squishy brake pedal

[mcal63775]

97 Coachmen F53 . I have been having trouble getting the coach to slow down when applying brake pedal,and having to push hard on pedal to get to stop. I replaced all four calipers and new pads to replace worn out old ones on the rear axle. Bled the air from calipers. Brakes pedal feels much better than before, but I don't feel comfortable with what i have now. I still have to pump brakes once and prepare to slow/stop WAY in advance. I will re-bleed the calipers again, to confirm no air in system. Brake booster/master-cylinder is my next guess??? Any suggestions?

[mcal63775]

UPDATE: I was given a tip on how to check to see if the master cylinder is bad. I disconnected the lines from the master cylinder, plugged the the two holes on cylinder with the right sized bolts. Applied foot on brake pedal, and wouldn't you know it....a very stiff pedal. Held it there and for a bit and pedal stayed stiff. I didn't have to spend $133.00 for a new master cylinder. Re-connected brake lines, and proceeding to bleed the lines again. I will be back to update!

[RLS7201]

John&Joey wrote:

RLS7201 wrote:

John&Joey wrote:
Pumping up normally means you have a bad gasket somewhere in the brake system. But, with that said....

The older 460 F53 was know to generate a lot of heat and boil the brake fluid. Fresh fluid is a yearly must, plus look for the highest quality/boiling point that will work in your system without damage to it.

I would really like to know where that gasket might be, so I can make sure mine is not leaking.

Richard

That would be in the master cylinder or the brake calipers. I figured an old guy like you would have rebuilt those in years gone by. OK they would be called seals, work with me on this would ya, and stop being such a PIA.

Oh gesh..........I point out bad information and now I'm a PIA......Looks like you're the one blowing a "GASKET". Touche.....

[Dutch_12078]

wa8yxm wrote:
Question on that Ford.. It's been a while since I paid attention to when they switched from DRUM brakes to DISC.. Which do you have.

The OP's '97 F53 has disc brakes all the way around, John. The only drum brake is for the tail shaft mounted e-brake.

[mcal63775]

Well-now that we broke camp two days early to get out of the severe storms, I will be able to look at replacing master cylinder, the rear brake lines ( front brake lines replaced 7-8 years ago) and of course, new brake fluid. Finding out the specs and Mic'n the rotors is a good idea just to see if that 46,000 miles on the MH, got them wore out.
It's going to take a while to get this all done (gotta go to work), but I will UPDATE with what I got accomplished.

Thanks for all the replies and ideas! Safe travels!

[wa8yxm]

Question on that Ford.. It's been a while since I paid attention to when they switched from DRUM brakes to DISC.. Which do you have.

Short story.. I had a 1992 Chevy Mini-van.. Excessive brake pedal travel. Dealer noted it but was unable to fix it.> Car had front disc, rear drum brakes.

I decided to put my training to work on it.. Though not specifically "Trained" on brake systems. I have general physics, chemistry and engineering training. A mosest (Assoicates) degree in science and a certificate in electronics. (Now you know why I often take electrical questions),

Well, sitting at my desk waiting for a chance to tell some cops where to go (I was a police dispatcher) I visualized the brake system.....

Next day I pulled into my tire guy and give them ONE SPECIFIC instruction

Mic the drums

WAY, and I mean WAY beyond spec.. Why the dealer could not figure it out I'll never know.. Pulled out and they worked like NEW.

[hipower]

The two most common problems with hydraulic brakes are degraded fluid and flexible line deterioration. Complete flushing (bleeding possibly requiring several quarts of fluid) of the brake system should be the first thing attempted, but saying that and then finding a bad flexible line is actually counter productive. Ten year old flexible lines should be replaced as a part of a good PM program. If lines are suspect replacing them first will prevent time and fluid waste.

[johnhicks]

> I would suggest getting it fixed sooner rather than latter,

You gonna push that sucka to the flo and it ain't happenin; we gonna look for yo bodies down that mountain tommorrah. Capisch?

[johnhicks]

Your master cylinder is bad.

[John_Joey]

RLS7201 wrote:

John&Joey wrote:
Pumping up normally means you have a bad gasket somewhere in the brake system. But, with that said....

The older 460 F53 was know to generate a lot of heat and boil the brake fluid. Fresh fluid is a yearly must, plus look for the highest quality/boiling point that will work in your system without damage to it.

I would really like to know where that gasket might be, so I can make sure mine is not leaking.

Richard

That would be in the master cylinder or the brake calipers. I figured an old guy like you would have rebuilt those in years gone by. OK they would be called seals, work with me on this would ya, and stop being such a PIA.

[DSDP_Don]

Those era Ford brakes would absorb water in the brake fluid. It was recommended to replace the fluid every so often. The solution was to replace with synthetic fluid, won't absorb water.

[chuckftboy]

Your chassis is over 20 years old so you should be looking hard at those brake lines. If any part of them is rubber, the fluid might be expanding the hose rather than pushing the piston in the caliper. Just a thought.

[ScottG]

RLS7201 wrote:

John&Joey wrote:
Pumping up normally means you have a bad gasket somewhere in the brake system. But, with that said....

The older 460 F53 was know to generate a lot of heat and boil the brake fluid. Fresh fluid is a yearly must, plus look for the highest quality/boiling point that will work in your system without damage to it.

I would really like to know where that gasket might be, so I can make sure mine is not leaking.

Richard

:B
It's behind the buckle for the fan belt.
(Sorry John)

[Isaac-1]

I would suggest getting it fixed sooner rather than latter, I had a car about 20-25 years ago (it was an '89 Ford with over 100,000 miles at that point), brakes felt a bit off on the way home from work one night, at the first intersection I just thought something felt a little off, at the second one I was sure, at the third one the pedal went to the floor and and I blew through it without slowing down. Thankfully there was no cross traffic and by then I was only a few hundred feet from home, so I used the hand brake to limp home at about 15 mph. In case you have not guessed it by now, the master cylinder failed.

[RLS7201]

John&Joey wrote:
Pumping up normally means you have a bad gasket somewhere in the brake system. But, with that said....

The older 460 F53 was know to generate a lot of heat and boil the brake fluid. Fresh fluid is a yearly must, plus look for the highest quality/boiling point that will work in your system without damage to it.

I would really like to know where that gasket might be, so I can make sure mine is not leaking.

Richard