blow out and dry around brackets and creases. , welds etc .

brake clean will cause more damage to the paint and area , brake fluid is water soluble . Water will dilute and get rid of it , use dawn dish soap .

I would pull the master apart and see how bad it is , if it’s just a hone , polish and seals rebuild it , cheaper then buying new .

that sucks .

 

VANDENPLAS Good to see you.

 

Yep, lots of water and dawn soap...


...

 

Brake FLUID is water soluble. No need for brake clean if you have water and soap. Warm water even better.

 

I'd use this and a power washer... works great!
https://www.lastotallyawesome.com/shop/all-purpose/awesome-allpurpose-cleaner-spray/

 

Isn't isopropyl alcohol good for that? Rusty memory bank.

 

Corrected my FAT fingered typing

 

For those that are unaware: brake fluid is hygroscopic unless it's dot 5. Flushing with water will take care of the mess. I wish I had known that when I was young. Back then it was just sticky stuff that took paint off in the wrong places.

 

Might you have a push rod alignment issue?

 

Thanks to all, wouldn't have thought a good soap would work as I was pretty upset. Funny [not] how the MC just dumped while sitting for 3 months. Since it is an aluminum MC I wonder if the bore is anodized for wear or not, probably not? Maybe I could get it sleeved [rebuilt] by a rebuilder, had one done years ago in brass and worked well. I will wipe up what I can when I can stand to look at it till weather breaks for a good wash outside, wish my garage had a drain. Sigh. PS: Push rod alignment is [should be] good as I am anal about things like that but I will check.

 

I have the same Wilwood master cylinder kit in my 1962 Volvo. It started leaking at about 5 years. I just bought another one.

Russ

 

I think if memory is right mine maintained a drip that never dripped [if that makes sense] so I watched it, level never went down till last fall couldn't see where it went [hindsight probably interior]. Topped off and watched and was ok till now. Just about 14 years. Wish I didn't have to buy the whole kit; anyone need any remotes?

 

Some useless memories: When I was a kid and working on model cars, we used to soak old bodies in a little tub of brake fluid to remove the paint. Then just washed them off with soap and water in the basement sink. It never hurt the plastic one bit.

 

Old German mechanic taught me many moons ago about Simple Green on brake fluid contaminated gunky brake drums.
Keep two spray bottles handy, 1:10 and 1:1 dilution. Great for neutralizing brake fluid and other spills.

 

I seem to recall some older shop manuals suggesting denatured alcohol for cleaning wheel and master cylinders. Don't know if this is still recommended with newer brake fluid formulations.

 

Will start brake fluid clean up and MC evaluation in a bit!

 

replace that nasty stuff with DOT5. you will never regret it

 

Last I knew, isopropyl alcohol was the recommended flush for the whole system when changing over to DOT 5 brake fluid.

Roger

 

Dawn dishwashing stuff. My wife always wonders why it's nearly empty. Great on garage floors too.

 

For thick oily gunky road grime, I am a huge fan of the Dawn Powerwash spray.
Restored a Schwinn last year, didn't want to use the usual caustic stuff. Tried some DP on the smaller hardware. Worked like a charm.

 

How did you get the bike in the dish washer?

 

Very carefully, when the wife was at the store.