Bleeding drum brakes, no fluid out of front

Put a master cylinder on a '64 Nova yesterday and am getting zero fluid out of the front cylinders. Bench bleed the M/C, have 1/4" free play in rod, all new lines. It looks like a Camaro (?) drum-drum M/C, it come with the car and I have the front port plumbed to to front brakes. I'm thinking on drums it don't matter, right or wrong? No proportitioning valve used. It has me stumped, anybody? I read thru half a dozen threads on bleeding before posting this, but most I read dealt with disc-drum or under floor M/C's.

 

Try switching the lines. If your getting good pedal pressure and no fluid out the lines I bet that cures it.

 

Bleed the rear first if you haven't. You will need residial checks both ends.

 

Put a rag around the front line at the master cylinder and crack it a little to see if the M/C is giving you pressure at that point. When you bench bleed it, it should have been O.K.? The problem would then the be the wheel cylinder or the line.

 

I'm not getting a "pedal", goes to the floor!

 

Not with a firewall mounted M/C?

 

i just did the brakes on a '55 poncho and the master bench bled fine but the lines were bone dry so it took probably 12 pumps to get any kinda liquid out of the line then i bled each corner till it was good clear fluid.

fill your master cyl. have buddy push pedal down and yell out DOWN. then open bleeder. give it a few seconds and then close it. have him pull his foot off and when the pedal is up yell UP. repeat till happy with that wheel.

ive had wheel cylinders not wanna bleed through the bleeder before. probably due to dirt in the bleeder. you can use the line into the wheel cylinder to bleed that wheel, works just fine

 

okay then try this,,, open teh bleeder and leave it open. Put your finger over the hole, push hard enough to seal it.

have buddy pump the brakes, when the pedal bottoms out pull your finger off the hole and put it back on. then repeat. Works a lot faster than turning the bleeder.

 

With drum brakes you do !! I repeat bleed the REAR FIRST if you have not.The back half of the MC piston pushes the front by hydraulic pressure. If you still have air there bleeding the front first will be tough if not impossible.

 

with disk front/drum rear bleed the rear first

 

I bought one of the inexpensive pressure bleeders.the one with the plastic reservoir.It was the the best investment i ever made.You can take a complete new dry system and have it bled in ten minutes.If you get one you dont need to pump it up past 15-20 pounds.More than that ,and it causes more leaks at the master cylinder adapter.I got mine from jegs.But im sure there are other places that handle them.

 

no pedal at all? could be a couple things. maybe the bench bleed didn't take. had it happen on a '66 chevy II once. and the other thing, i dunno if it makes a difference on a drum/drum setup but the rear port on the MC goes to the front brakes and the front goes to the rear. i just finished a drum/drum setup and after bench bleeding, i used a vacuum pump at all 4 corners. worked great and i didn't need a guy pumpin the pedal either.
p.s. i didn't realize you needed residual valves with a firewall mount MC. i thought those were only necessary when the MC is mounted at or below the the wheel cylinders or calipers. did chevy incorporate them into the prop valve? cuz i don't recall seein any on that '66..

 

Is that a brake line going above the master? (could be an air pocket issue)
The old way to bench bleed was with return hoses to reservoir - I now plug the ports and use a 1" stroke /don't bottom it out
Then bleed furthest away on your car, I jam a stick between the brake pedal and the seat for pressure
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