P30 split diagonal brake system?

[mayco]

Can someone tell me if the p30 utilizes a split diagonal brake system?

[mayco]

I had a small leak in the right front at the caliper. It turned out to be just a loose fitting where the flex line attaches. Figured I ought to bleed the front lines, well then I saw the nipples on the bleeder screws were too short to attach a hose so I went and replaced both bleeders. When I went to bleed the two front calipers I had a heck of a time getting any pedal back. Well then I thought I might need to bleed the rear also and was wondering if right front was tied to left rear and so on. Split diagonal. I as trying to bleed them by myself which gets pretty frustrating. Finally got the wife to come out and run the pedal with me underneath and got em done. But boy, it took a good while to get the pedal to firm up. Another one of those "what have I got myself into" Airstream moments.

Mike

[mehes]

If I remember correctly the brakes are paired front and rear not diagonally. I used a pressure bleeder on mine and it took quite a bit of bleeding on the rear system. Hopefully your marriage survived the bleeding project.

[mayco]

Hehehe, shes a trooper she is. Thank you for the response. After getting the front bled it seemed to me that indeed the front two were paired and the back two paired. I did find something very interesting in researching the brake design though. Ive replaced the pads, calipers, master cylinder, flushed the brake fluid and the power steering fluid, and though the brakes will stop the rig I still dont like the amount of travel in the pedal before it seems to engage. So I started looking for info on the linkage and if there is any adjustment for the pedal travel. I found out that on the years prior to the auto-brake, the vertical rod connecting the pedal to the push rod into the hydro boost has several inches of thread on the bottom. There is a through bolt and cotter pin connection that when removed, you can adjust the amount of travel in the pedal before it engages. WOOOOOHOOOO! Just what I was looking for. So today or tomorrow Im going to make some adjustment to that rod and see what I can do. Sounds promising. Of course Ill need to be careful not to adjust it so much that the pads are draging.

Mike

[mayco]

I disconnected the connecting rod and threaded it in 3.5 full turns. Four turns it began to drag just a bit. Put it back together and was pleased with the results. Brakes engage higher on the pedal stroke as anticipated. Well worth the effort. I should have saved the link describing the linkage because now I cant find it. Oh well, its very straight forward when you look at the connecting rod from the pedal. I had no idea that the linkage was adjustable, very cool. I hadnt seen it mentioned on any of the brake threads. I think the linkage changed when the auto-park was introduced.

Mike

[mehes]

Good info on the pedal adjustment. Next time I'm under the rig I'm going to take a look for future reference.

[mayco]

Took the rig out for a good test run on the brakes this morning and WOW what a difference in the pedal and stopping response. Ive taken the rig to two different mechanics for brake work, master cylinder, flush, new pads. It all needed done but I still didnt like the feel of the pedal, too much stroke before the brakes engaged and would need to pump once to get a firm pedal. Both mechanics went for a test drive with me after the work was done and both told me that it was just the nature of the brakes on the p30. Both shops are very reputable in my community. So I thought "what it is is what it is". When doing the research to find out if the p30 was a split diagonal system, in order to understand the bleeding process, I ran across a very brief mention of the adjustment that dan be made on the connecting rod to the pivot attached to the plunger. Very brief and only saw it mentioned on two web sites which I promptly lost instead of saving, DOH! Oh well.

Anyway, took it out this morning after adjusting that rod and man oh man oh man what a difference in the brakes. I am so pleased. I did not have confidence in the brake system before no matter what the mechanics said. 100% improvement in pedal feel, brakes engage much higher in the stroke, and my confidence in the brakes is no longer a concern. The adjustment is simple and basically just reduces the travel in the stroke before the plunger into the hydroboost starts to activate the brakes. Very straight forward when you look at it.

Some PB BLASTER on the threads of the rod and a small wire brush to clean up the threads to break it loose. I raised one wheel off the ground so
I could spin it while making the adjustment, that way I could be sure I didnt go too far and create drag on the rotor. Simple, all it cost was some time and made such an incredible difference in the brakes. YEEEEEEEEEEEHAWWWWWWWW!!

Mike

[martin300662]

Sorry it is a little late but the is a good write up on the hydroboost brakes on the Classic Winnebago forum (Hydroboost Braking System), including info on adjusting the rod.

Hopefully a little useful, even if too late.

[mayco]

Thats great Martin, Ill check it out. Never too late! With all the concerns and threads about the p30 braking system the more info the better is the way I see it. I would have never thought to look on a Winnie site even though it obviously makes perfect sense.

[dadstoy]

Hey guys, thanks for the info. My brakes work great after one pedal pump. I'm going to try adjusting the rod to see if that one pedal pump goes away!


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