Air Pack Questions

When I installed the air pack, the brake line from the top of the hydraulic side of the air pack to the distribution block was "gorilla tight", as Garrett would say. When I re-attached it, it leaked. I tightened it some more and now it just weeps a bit. I cannot tighten it any tighter, so I guess it is time to replace that line. Fortunately, Big Mike's has the new line for a reasonable cost. Line is ordered. I am on this string of "one thing leads to another" failures. It has been frustrating, but installing my new hydraulic head cured me of the "I don't know if I can do that" syndrome. The end of the line at the distribution block inside the frame does look at bit difficult to get at...

GunInstructordotcom said:

When I installed the air pack, the brake line from the top of the hydraulic side of the air pack to the distribution block was "gorilla tight", as Garrett would say. When I re-attached it, it leaked. I tightened it some more and now it just weeps a bit. I cannot tighten it any tighter, so I guess it is time to replace that line. Fortunately, Big Mike's has the new line for a reasonable cost. Line is ordered. I am on this string of "one thing leads to another" failures. It has been frustrating, but installing my new hydraulic head cured me of the "I don't know if I can do that" syndrome. The end of the line at the distribution block inside the frame does look at bit difficult to get at...

Click to expand...

You'll either have to be a little creative to get at it, or pull the pack back off. I can get to it, but we don't all have the same size hands and forearms.

Jeepsinker said:

You'll either have to be a little creative to get at it, or pull the pack back off. I can get to it, but we don't all have the same size hands and forearms.

Click to expand...

The block location is behind the air pack, about even with the spare tire. It will not be as hard as some of the work I did replacing the injector lines and hydraulic head, especially that metering shaft. Thanks for the response.

GunInstructordotcom said:

The block location is behind the air pack, about even with the spare tire. It will not be as hard as some of the work I did replacing the injector lines and hydraulic head, especially that metering shaft. Thanks for the response.

Click to expand...

Yeah, I recall there being one or two P clamps holding the line to the frame up behind the air pack that are pretty difficult to get at. It's been a few years though and I might be remembering incorrectly.
The connection at the splitter isn't terrible to get at, but be sure to hold the block itself with a wrench before you try to break the line loose. Sucks when the block breaks free of the mounting bracket.

Jeepsinker said:

Yeah, I recall there being one or two P clamps holding the line to the frame up behind the air pack that are pretty difficult to get at. It's been a few years though and I might be remembering incorrectly.
The connection at the splitter isn't terrible to get at, but be sure to hold the block itself with a wrench before you try to break the line loose. Sucks when the block breaks free of the mounting bracket.

Click to expand...

I traced the line and didn't see any clamps. I was debating holding the block or not. You're right, better safe than sorry. I noticed a DOT spec inline splice on one 1/2" air line above my head. I'll have to start tracing all the brake system lines and determine if any others need replacing. Most of the lines are still available but may not be in a few years.

I received from Big Mike's and installed the NOS airpack to distribution block brake line yesterday. Today there is weeping brake fluid from the distribution block connection and the air pack connection was a bit wet. The connectors are not cross-threaded and I tightened them fairly tight, but not gorilla tight. Is there a secret to tightening flare fittings? Should I loosen them and re-tighten? Should I go tighter?

GunInstructordotcom said:

I received from Big Mike's and installed the NOS airpack to distribution block brake line yesterday. Today there is weeping brake fluid from the distribution block connection and the air pack connection was a bit wet. The connectors are not cross-threaded and I tightened them fairly tight, but not gorilla tight. Is there a secret to tightening flare fittings? Should I loosen them and re-tighten? Should I go tighter?

Click to expand...

Now I'm wondering if it wasn't just the line, but maybe the distribution block and air pack fitting are distorted from being overtightened also? Not sure what to tell you, other than just try to tighten them a bit more.

Make sure and use the special inverted-flare wrenches when tightening those. A regular open-end will distort the nut when getting them really tight.

DG

Yes, I am using the flare nut wrench with the six sides and the narrow opening to go over the line. I'll post an update after I try tightening a bit more. Thanks for the advice, gentlemen.

Every time I tightened the flare nut, the leak was a bit less. When I received the NOS brake line, there was a red plastic cap over the air pack end. When I removed the cap, I discovered water had infiltrated and there was rust. I cleaned the rust off with steel wool and oil. There was still a slight bit of corrosion uneven surface on the face of the flare. So my hunch was that the flare surface was not seating flush all around. So I loosened the nut and re-tightened it and it seems to have stopped the leak. I won't bad mouth the seller of the line, as you would not know the corrosion was there unless you took the plastic cap off. I guess the moral of the story is that OEM parts are getting older and scarcer every year, and corrosion during storage may be more common.

Started up the deuce and everything works. The new air side brake light switch did not work and then I realized (duh) the master switch was not set to brake light! No leaks, and after bleeding the brake pedal feels firmer than it did before I started working on the brake system. What is sad is, when I went to the front brake lines to bleed, I started to do the passenger's side and my wife Lori called down from the cab, "Aren't you supposed to do the driver's side first?" She had read the bleeding sequence and had memorized it. I said a weak, "You're right", and crawled over there.

GunInstructordotcom said:

Started up the deuce and everything works. The new air side brake light switch did not work and then I realized (duh) the master switch was not set to brake light! No leaks, and after bleeding the brake pedal feels firmer than it did before I started working on the brake system. What is sad is, when I went to the front brake lines to bleed, I started to do the passenger's side and my wife Lori called down from the cab, "Aren't you supposed to do the driver's side first?" She had read the bleeding sequence and had memorized it. I said a weak, "You're right", and crawled over there.

Click to expand...

We've all been there, with help or not. It's easy to mess up the order op. Don't worry about it just do it over again the right way and you'll be fine.

I was snow plowing with the deuce from 2001 when I bought it to 2015. I would check the brake master cylinder level after a few plow runs and it would be down an inch or inch and a half. I would refill it and never once did I think, "Where is the brake fluid going?" Now, looking at my old air pack which is completely covered with brake fluid and a layer of saturated dirt, I know where it went. It was leaking for many years. Now I turn my attention to the front axle seals with gear oil running down the inside sidewalls of the front tires. Garrett, thank you again for those videos that will help me do that job as well, and thank you Steel soldiers for the many threads that address just about any problem we can have with deuces.

Very happy the videos help so many people.

Ditto what GIdotcom said, and really appreciate that you're one of the handful that still frequents the deuce related sub-forums. We seem to be much rarer these days.

"Sent w/o me knowing"

The brake system has been sitting for a few weeks now. The remote master cylinder level drops about 1/8" in two weeks. There are no leaks at the master cylinders, the air pack or the line I replaced from the air pack to the distribution block. I guess that leaves wheel cylinders as the source of the slow leak. I probably have a few leaking. I'll look under the truck and try to determine which ones are leaking. It should be obvious since it has been sitting.

Well....my truck ad a similar loss of brake fluid, as spotted in the remote reservoir drop. It was sufficient to make me go "uh, oh", but not enough to make me go tear into it and rip it all apart tight away.
And....now it has stopped. No more drop. I refilled and it is steady as a rock. No loss. I was underneath and scoured the air pack and wheel cylinders. It must have leaked somewhere, surely? Nope. Nothing I could see.

I chalk it down to the same phenomenon that makes her puke coolant until the level is where SHE likes it (and damn the manual).

cattlerepairman said:

Well....my truck ad a similar loss of brake fluid, as spotted in the remote reservoir drop. It was sufficient to make me go "uh, oh", but not enough to make me go tear into it and rip it all apart tight away.
And....now it has stopped. No more drop. I refilled and it is steady as a rock. No loss. I was underneath and scoured the air pack and wheel cylinders. It must have leaked somewhere, surely? Nope. Nothing I could see.

I chalk it down to the same phenomenon that makes her puke coolant until the level is where SHE likes it (and damn the manual).

Click to expand...

I forgot to bleed the top of the air pack when I bled the brakes. It had been done before I changed the line from the air pack to the distribution block, so possibly there was some air that made its way up. Just a guess. My wheel cylinders have not been touched in 25-35 years, so a leaky one or two is entirely possible as well.