90 xj brake issues

k. i got a 90 xj its got a to have over 250000k on i t and been sitting for a year.. plenty of rust, dents, a real beater.. i got it for free.. i have removed 6 rad fins to stop leaks.. but i got no brakes i took apart the rear drums seized wheel cyl and rotten brake lines.. can i just hook up the front lines and leave the rear off since it got a dual chamber master cyl?? the jeep is a yard/plow truck that never leaves the farm.. any tips trucks will help...

In theory the dual chamber mstr. cyl. allows you to have split brakes. In reality, the brake proportioning valve will reduce the pressure on one "side" of the system if the other side goes dead. It will allow only very poor brake pressure. You're going to have to fix it.

Anyway, new wheel cylinders and lines aren't that much. It's a pretty easy fix.

Tips and tricks: Buy a 3lb dead blow hammer. How ever much you pay for it, it's cheap!

The problem is that the pedal will go almost all the way to the floor before you get the remaining brake circuit to engage. The two pistons in the MC are separated by a spring, so if one goes empty it will travel a long way before the second one hits solid fluid. If you are going to use it as a yard car and trust that the front brakes will work well enough, you should plug the rear circuit at the MC, or crimp/solder the lines shut right at the front, so that you can fill the master cylinder completely.

All this is with the stipulation that of course you should fix the brakes properly, but of course you know that already. Remember that with only the front brakes, a rusty line or a rupture there will result in nearly instant zero brakes.