Brake problem and engine white smoke issues

[Cariboo4x4]

Im tinkering on a 1977 international loadstar 1700 4x4 for a friend of mine. It has a perplexing braking issue. I repaired four wheel cylinders on one side of the truck and bled all the air out of the system. However after a few minutes after bleeding or truck sits overnight when I push the pedal it goes right to the floor and then it stops at the same position every time halfway up if I press pedal say 5 or 10 times. Normally if there was air in the system the pedal would come up a bit more on each sequentials push and its not. Any ideas?

The V-8 is on propane. Just recently after it warms up it starts belting out white smoke. The smoke only last for a few minutes then goes away. It doesnt necessarily smell like coolant either. Then after 5 to 10 minutes its starts doing it again and then goes away. It has been running rough on idle and I only pulled the spark plugs out on the driver side and number 7 had a rusty plug. 1, and 3 were tanned. 5 was very clean. Compression even on all drivers side cylinders. I had a brain fart and only checked the plugs on the driver side thinking it was dual exhaust like my 3/4 ton truck. However its single exhaust with a Y pipe.

The owner has invested quite a bit of time and some money into getting this truck ready to go back on the road and hes thinking about just selling it as is or parting it out. The cab and chassis are in excellent condition and it would be a shame to see it not be put back to use. It has a homemade system for winching on logs and then dropping the logs at a log yard or in your yard for firewood say.

Any suggestions to start trouble shooting brake pedal issue and engine intermittent white smoke would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

 

[Cariboo4x4]

 

[FarmingEngineer]

The master cylinder can leak around the pushrod and let brake fluid into the vacuum brake booster which can cause problems and a rough idle can be caused by a vacuum leak in the brake booster. White smoke can also be caused by the engine sucking brake fluid into the intake from the booster. I would check the brake booster vacuum line to see if it has brake fluid. I would also pull the brake booster vacuum line and plug it to see if the idle gets better.

 

[Fritz Maurer]

(reply to post at 16:12:33 10/19/20)

Regarding master cylinder operation, it sounds like the brakes are out of adjustment. You dont mention if you pulled all 4 wheels and if you didnt, you should. Those brakes work ok but when the adjusters are frozen, you cant do anything with them. The adjusters must be meticulously cleaned and lubricated before you can even begin to troubleshoot the rest of the system. It has to be done sooner or later so why not get it over with? On the bright side, this is the worst of the job; everything that comes after will be easier. If you are not losing fluid, and the pedal pumps up firm, I dont think there is anything wrong with the hydraulic system. I do think its wrong to judge the system by how many pumps it takes. Is the pedal firm or mushy? Does the pedal creep down while youre standing on it? These are the basic criteria you need. Again, I would make sure the bottom end is in perfect shape first. Not to spend someone elses money, but hydra-vacs are what they are. If they have been neglected, especially in a salty region, they will never work right unless everything is freed up.

 

[Fatamus]

Hope this helps with the smoke issue

 

[Fatamus]

Less blurry