What---if any---are the differences in master cylinders, between power and manual brakes, physically I assume none, but if a manual m/c was installed on a power booster, will it work good or will it not stop as well as a power m/c will?
Basically, I believe the difference is piston bore size. I think most of the man. mc's bores are 15/16 and power mc's are a little larger, an inch or so. If were doing the upgrade/restoration I wud use correct cyl for whatever application I had. JMO
According to rockauto.com they list different part numbers but both say 15/16 bore. It's possible only the size of the line connections is different or max stroke length. If stroke length is different I would not interchange them. But as cheap as they are I'd just go with the proper one.
Not sure about Fords but on GM's there is a difference in the depth of the piston where the pushrod attaches to the M/C.
I've talked to brake people about this and the answer I always get fitting size is different so they wouldn't get mixed up on the line. I used a 91 Ranger on mine, it has metic fittings and button flares. I would think you could use just about any MC as long as you have a 1 inch bore and a prop valve for front to rear adjustment. Oh and my Maverick/Ranger stops great
In addition to above, the disc brake man and power m/c uses a larger reservoir for the disc portion and the rear piston in the power m/c does not have the groove for the pedal rod lock ring. Drum m/c 's use the same size cavities for front and rear. and then there is the fitting size difference on various applications.
That explains why the rod didn't snap into the disk MC when the disk swap was done. I thought something was wrong but didn't see a problem. The rod from the donor car was also a bit shorter than the drum brake rod. Lets the pedal sit lower at a more natural height.
