After staring at these disc breaks for the last 7 years, I finally swapped them out. Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
To all the disc brake guys out there, you can't steer a skidding tire. Too much braking potential can cause you a lot of trouble. Your car looks good with the internal expanding brakes.
Looks great! While were are on the subject, is there a stock wheel that has an offset that covers more fins, and keeps things inboard more? Bob
Yes there is. I'm not sure what the original application was for my wheels but they have the external nubs that fit a '50 Merc cap and you can barely see the Buick fins. I even put a 1/2" spacer in so that more of the Buick drum was visible.
Yea, whatever. I'm flashing back to that drum brake car I once had back in the 60s. It could barely slow down after the quarter at the drag strip for the hairpin and return lane. Trying to do a U-turn at 45mph+ is no fun, let me tell ya.
Like all things, it's relative to the framework of what you are talking about. Disk brakes were developed for heavy cars, and work well there. They are not needed on a 2500 pound roadster, and can if fact create issues.
FYI, you're less likely to skid the tire with disc brakes than you are with drum brakes. Dsic brakes do not increase "braking potential", they increase feel and control, they don't fade as quickly as drum brakes, and they don't lose braking capacity when wet as drum brakes do. I don't want to rain on the OP's parade here, or turn this thread into another argument over disc brakes vs drum, just clarifying some misconceptions here.
The Shift Wizard I ran Drum Brakes back in the 60's & 70's with No Problem on my 64 Chevelle/L88 850hp and if you work the Brakes well you have No Problem. I am running Drum Brakes on my 50 Merc. 327/300 hp.& it Stops Great! Just my 3.5 cents Live Learn & Die a Fool
Properly modulating pressure on the pedal will always produce a good stop no matter the vehicle. So discs were developed for heavy cars? Well Stateside we had the 1949 Crosley Super Sport that had disc brakes. The calipers were from an aircraft application and didn’t work well in automotive use but I don’t think there were any particular stopping or handling issues. Chrysler did offer a brake loosely termed a disc brake in ‘49-‘51, that was on a heavy car but I guess they never proved popular with buyers. But really, it was the British that put discs on many of their 1950’s light weight sports cars.
Did the same, removed previous owners GM disc conversion, 40 Lincoln drum upgrade. Actually worked better.
I love having discs on my shoebox. My next rod will be an A, and will definitely not have discs.... I had a 68 c10 with drums and it braked terribly. I guess it depends on the ride for me. But to the OP, those look absolutely beautiful. Nice.
yeah my old GTO defiantly stopped much better once i got rid of the drums and put on the disc brakes. never looked back once i did.
I know that's what they did back in the day, but I have Speedway GM 11" disc kit on mine and sometimes it scares me in a panic stop at highway speeds. I don't think I want to go backwards. (Did I really say that?)
You say your brakes work great.....do they work as good as the new shit boxes with 4 wheel disks that slam on the brakes in front of you because the cell phone rang???
Yes disk brakes have been around before US auto manufacturers started using them on cars. So to elaborate on my original statement, US auto manufacturers developed their disk brakes for their heavy cars. But the 12x2.5" Buick brakes on the OPs roadster came off a 4500 pound car. I think that they are more than adequate on a 2500 pound roadster. On a light car too much brake is just as problematic as too little brake.
I guess all the worries about brakes are why most people hardly drive old cars. Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
My RPU has big rear drums and MT products Lincoln front drums and it stops really well. I don’t regret not using the front discs I started with at the beginning of my build.
You have a single master cylinder handling your brake system too? Wouldn't want anything else 'mucking up' a traditional car.
All of my stuff has a single master and drum brakes and they stop fine, all I drive in the summer is old stuff, highway, city and gravel. They stop fine, I’ve had to make several panic stops for deer and traffic and so far I’m still alive. Are there advantages to disc brakes? Yes, they are cheaper to build better at self cleaning and less prone to fade. Are drums dangerous? No, do they require some maintenance? Yes. Everyone is terrified to have a single master, ever lost the front on a dual setup? The rear does about 20% of the braking. Almost like having nothing. I keep up my cars and don’t think twice about driving them. I would wager a high percentage of cars with brake “upgrades” are actually worse than if they had been left alone, judging by the horrendous amounts of misinformation about properly putting together a brake system on here. Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
I have to change oil more than once a year as well, mostly because I put a lot of miles on my cars. Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
The Jalopy Journal
