What's WRONG with this picture? Look close!!

so, there are no backing plates to keep the rain out? don't think it would be to much of a problem, just dont tail gate or ride the brakes...or am i nuts?

 

Is that brake line the new style that will stretch to desired lenght when making right hand turns?

 

Well,since they are selling ya less,I hope they are charging you more......thats the American way.... Ha!

 

BINGO!

 

there's a guy locally that has a set of them on his ride. they are beefy, made from heavy material.

 

Throw in some pebbles at highway speed and you've got yourself a rock tumbler !

 

rain wont be much of a problem, even drums with backing plates get water in them... same with disk brakes. if your brake lines snapped, then you will have a problem.

heat is your enemy when using drum brakes..

 

That "Quick-Release" brake line is worrisome.

 

But - one more question...Is that really a brake hose? Or does it have a Fred Flinstone go kart rope steering set up? I don't mean to pick at the guy - but - that hose sure looks spooky. I admit I was drawn to that. Gary 4T950 Chevy Guy

 

We're not getting the WHOLE picture ......... It drove to wherever this picture was taken or pushed and it didnt harm the line.... its probably got some spring-loaded retainer keeping it tight.

And those look like the Skeleton-Brake Backing plates by Wilson Welding..... thats an old Racers trick.....(do your home work)..... they were never designed for regular streeet use, but neither are half the things we're doing to cars... (I.E.... drilled axles, chopped tops, open floors, no fenders, suicide front ends, and on and on)

 

Where is the steering arm? I know the brakes look like early buicks but? Is the king pin shims right? Or am I drunk? Picture looks a little weird. And who the hell runs brakes like that with braided lines. String him up and burn his little doggie. People with money should stay into muscle cars.

 

Most automobile innovations were conceived in the first decade of automobile manufacturing before the turn of the century. Bringing ideas like automatic transmissions to fruition took time, and many many technological innovations by many engineers.
Except for Chryslers Mirror-Matic.

 

I see NOS Mirror-Matics are selling in the $700-$900 range these days. Perhaps new car manufacturers are buying them to reverse-engineer them, put them on new cars, and call it a big break-through?

Or perhaps Forward Look Mopar guys are just ****-house crazy about having every conceivable accessory item on their finned machines?

 

As far as rain and other things get in the braking surface can it be much different than swiss cheese backing plates with scoops on them ?

 

youre right, and at least they would have an easier means to get the water out.

 

You're just looking at the wheel end of the brake line.

More than likely it's not as short or as straight as it appears.

Take a look at the pic below . . . if the ch***is end of the brake line was under the frame rail and oriented fore & aft there would be one sweeping curve instead of the "S" curve you see here and the wheel end would look straight.

Even if a guy was dumb enough to install an overly short/tight brake line first time he backed it out of the garage and found it wouldn't steer, well . . . I don't think he'd go far before he figured out what was wrong.....

 

Racer5c, has his backing plates carved out like this and drives the piss out of his car and never has had that I know of any brake problems. As stated numerous times, Wilson Welding sells a skeleton brake setup like this. It must work. I think sometimes we are too quick to say "that aint gonna work" jsut because it doesn't look like the norm.

 

Looks pretty cool to me. If it's unsafe, why would Wilson sell it?

 

Dont think water will be a problem.

 

How much trouble could the owner of that rig get into going from the hotel to the parking lot. The thing more than likely lives in a trailer.

 

I definately vote for "****-House-Crazy"!

 

And not only that...he lightened the brake shoes! Every little ounce adds up.

Yes water and drum brakes can be a problem if you are not aware of the problem. We were taught in the 50's-60's to lightly apply the brakes after driving through a big puddle caused by a "gulley washer". The first time you apply drum brakes after fording a stream, it feels like you have no brakes. It only lasts a second or two but the effect can ruin that 1000$ grill and your seat upholstery. I would think that without the backing plate acting as a shield, the problem would occur in a steady heavy rain more often. You would definately need to adjust your braking habits in the rain with a system like this. I know I'd be constantly testing them in the rain.

 

a minor question: (i'm just now seeing the thread for the first time) those drums are either pontiac (not buick) or he shaved down the profile of each fin. could this have been done to remove more weight? was it done just to fit the drum inside the wheel? the buick drums have little extended 'tabs' at the end of each fin.

i guess i could see someone doing all these little things to save weight. acura makes the inside half of their windshield thinner than the outside half by about 50% just to shave three pounds off of that NSX car...

 

Can't speak for the '40s but I know that from about montery on towards the NW jag brakes and discs I'm sure off of other european imports were being used by the early '50s or at least "since before you were born kid".

Disc brakes are not all that new or that big a deal. They work and at least on the high zoot cars of "the day' were being used.

If I recall some one produced an article on discs from one of the early little books awhile back when we were trying to decide if discs were trad. I'm thinking that single piston discs from an 80 or so Monte aren't trad, but i really don't car as long as you don't bang into me because you aint gots no brakes.

now back to the cut away backing plates, usually guys that run that type of stuff on the street develope a habbit of resting one foot lightly on the brake when it rains. Although judgeing from the pic and what type of event it was probably snapped at that car probably gets driven up into the trailer and out of the trailer if there is no rain or clouds and the conditions aren't too awfully dusty.

 

Thats damn funny....

 

i really dont think shaving the fins adds to anything other than being a little different...

if you were looking to save every ounce of weight, then yah... it would be a functional modification.

PNB'nr - thanks for the answer! wanting to know was more for personal curiosity... a friend hooked me up with some lincoln backing plates, gonna mount some 45 fin drums on them and make some vent holes. should be plenty of stopping power for the coupe so long as i can get rid of the heat fast enough.

 

That was my first guess also, be tough to do any real drivin'.

 

As far as having the backing plates cut away.......many will say you can get water in there too easy. Got to admit though it can probably get out easier too. I used to run these on a car and never had a problem. Actually it really did make the adjustments easy. As posted earlier in this, big trucks and also many "German" engineered off road vehicles (did not want to say it) have been running cut off/down backing plates in the desert for years. They don't present a problem at all. I think it is funny at how many are concerned about the rocks and dirt getting in there because these are probably the same guys not running an air cleaner or the whole bell housing cover to keep dirt, rocks, and whatever from getting in the clutch or engine.