<VV> brake help

Hugo Miller hugo at aruncoaches.co.uk
Thu Jan 17 09:24:13 EST 2019


Fair comment, but seals wear gradually rather than suddenly failing, 
and a seal that might be otherwise perfectly serviceable may well leak 
with silicone fluid in the system. You could argue that this is a good 
thing by showing up a worn seal sooner, or that it is a bad thing by 
making unnecessary work!
There is another argument against silicone fluid, and that is that its 
supposed advantage may actually be a disadvantage - conventional fluid 
is hygroscopic and absorbs water, but silicone does not. So what happens 
to the water that will inevitably get into a silicone-based system? I 
have heard it said that it will 'pool' in the lowest points in the 
system, where it will cause more corrosion that if absorbed by the 
fluid.
I am sure I read also that it gives a less firm pedal, though I cannot 
recall why that should be.
Either way, I don't like it, any more than I like synthetic oils!


On 2019-01-17 08:23, FrankDuVal via VirtualVairs wrote:
> Hard to see my facial expression, but I am agreeing with you.
> Throttle not leaking with original type fluid, not a safety issue, so
> continue on using it.
>
> Brakes are safety, so if DOT 5 caused leaks past a worn seal in a
> braking system, it is time to fix the seal, as eventually the seal
> would pass other fluid compositions. Better a brake failure in a shop
> than on the road.
>
> Just like "Mechanic in a can" type stop leaks. I would use them in
> most any vehicle system except brakes.
>
> My Hysteria was directed at people who discover DOT 5 leaking from a
> brake system, and blame the fluid. It means the brake system needs
> repair, they just found it earlier rather than later.
>
> Frank DuVal
>
> On 1/17/2019 1:41 AM, Hugo Miller via VirtualVairs wrote:
>> That is exactly what I said - it might work fine if all the seals 
>> are new, but if not you might be inviting trouble. As regards my 
>> throttle - it's not a question of my being 'stubborn' - there was 
>> simply no leak to 'fix'. It only started leaking when I switched to 
>> silicone fluid, and stopped again when I went back to conventional 
>> fluid.
>> Can you explain to me why my throttle might have suddenly failed in 
>> these circumstances? If it had continued to leak, I would have dealt 
>> with it. But it didn't. Hysterical nonsense!
>>
>>
>> On 2019-01-16 20:24, FrankDuVal via VirtualVairs wrote:
>>> Just because you tried the DOT 5 in a worn system and it leaked out
>>> does not mean DOT 5 is a bad product, it means you needed to 
>>> address
>>> the worn seals.
>>>
>>> If it was the braking system would you have been equally stubborn 
>>> to
>>> fix the leaks? "Well, it seems fine now..."
>>>
>>> Just being throttle means failure would be inconvenient, not a 
>>> safety
>>> problem, but brakes?
>>>
>>> Been using DOT 5 for almost 40 years, NO issues. No brake failure 
>>> due
>>> to supposed DOT  5 issues. Nice to have 20 year old wheel cylinders
>>> still work like when they were rebuilt! No more white corrosion.
>>>
>>> Frank DuVal
>>>
>>> On 1/16/2019 7:33 PM, Hugo Miller via VirtualVairs wrote:
>>>> I have a coach business in the UK - I used to have a coach with a 
>>>> hydraulic throttle. I switched to silicone fluid, thinking it would 
>>>> be better. It started leaking. As a stop-gap, I just topped it up 
>>>> with conventional fluid till I could replace the seals. As the 
>>>> silicone fluid was replaced (or rather leaked out!) the leak slowed 
>>>> then stopped. I never did replace the seals! Never used the stuff 
>>>> since!
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On 2019-01-16 18:29, Jim wrote:
>>>>> I've replaced everything in the brake system of my '69 in the 
>>>>> past, and as
>>>>> Hugo says, keep pumping.  You start with the wheel cylinder 
>>>>> farthest from
>>>>> the master, which, I believe for the rear is on the passenger 
>>>>> side.  For the
>>>>> front, it's also the passenger side.
>>>>>
>>>>> For the record, I've been using the DOT 5 silicone fluid in all 
>>>>> of my
>>>>> Corvairs for decades with no problems.  I have, however, replaced 
>>>>> all of the
>>>>> components when I started using DOT 5. I can't say whether it 
>>>>> won't start to
>>>>> leak or not if used in a rebuilt system.
>>>>>
>>>>> Jim Bartasevich
>>>>
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