Re: {Chrysler 300} Brake master cylinders for 56-61 Chryslers

I'm currently installing a Raybestos master on my 1960 Imperial that has sat since 1980. Also replaced the six wheel cylinders with Raybestos ones. They were much nicer than the Centic ones used on the 1961 Belvedere at my house. For one thing, all the bleed screws are the same size whereas the Belvedere ended up needing three different wrenches to open and close the bleeders. And one bleeder in the front is so close to the steering arm that it's hard to use.

I was concerned about the big red no bench bleeding sticker on the master cylinder. I'm going to be using a pressure bleeding tank on it and I already prefilled the lines with Dot 5 fluid. I prefilled each front brake from the brake hose before connecting to the line from the master. Hopefully that will save me some bleeding. After connecting the front lines, I opened the right rear bleeder and ran fluid from the line where it will connect to the master cylinder.

I did flush all the lines with alcohol and thoroughly dry them out. The rubber hoses are all new. I hope I don't have the same sealing issues with the lid.

I'm going to be looking at a remote filler for the master cylinder for maintenance. Similar to the old Grigg ones.

On Mon, Jul 1, 2024 at 4:14 PM Carl Bilter <cbilter@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

I hesitate to write a post that sounds like whining, but I think it is a valid heads up and a statement about the current availability/quality of master cylinders for 56-61 300s (and other Mopars).

After much searching, and much to my delight, I found a listing on ebay that offered a "made in USA" brand new master cylinder for the above mentioned cars:
For 56 57 58 59 60 61 Chrysler: Brake Master Cylinder, POWER BRAKE EQUIPPED Cars | eBay

Turns out that the seller is Andy Bernbaum, with whom historically I have had good experiences.

So I ordered the part, and when it arrived, much to my disappointment, the part did not match the photo in the listing, as it does not say "made in USA" on the boot or anywhere else on the part.
No manufacturer box or instruction sheet was included either indicating country of origin. The part was absolutely IDENTICAL to the Chinese made master cylinder that I had recently bouight at O'Reilly Auto Parts for $10 less! It will fit of course, but will be no better quality than the part I already have. So I am returning the part.

The problem I'm having with the new Chinese made master cytlinders (all of them) is that they leak from the cap! No matter how tight, or how full or not the reservior is with fluid (I'm using DOT5 silicone), the cap/gasket will not seal well. I do not have this issue with my older American made masters cylinders or even the Chinese master cylinders from a few years ago. The casting looks ok as does the gasket material. I chalk it up to poor quality. I may try doubling up the gasket? Running out of ideas. The cap bolt is also metric spec now (10mm hex head) - all of them - rather than the familiar 7/16" that was used even just a few years ago. And yes, I bench bled the master per instructions, and actually, the Raybestos master (Chinese) says to not bench bleed or you will destroy the piston seal; so you bleed on the car (and waste fluid).

The plug in the bottom port will tend to leak some as well, despite using thread sealer, but that's not a new issue and some of the older American made units will do that as well.

Other than leaking, the Chinese made masters seem to function well.

Anyone else having this issue? Solutions?

Carl B

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Re: {Chrysler 300} Brake master cylinders for 56-61 Chryslers - heads up