Message text written by "Michael T. DeLessio"
>Hello all,

I'm having a problem with the brakes on my '84 westy.  When I hit the
brakes, there is very little resistance on the pedal and I have to press
the
pedal almost to the floor to get the van to stop.  There is no grinding or
another noise coming from the brakes and the van stops straight.  I checked
the brake fluid level and it was below the min mark (I had filled it about
3
months ago with DOT 3).  So I refilled it to the max mark, pumped the
brakes
until there was resistance on the pedal, got under the van and looked for
leaks.  Nothing.  Did this again and  looked around and under the dash,
still nothing.  I then drove the van up and down the street using the
brakes
frequently to see if the lack of resistance was due to the low brake fluid
level, there was still no resistance on the pedal. If I pump the brakes
about five times there is resistance on the pedal, but that soon fades. 
The
brake pads are fine, and I can feel the brake booster kick-in when I start
the van.  The van is an '84 Westy manual without power brakes and 141k on
the clock.  I also checked around the clutch master cylinder for leaks and
found none.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Mike D
<

First, make sure the brakes are bled, maybe there's some air.  Then, make
sure the brake shoe adjusters are working correctly.  This sympptom can be
caused by the shoes having to travel too far before they meet the drum.

John Fleming
85 Westy (160K)
84 Westy (195K) temporary member of the stable