Tom, Sounds like it's too late now but the ridiculously huge flare nuts you need are available from a couple places. Inline Tube (http://www.inlinetube.com) is one place that carries them. Also, I'll do you one better on scary brake lines: When I switched out the rear line on my 67 American, it started leaking out of the middle of the line after the tranny cross member was removed. The only thing I can figure that kept it from leaking the rest of the time was the slight pressure the cross member puts on the anti-rattle sleeve in that area. I hadn't driven the car at that point since I knew the wheel cylinders where bad but it didn't leak at all stomping on the brake pedal. Matt Tom Jennings wrote: > No, I mean breaks, as in the brake line broke when I bent > it. Wow, talk about living on the edge... I actually drove > this thing. > > The brake lines in this American were very rusty, so I pulled > them all out. The branch to the right front just snapped off at > the tee, I couldn't even see white steel in the break (brake) > but it musta been there they held pressure. > > I just bent up a bunch from straight lengths (no cockeyed > brake switch nonsense to plumb up). I need a new flaring too, > my old crappy KD kit really sucks. I'll probably look for a > good quality one that does only 3/16" as that's all I ever > double-flare. I'll keep the old kit for oddities. > > By the way, the 64 master cylinder is an exact replacement for > the 63 EXCEPT the outlet fittings on the 63 are 1/2" or 5/8" > nuts with 3/16" tube. I'll just do what I did on the other > 63 -- use brass reducers. I measured the pushrod socket depth > and diameter, same. Bolts right up. 1963 part: $220. 1964 part: > $27, new, not rebuilt. > > Man was it easy to bend tube for this thing! Everything so > far about this car is easier to work on than the newer stuff > I've owned. The rear brake line took some care to get from > the master cyl to the right "frame rail" but after that it is > almost straight. > > > So I now save almost everything, including one set of bad > 9x2.5" front drums and shoes (!), for correct-part comparisons > and cores. Glad I did. Suuure looks like you could *almost* > put 2/5" drum+shoe on the 2.0" backing plate and hub. Only two > things probably stop this: the top center shoe rest post height > (too short) and wheel cylinder (hits center of 2" shoe, 1/4" > off center for 2.5" shoe). > > Turns out, the hub is the same! To keep the brake drum working > curface centered, the 2/5" drum has a center section (that fits > on the hub) that is below flush. The 2" wide drum has the center > section flush with the edge of the drum workin surface. > > I pulled the fronts to look at, I will depopulate one side and > place the 2.5" shoes to see where things line up. > > This is just a curiosity. I'm gonna drive the perfectly-good > 9x2" setup and switch to disks probably they come up for > replacement in a year or so. And if I stay really cheap-skate, > a 9x2.5" drum setup is not exactly rare or expensive. > > > > > AEROKROIL -- I know I sound like a broken record, but that damn > stuff removes anything. There's an element of improvability > ("squirt on this bolt and it came right off!") as sometimes > even the worst-looking bolts come right out anyways, special > juice or not -- but since i've used it I have NEVER broken a > bolt/stud or buggered a head in this car or any other. > > On this car I removed in the most ordinary way: > > * front brake line flare nut to flex hose, both sides > * truly ancient exhaust manifold studs (big flakes of rust) > * rear brake line flare nut to rear axle flex hose > * frozen brake bleeders > * bolt that holds the oil filler neck to exhaust manifold > * exhaust hanger bolts > > more stuff I can't recall > > Exhaust manifold bolts are notorious. All three came right out. > All I could reach with the spray was the end that was flush with > the back of the tapped flange, that was enough. Once I got it > out the rust extended 4 - 5 threads down, and it still came out. > I took them out with a box-end wrench. > _______________________________________________ > Amc-list mailing list > Amc-list@xxxxxxxxxxxx > http://www.amc-list.com/mailman/listinfo/amc-list > > > -- mhaas@xxxxxxx Cincinnati, OH http://www.mattsoldcars.com 1967 Rambler American wagon 1968 Rambler American sedan ================================================================= According to a February 2003 survey of Internet holdouts released by UCLA's Center for Communication Policy, people cite not having a computer as the No. 1 reason they won't go online. _______________________________________________ Amc-list mailing list Amc-list@xxxxxxxxxxxx http://www.amc-list.com/mailman/listinfo/amc-list