HA! Yes indeed... By the way I AM old.  Hard to be anti-old when I am 65.  Regarding this problem with the non-performing master cylinder, it was a combination of factors that made it challenging to fix.... This Savage that I recently picked up had been abandoned in a storage unit for years and someone then bought it up that didn't know squat about motorcycles.  He and his young kids proceeded to try and get it running but succeeded in only screwing it up.  The whole front brake system was mega-sick, with only gooey crud residing where brake fluid once was.  Probably the old piston seals were dry and not as flexible as new ones, and just would not seal properly despite "looking" pretty good.  Just took some time after everything was clean and new seals in place for it to start working well again.  After I correct another 1/2 dozen problems, I think I will have a fairly decent 96 Savage to enjoy riding... its got just 14K miles on it and good shape body wise (not counting the tank that needs repainted.)  An enjoyable project.....

This Savage that I am straightening out was a prime example of what happens when non-technical brains and fingers start playing around with something they know nothing about.  I wont bore you with the gory details.  I do have it running well now, so it should turn out pretty decent.

OK - Here is a sample of what the lack of knowledge can produce....
When I got this bike, the two carb bowl vents were connected together
with a tee, which then connected to the fuel tank.  Nothing was connected to the fuel inlet fitting on the carb.  Before even attempting to start the motor, I drained the oil.  Should hold about 2 quarts, and yet about 4 quarts came out... also had the smell of old gas.  That bogus connection to the fuel tank must have just dumped fuel right thru the carb, thru a valve and cylinder and then into the crankcase... or maybe something even crazier than that.  Flushed the crankcase, put on a new oil filter and put new oil back in.  After doing a major clean job on the carb, she started up and seems to be running pretty well.

Before buying the bike, I asked the dude who got it from an abandoned storage unit if it ran... He said that it did.  Then later on he says "it will idle all day long but poops out when you open the throttle"  
Yea... right - that must have been before they tried the "lets feed gas into the bowl vents" modification.  The tank on this one no longer has the OEM petcock... apparently a previous owner had trouble with it and replaced it with a standard, non-vacuum model.