Because the problem just won’t go away. It’s there every time I wake up. I’m still tackling it from all angles. It’s not as though I don’t have a respite here and there. I do, but no matter what, there it is waiting for me. Wah wah wahhh. I know.
Suck it up, buttercup.
Yesterday, I snapped off the bleed screw to the other caliper. 
The story before the grand fail goes like this. I’d put the torch to it, then sprayed it down with penetrating oil to cool it, and repeated that a few times in hopes of cracking the bond between the rusted parts. I then tried it… a little… and when it wouldn’t budge, I left it sit with oil overnight. I actually thought I had it loosening in the morning, but I was just torquing the bolt before it twisted off.
Prior to that, getting the damn wheel off, the studs were so rusted I snapped one off. I was stunned. I had always thought those things indestructible. I just shook my head, remarked at my incredible destructive power, and figured it was par for the course at that point. They can weld on another easily later on.
Back to the bleed screw. So, it’s snapped off, and now I can’t bleed the front brakes. Hmmmm. Can I remove the caliper at least, or do I book a flight? By now, we’re on plan F, you see. I don’t know how, but both caliper pins came loose, so that meant I could at least replace both calipers.
Resigning myself to buying pretty much all new parts, and then plumbing new brake lines myself (because they will break too), yesterday we went – Pepo as navigator, Lee as translator, and I as vested interest – pin-balling around again.
The first stop was the GM dealership in town, thinking that high dollar or not, they would order the parts up from Panama, and they’d be there in a few days minimum. The answer was NO. No tengo. Really? Nowhere in Panama? Nada? Yep. They could order the parts from the states, and they’d be here in two to three weeks. My heart sank.
Once I scraped my jaw off the floor, we bandied about the other options that had occurred to us. There were a few auto wreckers out on the highway that were worth a look. They all turned out to be hopeless, there was nothing older than 10 years, really. A notable exception was one place that had both a 1980 Caprice, and a 1979 Grand Prix. 
The 79 Grand Prix is my car exactly, but with different interior and slightly different body. It was a crapped out hulk of mold, but for sure it had every part I needed, was under cover, and for a minute… just for a minute, I thought he actually wanted to part it out, but nooooo he wanted to sell the whole car.
What a total drag. Now what??? The only nice thing about the day was I got out of David for a while on the highway seeing all the places I’d been before, but sad that Cass hadn’t come with. There was also this neat little place, between two wrecking yards, you wouldn’t know it unless you knew it, but it went wayyy back and was this nice restaurant next to a cool river. We stopped there and had a soda. Might as well…
Overnight, we decided the next course of action was to do whatever it took to get the parts we needed here, come what may.
This morning, I took apart the rear brake assembly – springs, pads, and all – to see just what was the problem with the wheel cylinder, and why it was wobbling back and forth.
1979 was a bad design year, I guess, as there is just a “clip” sort of device holding it in place. Subsequent years have two bolts.
Was there some way to secure the thing in place better? Was the backing plate destroyed? Could I replace the whole brake assembly with a newer model?
Of course, changing out the backing plate requires removal of the wheel axles, but whatever it takes to get it going, right? I’ve seen it done, it’s simple, just messy.
Anyways, while I was doing this, Pepo came along and saw what I was up to. He suggested cutting the line to the wheel cylinder, removing it (somehow), and there were rebuild kits you could buy for them. The kit came with new pistons, new inner seals, and new end seals.
Do that, and while it is out, clean up the backing plate as best as we can, and when we reinstall, we’ll tack-weld the fucker back in. That ought to hold it in place. The brake lines would have to be hand made, but they are short and simple ones.
For the front calipers, he suggested removing the caliper from the wheel so that depressing the pedal could close the caliper. The proportioning valve would think there was a leak, and it would finally… finally, reset itself to center so I can push fluid to the back brakes again. This is the only reason I’ve been wanting to open the bleed screws up front anyways. I don’t believe there is any air in the lines, just really really old brake fluid.
After that conversation, we went for lunch, got in a cab, and went and bought four jack-stands to get it done.
B
umbling around doing brakes with only a car jack to get one wheel off the ground at a time is an enormous pain in the rear. I can’t say that enough. I know these are going to be a one use deal, so I’m gifting them to whomever decides they want them when I’m done. As long as I get to use them first. In fact, I should have bought them long ago, but how the hell was I to know…
Well, that’s where I’m at at this moment. Haven’t made a meeting in a few weeks. The camels’ hump is getting a little sqwewshy and flops from side to side by noon, but I’m still plowing along.
Ain’t beat yet, time for some entertainment. I brought all our TV shows as an afterthought… what a great one that was…
Our home theatahhh…
BTW, that’s a lighter on the bed.
Next –>t;