[Flathead Fever]

You bleed the brakes the same if they are power brakes or manual. if the pedal is hard on the first push don't have any air in there. If you push down and then quickly do it a second time and the pedal comes up further and stays hard the brake need to be adjusted. If the pedal is still soft on the second pump it might still have some air in it. The fluid needs to be changed every two-years because it attracts moisture which is what pits the cylinders. Since it's a single system everything needs to be right. New hoses, look at the back of the master cylinder to make sure it's not leaking, pull back the rubber boots on the wheel cylinder to see if the cups are starting to leak. The pedal should never go below 50% of it's travel to stop.

Adjust the brakes until they lock up, back them off while counting the adjuster star teeth until you don't hear them rubbing. Adjust all four wheels exactly the same way, backing off the teeth the same amount so it stops evenly and does not pull to one side. Step on the brakes and make sure each brake applies and quickly releases. The reason i say to back them off until they are not touching comes from dealing with CHP on the 90-day bit inspections on the big trucks at work. The CHP inspectors were strict about the shoes not touching the drums because they would build up heat, When they inspected the trucks, they hit the drums with a hammer and if they went thud the shoes were touching the drums and if they rang like a bell they were not. I adjust the small drums brakes just like I did those big trucks, so they are just barely not touching the drums. With new shoes they will eventually wear into the diameter of the drum and need to be readjusted. Always replace the springs on old brakes, they break when they get old. It's so simple to do while your there and then you don't need to go back in there later to replace a broken spring. Don't leave any marks on the springs with pliers, the springs will break in those spots.

A pedal that is rock hard and does not let the brakes release could have the pedal rod adjusted too long and not be letting the master cylinder piston return all the way back. Wheel cylinders could also be frozen. Verify they are working, and the hard pedal is just normal and not something wrong.

I was an ASE certified light-duty and heavy-duty brake mechanic and a Master mechanic for 30-years. I've just about seen everything that can go wrong with brakes. I had factory Ford training and Bendix factory training.