Got outside and the rain returned. I've heard some guys actually have enough room in the shop or garage to work on cars in there, instead of an old truck project and STUFF!

Found the thread you mentioned and will read it while waiting out the weather, should be one of those short-term showers. Also determined that yes, the booster on the car now is plastic and the replacement is metal.

I used to be 6'2 altho I may have lost an inch with age. Once I removed that corrugated brace you suggested I was able to access the bolt from outside rather than having my legs back into the cargo area while lying on my back under the dash. Big improvement, thanks!

 

Well the Corvette gods are really putting me through the wringer on this one! For each step forward, there is a new wrinkle on the next item. Lost all day yesterday to a constant drizzle and as I mentioned this is a driveway project.

The good news is the old booster is out, the bracket is trimmed, and the new booster is in. Starting the outboard nut was a piece of cake, the inboard one, predictably, gave me fits. Various configurations of 1/4" wobble extensions and a universal failed to get it done. Either the things would not bend enough, or with the universal it was too floppy. I finally tried a different approach which is worth mentioning. Used a long flexible shaft magnet, like you use after dropping a socket into some dark narrow corner. Put the nut on the end, bent the neck to about what was needed, and got the nut on. Truthfully it took about 3 tries, but did get and was able to get about 1 turn on it by turning the whole magnet from its handle. Just pull the magnet away and after that was able to use a socket and 1/4" extensions to run it tight.

So what's the problem now? AFTER both those nuts were tight, it dawned on me I had not put the rod from the booster over the peg on the brake pedal. Some finagling got it onto the peg just enough to feel the peg out the other side of the rod, but the two pieces are at an angle to each other and there is no slop or tolerance with that nice new rod. I've tried tapping with a hammer, tried getting vice grips in there. At this point it seems the best approach is to loosen the nuts enough to allow the booster to be cocked a bit, WITHOUT loosening them so much the nuts come off the studs!

I WILL get this - I consider myself persistent and tenacious, my wife says I'm stubborn. But I'll admit a couple times I wasn't sure I was going to get out from under the dash without help! (I will add that I did not take the seat out, that would have been a help)

Red is the rod from the booster, blue is the brake rod. Not to scale.

 

OK, mission accomplished! Was one of those jobs that took WAY longer than it should but what can you do? It still does not have "throw you through the windshield stop on a dime" braking but at least when i am at a red light it's not fighting to creep through. I'll continue to work on it as time permits.

Many thanks to all who chimed in. IHBD, I appreciate your guidance! I have tried to document my experience on this, the good, the bad and the stupid. Hopefully somebody else will get some benefit from it as well.

 

I'm the one that insisted that your problem was the booster. You didn't come right out and say that the new booster improved the braking performance, but it appears that it did by the "at a red light it's not fighting to creep through" statement. I was concerned that after all you were going through to change it out , there wasn't going to be any improvement, and I'd eat crow.

The lethargic performance can be caused by the pad material and age of the pads. Also the operating temperature. Back in the day "metallic" pad material didn't stop worth crap for the first few stops of the day. The material required some heat in them before they began to operate efficiently. More recent "ceramic" friction material has better performance when 'cold', and also dust and rotor-wear properties are better. Its difficult to get a handle on or make recommendations for brake pad material. A lot like motor oil discussions. If you know what pads are on it now, you don't want those again. Some prediction to performance can be made using "Friction Edge Codes", and selecting pads based on these codes. Research this subject, as its way more than I know, and Matthew Miller seems to have taken a hiatus from the C4 room.

Glad to see you got this completed. Now get in the garage and work on the truck so you don't have to work on the Vette out in the rain.

 

You absolutely DID say it was the booster and I thank you. It's been a bit since it was "normal" and hard to remember what that was. But there certainly is an improvement and I will resume driving it. Thanks again for the help!

As for the other vehicle(s) - I have painted myself into a corner by having too many vehicles. My '66 Chevy 3/4 ton has been a work in progress for 30+ years and I need to get it moving. The '64 Vette is almost ready to fire the engine but still much to do before driving it, coming up on 6 1/2 years since I bought it as a rolling basket case. The '92 we bought 16 years ago tonight, will start a thread on that. Add in other vehicles and I'm ALWAYS fixing something or other. Don't anybody think that once you retire, you will have lots of spare time to sit around and relax. it's quite the opposite!

The truck in the garage is a '66 3/4 ton Chevy, if I live to 140 I might get it done! Not a Vette but you might enjoy a couple pics of it anyway. First is when it was on the road, second is more recent. My intent is to keep the utility body.