I have been trying to find some information on having front drum brakes, 1948 Ford front axle, with rear disc brakes, 1978 Lincoln rear axle with stock disc brakes. Is the lack of information due to it being an absolute no-no? I know very little about brakes but I'm trying to learn what I can so any information is appreciated. They are going under a 1934 Chevy Master 4-door with a 322 nailhead and a Muncie 4-speed. Larry
The front brakes contribute about 70–80% of braking pressure, with the rear brakes contributing for between 20-25%. Braking is a two phase event. The stopping power should be in front. Hello, Most cars have the disc brake in the front and rarely have the disc back, drum front as a means of stopping in any build, hot rod or normal daily driver. Even small factory built cars (Toyota Corolla) come with disc brakes for stopping. If there is a way, it would be safer for you to convert the front drums to discs and match the whole system to work together. There are plenty of kits available all over from reliable shops and manufacturers. Jnaki The last thing we were going to do when we had saved up as young 20 somethings, was to get front disc brakes for our 327 powered 1940 Ford Sedan Delivery. The stock brakes worked well when new, but discs offer far superior braking power over drums. You will get a lot of different answers, so do your research. YRMV
I've never seen it done this way but my opinion is you will be sorely short on braking in the front, especially under panic stops. Ealy front brakes are okay in lighter vehicles but are way out of their league compared to modern discs even under the best conditions. It would be very difficult to get proper bias, (balance where the rear brakes grab just before the fronts), and even tougher if you have any kind of rubber rake. I would never tell anyone something won't work but this one wont be easy. I think you may be way ahead of the game both cash wise and in performance just going to a front disc kit and the tried and true package that goes with it. I did this on mine even though I love early lincoln brakes I needed to have something a bit easier on my diabetic feet so I used as disc kit tucked inside a cover set fabbed from some trashed backing plates and some sheet stock. This is not original, but from a thread by D-Russ on here as few years back. I would go this way if you don't care for the appearance of the front discs, (who does?). This would alsao give you the option of a matched wheel bolt pattern, front and rear. Good luck and keep us posted.
Two things come to mind for me, the front brakes provide 70-75% of the braking power and ‘78 Lincoln rear disc brake parts are practically unobtanium, except for maybe rotors.
Realize that in a panic type stop, if the rears lock up first, the rear will try to snap around on you. If you have ever watched a NASCAR road race you see this if the driver has a little too much rear bias cranked in.
Drum brakes fade more than discs so under heavy braking the rears are more likely to lock up. Only other option is to put a propotioning valve in the rear line to limit rear hydraulic pressure but that does not cure the fading issue
Generally your front brakes do most of the work. You'll have a hard time setting it up so that the rear discs don't overpower the front drums. Since you're wanting to use a disc brake rear, you don't seem to be worried about building it traditionally. Get a disc setup for the front, you'll have a much easier time.
Honestly I'd try to find someone building an early mustang. You'd likely get a proper drum brake rear and parts/$ to boot
You're right on parts availability. Looks like pads and rotors are available, but not calipers. Based on a quick look at Rock Auto. That would make those Lincoln rear brakes a hard pass for me.
With a proportioning valve, you can adjust the brake bias to have the rear discs do less work, but the best option for retaining the front drums, is to swap the rear discs for drums.
I'll have to do some thinking. I have a Ford 9" out of a '76 Bronco that I can use. I don't need to use the rear axle with the disc brakes. I think that will be the best way to go and not worry about the braking problem. Thank you. Larry
My '28 had a Trooper rear with disc and front Lockheed (40s). Light stopping was ok, hard stopping sucked I can't even imagine a panic stop. I would suggest staying with the Bronco rear as they're 5 on 5.5 bolt pattern and go with 53-56 F100 front brakes, they have the same bolt pattern and are Bendix style.
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