My knowledge on '30s Fords is a little lacking, so please help me out here. I want to upgrade the mechanical brakes on my '37 Coupe to hydraulic. Wanting to try and stay traditional, so modern discs are probably out. My limited understanding is that the backing plates from later Fords, '40-'48, will convert to the '37 spindles, but what are the nuances? Or am I just flat out wrong? I know the '40 started with hydraulics, but I believe they're a bit different, and maybe not the best choice. Again, I think that in '42 (?) they went to the more modern wheel cylinder and self centering design, but not sure about that. I want the more useable wheel lug spacing, not the big spacing of the '37, but not sure what years used what. This is going to affect my rear choice to stay compatible with the front lug design, so I have to consider that as well. Also, what master cylinder design to go with? Basically asking what my options are. Parts availability is something to consider also. I want to drive the car.....alot, so scrounging for parts replacement is something I'd like to avoid. Just talking about basic hardware and brake shoes here. Please school me and educate me here. I need to start gathering parts for this so I can start on it next year.
Instead of going through all the variables please check out these hamb threads. A lot of good information. https://www.google.com/search?q=the...ASEQrQIoBHoECA8QBQ&biw=320&bih=525&dpr=2#ip=1
1939 was the first year of Ford hydraulic brakes. The backing plates are basically all the same from 39-48, 39-41 had adjustable bottom mounts. It doesn’t which year, they are all Lockheed style.
I think that's backwards, especially if you have good '37 drums and want to keep the wide five wheels. The original drums should work seamlessly with '39-'48 backing plates. The wheel end of it is simple, where it gets a little more complicated is in mounting the master cylinder. There as another alternative, and that is to use F1 brakes from a later pickup or one of the aftermarket kits that have the more advanced Bendix brakes. Also, properly maintained and adjusted cable brakes are every bit as effective as the Lookheed hydraulics.
Lots of good info to consider in the links posted above. Here's my take: '39 pedal ***y; works with your clutch linkage. Plumb it like a '40 using 1/4" lines. Stock '39-'48 1-1/16" master or a Mustang 1" dual with an adapter will bolt up. '46-'48 Ford Lockheed on the rear. Get the drums with the hub on the inside and unless they are mint replace the drums with new ones from Boling Bros. If I remember right you need to use both the front and rear '39-'40 E-brake cables. Several choices for the front: '46-'48 Lockheed, again get Ford drums inside mount hubs, add new drums if needed. Repop Lincoln self-energizing brakes again with Ford drums with inside mount hubs, add new drums if needed. F-1/F-100 brakes on the front; these will provide better braking than the Lockheeds as they also are self-energizing. These can be done at less cost than the repop Lincolns. Boling Bros also makes new hubs. Maybe worthwhile doing a price comparison with buying worn out used drums and then reworking stock hubs to fit new drums. I mention using the '46-'48 as the floating lower anchor eliminates the lower adjusters that seem to baffle many when dealing with '39-'41 Lockheed brakes.
Part of the reason is to get away from the wide lug pattern so I can use more traditional (but still vintage) wheels and hubcaps. Thanks for that great info. A dual master will be a must. I'm not going to give up safety just for bragging rights about being vintage. My plans were for a 8BA style engine with an overdrive, to stay road friendly. Using a '39 pedal ***y sure sounds easier, but I imagine it won't work with the later trans. Again, not sure about that. One of the things I want to avoid is to start cutting up the frame to make stuff work. The car is too nice for that. Re-energizing brakes would be the way to go, so I may have to look into the F-1 brakes. I'm ***uming you're talking about '48-'50 F-1's? I'll have to research what the Lockheeds are like. Been a mechanic and working on older junk my whole life so I should be able to figure it out The confusing part about all this is that they were changing stuff so fast during these times, as technology progressed, that it makes it difficult to pin-point exactly what year used what. I may also look into the Bendix conversion mentioned, which I didn't know was available. Like I mentioned, parts availability is a consideration also. I'd hate to spend a year trying to find parts, only to figure out something might be wrong. Sorry if I'm beating a dead horse on this question. But honestly, there's an answer to everything on the internet these days, so why ask a question at all? I mean, everyone has weeks and weeks to spend reading, right? I will check those links out as I have time. Thanks.
Those links are directly from the Hamb written by all of us. Read those or read the posts here in your thread. The posts written with care and thoughtfulness on your thread reflect the exact info your questioning. Your time and our time are very important. I rarely pull info from the Internet as an answer for a hamb post. Spend your valuable time and read those links. If you’d like, I have a 37 with an 8ba your welcome to come and view. I believe you may be close by….. Only difference is I’m running the three speed. Good luck on your journey.
I absolutely will read them and I thank you for the links. Time is an extremely precious commodity for me at the moment, I barely have time to get on here. I won't go into details because I'm not looking for sympathy. You're about 2+ hours from me (I'm just east of Lima). I'd very much like to check out how you did your car, so maybe next Spring I could make the trip to look it over and get ideas. Seeing something on the computer vs. seeing something in real life, with someone who did the work, is a big difference to me.
Yes. It easy to overlook a link someone posts here. I understand. Those are just Hamb posts and it is exactly what you need. You’re more than welcome to stop by. I’d be happy to have you. Send me a message here on the hamb and we’ll set a date after April.
I am literally in that very place as I write the reply (yes, the picture shows a '35 but my '35 has a complete underside off a '37. The drum brake kit from Boling Bros in California with 5X5.5 hubs and 2" brake shoes. I ordered my hydraulic plumbing kit from Early V8 Garage which it a turnkey kit and designed to be installed with a ****er knife (not really but it is the simplest system to install that I could find - no drilling, no welding, no excessive cutting or grinding to install it.) Here's a link to a video of my actual kit being ***embled that was posted by Denis Lacey. Touch base with Denis or Richard. https://www.instagram.com/p/ClpP90QvVb8/?hl=en
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