Thread: My Rat Build

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I know exactly what you mean Perley.

When I get home this afternoon I will disassemble mine and show you all the parts.

Sounds as if you are missing a part inside where the rod attaches to the plunger/piston. My rod and plunger are one unit and the rod snaps in the plunger if I remember correctly. There is also a C-clip on the outside of the MC housing that holds it all together when assembled. I'll get back with you this afternoon.

Larry

OK Perley here ya go ol'buddy

First pic shows the whole thing assembled with the C-clip holding the piston in place in the housing.

Second pic is the whole unit out of the housing.

I tried to remove the rod from the piston/plunger but no luck getting it apart this time. I honestly believe there is a snap clip inside the piston that holds the rod in place. May be metal or it may be plastic.

The forth pic is the length of the rod after installed (5-7/8")and the fifth one is the overall length(10-1/2") of the whole assembly.

Maybe try to disassemble yours and try pushing the rod into the piston to see if it snaps in place and then measure it.

The rubber boot is only a dust cover.

I hope this helps Perley.

Maybe someone else on here may have a pic of a brakedown of the master cylinder disassembled showing a better picture. Or you may try one of the auto parts store locally and see if the have a pic of it.

Larry

Holy Cow Larry, you got more scars on your hand than I do. Hard to believe! Thank you so kindly for all your trouble taking that thing apart. Sooooo, I assume then that the M/C came with the op rod already attached? The one I bought does not! hmmmmm.
I wonder if mine is intended to be a part of a power brake combo and attaches to a vacuum unit???? hmmmm. Guess I better box it back up and see about swapping for another! What was your unit, what was it designed for all all that, please? Again thanks much Larry. Perley

The unit I bought is a Cardone 10-1612 from Advance Auto Parts. It says for manual brakes. But it doesn't show a push rod and didn't come with one, nor does it look like there is any way to attach one to it!

Yeah, that hand has been through some tough times, crushed, broke, major nerve damage.....etc, but praise be to God it still works, almost as good as the right one.

The master cylinder I am using is from a stock 1988 Ranger with a 4 banger in it. No power booster. It came off the old truck I tore apart a couple of years ago that I was going to build a circle track truck from. Have no idea what I was thinking then. Must have been crazy.

My push rod looks like it goes in the plunger about an inch and moves around freely.

Ask for a 88 Ranger M/C and look at it before you purchase it.

Just kidding.......hehehehehhe

Larry

heeeheeee. Yup, that's me! Wellll, I actually did look at this one. That's not to say that I knew what I was looking at or for! haahaaa. I actually have the one from my old '88. But it has a plastic res(sp) so I opted out, but maybe I'm opting back in. I'll paint the plastic silver, no one will know! haahaa. Thanks ole Friend.

Yep, use what cha ya got I say. Beats the heck out of spending money on something ya already have.

Besides aint nothin wrong with plastic long as it dont leak.

Hi Guys, maybe I can help a little...

Crazyrat - A few posts back you said you have about 1 1/2" clearance around your transmission. There's nothing wrong with having plenty of clearance, but if things are tight in there you can gain some space by cutting that clearance down to about 1/2 - 3/4 inch; that's all you really need. You also mention a "tunnel frame"... You really don't need that either. When you bend your tunnel it's like half a tube and, when welded to the floor on either side, it and the floor become very stiff and self-supporting. I have attached a pic of the floor in my coupe. It is made from 18 gauge steel (old shelving material) and is very stiff. There is no extra framework under it.

Crazyrat and Perley - The master cylinders in my coupe and roadster are very similar to the one Perley has. Although one is from a 1985 Mustang and the other from a 1968 Chevelle, neither of them has a positive retainer to keep the pushrod in the master cylinder. It stays in there because the pedal can't come back far enough to let it fall out. That's the way they were in the original installations (and so it is in most cars). In both of my cars (and several I have built previously) I assemble the M/C and pedal in the car and then weld a stop somewhere so the pedal can not come back far enough to let the pushrod fall out. The stop also provides a place for me to mount the brake light switch. If I need to get the pushrod out for any reason, I have to remove either the M/C or the brake pedal. Hope this helps.

Hey Jim, I appreciate what you have said here. Make sense to me. When I get the motor and tranny back in I will rethink that tunnel. My cab is channeled almost 8 inches so reworking the tunnel may be a big improvement as far as room is concerned. This being my first build I am always open to new ideas and suggestings.

Thanks again Jim.

Larry

Since I am on vacation this week I have time to start on my floor boards and tunnel. This is what I got done so far this week. If all goes good I should have all the floor finished.

Larry

looking good, now l gotta get my rear in gear and get my frame finished.

later

Looks real nice

Real nice work on the interior, Rat! Cars looking good!

Thanks guys, hopefully I will have it finish by Friday. I'm amazed how solid the body is getting just by putting the floor in it. Being the first build for me I guess you guys know how things work but it amazes me anyway.
Aww... the simple things of life.
Larry

Finished the floorpans today. Will get the firewall done tomorrow and then I can pull the body back off the frame to do the finish welding underneath. I ended up with more foot room than I thought I would have. A big plus there.

Also sent the tranny off this week to have a friend go through it and check it out for me before I go a purchase a driveshaft. No need wasting that money on a driveshaft if I have to change trannys.

Hopefully I can get this thing on the road by spring. One large problem I may have is finding a title for a 46 truck, anyone got one they arent using???

Larry