Mark,

I love those one man brake bleeders you can buy they make the job so much easier. I think I've used up all of my brake bleed assistants the booster is just a booster and is not needed to bleed fluid. It just provides additional pressure to help apply brakes. The system with a bleeder cracked is light.

 I've been watching your progress with your sons first car and I thinks it's great that you are sharing the same passion.  

I'd be trying to put a minimum of a kit in each cylinder and master before letting him on the road. (light hone first). Without trying to "stick my nose in where it not wanted" It's possibly one place where I'd "help" him.  

It's a great story you dont often see father and son working on the same love.

Cheers

Warren

Grizzly (Aussie Mainline)

Been using a cheap vaccum pump to blead breaks for years. Only need one person that way and there are other neat uses for it. Auto zone or Harbor Freight should have an inexpensive one that will work well for occasional use. Think mine was around $20 or $30 several years back.

You should be able to manual bleed without power.Just one thing to mention.When you are working with a well used master,bleeding the brakes manually will push the piston inside to an area where it does not usualy go to.This can tear the seals inside.If you can rent or borrow a power bleeder so you dont use the master to push fluid out I would suggest that is a better way to go.Could save overhauling or replacing the master.

  

Not necessarily (for example if your engine wasn't running due to repairs you could still bleed the brakes), but it would make it easier to push down the peddle if it was running since the booster runs off vacuum.

"The Master Cylinder"

Enjoying life at the beach in SOCAL

About to begin the brake system work on Daniel's Merc this weekend. I've not worked on/bled a car with power brakes before.  Will I need to have the engine running when I bleed each wheel?

thanks Mark

"God Bless Texas"location: Houston,TX