Hello everyone, New member here. I am hoping to get some help.

Here is what I am dealing with and why I am asking for suggestions. I have a son with Asperger's Syndrome and we purchased a 1957 f100 truck to work on together. We hired a shop to sort out the brakes and clutch, then we would do the rest. but we got taken advantage of by the shop and I had to pull it back. So my son is dishearten, but I assured my son we could tackle it and I knew of a forum where the guys are knowledgeable and can help us out. After all this is the USA where hot rod life style is a way of life.

Being a Dad and a Veteran I was not going to let my son down because some smuck mechanic shop took advantage of us.

We were told that the truck ran, It didn't, All was there, Well in pieces. I thought ok I will have a local reputable shop put in the brakes and clutch linkages, They talked me into going with hydraulic brake booster off of a Toyota 4 runner and clutch cylinder. They didn't finish the work and I had to pull the job from them. Nothing done for 3 weeks and to the bill of $2200. That will be a future headache and suite.

Fast forward to today. Our truck is home, 1957 f100 4 speed with 292 y block motor, Arm strong steering. Dropped front axle, Ford 9 inch rear end.
Has new brake lines 3/16 , old wheel cylinders, shoes all four corners. New brake booster from a Toyota 4 runner and same with wheel cylinder and slave cylinder, that are not installed.

I have turned a wrench or two in my day, aircraft mechanic. What I don't know is how to set up a new brake system. I had originally hired the shop to install a modern Ford Brake system, As it stands I have to either use what I have or start over.

Question is, what is the best approach. I would like to have disk brakes. But don't know where to start. Or at the least get our current setup going.
I figure I need some sort of proportioning valve. 60/40 split?
I have seen Wilwood brakes and like the idea, but wonder if it is just a FAD thing.
Is there anyone who can simplify this for me?
Is 3/16" lines adequate? seems line 3/8 would be better, or is it overkill?
Is there a service or support that can walk me through this?
Has anyone put brakes on a 1957 f100 ?

Thanks Guys, Sorry for the elaborate dialog.
Hope to get some help and make this project a fun one for me and my son.
If anyone lives near Camano Island WA and has free time to chat drop me a line. Or if you know of a reputable shop.

 

Hang in there! You came to a great place. Welcome. Asperger's runs in my family too. We tend to focus on its strengths and ignore anything else as best we can! About the brakes: experts soon will chime in. You want the master cylinder to be roughly the same diameter and stroke (or at least ~ 1/2 of the original stroke if going from single reservoir to dual). Brakes are critical, so, they need to be right before you make it go.
I'd type more but I'm needing to go now. But rest assured, the forum will treat you much like family. It is home to some good, kind folks. Relax and get ready for some quality time with your son/dad.

 

Welcome and be sure you will get help from a good group of very knowledgable guys and gals. Tell your son he is about to get a bunch of new friends that will more than help you both and become very good friends for a long time.

 

While we will help where we can, you may have more luck on the 57-60 forum.

1957 - 1960 F100 & Larger F-Series Trucks - Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums

3/16" lines are plenty. I did my entire truck in that size. Proportioning valves are commonly adjustable with a ****, so don't sweat them.

I pieced mine together. A Speedway disc brake front swap, a 9" Ford rear (all new parts from NAPA), and a generic power booster/corvette style master cylinder. It all works well and isn't overly complicated.

 

Hey Bro,
Welcome Aboard! Our truck was/is a father son project - a lot of fun. Helps us communicate (when we don't want to talk about school & life stuff - we can always talk trucks).

A few questions:
o It seems a little "odd" to start with the brakes. Lines are easy to damage especially if you have some welding & configuring to do. Is your 9 inch rear end installed already?

o Disc Brakes - I like front disc brakes. It makes a big difference & gives you that modern feel & stopping power. I would guess that your 9 inch Rear end has drum brakes. I wouldn't bother changing over to discs as 70% of the braking is done up front.

o Wildwood - They are pretty & come in really large sizes but I don't think they do much for you in this application. Our truck has Camaro Discs up front & Explorer in the rear - works just fine & the replacement parts are cheap.

o Have you figured out your Pedal set up yet? I think I'd start there. Are you going with a firewall mounted master cylinder or under the floor? We went with a dual chamber '68 mustang master cylinder mounted on the firewall - lot's of after market support for the Mustang crowd.

Good luck over there in Washington. Don't get discouraged.

Ben in Austin
1950 F1

 

Hi

I am an engineer and designing and building a brake system is a balencing act all the way thru.

I dont want to scare you at all, it can be done but It is not easy.

It´s really easy to put together a brake system.......

But it´s really hard and alot of math to get a balanced brake system that performce well.

I have put together an excel sheet where one can fiddle around with all the input parameters for a disc disc system, disk drum is actually abit more complicated to predict.

My first input to you would be these questions

What tire size and wheel combo are you planing, up front and in the rear?
What is your planed engine performance?
How will you use the truck? just a daily driver or an autocross/track racer
Do you still have the beam axle or planing for a IFS swap?
Manual brakes or power brakes?
Finally when all of these are done I would probalby recomend an already designed/combined brake system kit from the aftermarket or actually stock drum brakes. For daily driving use they actually work just fine, as long as you have new and fresh parts.

But this is just my ten cent, I bet there will be people that will agree aswell as disagree.

The absolute easiest way would be stock drum brakes all the way around, manual brakes.

Next level would be a disk brake kit in the front combined with the suppliers recomended master cylinder and proportional valve.....

Let me know if you have any questions

 

Also you can do some reading on the subject.

There are actually more parameters to take into account, than these websites do.

https://www.google.se/?gws_rd=ssl#q=...system&spell=1

For example:
Weight distribution
Vehicle centre of gravity
maximum system pressure
etc
etc

 

Since you already have drums with new brake shoes I'd try them out first. I really don't understand why the shop wouldn't put in new wheel cylinders ( or at minimum kits), they're cheap and would make the brakes all new. Disc brakes can always be added later.
I believe if I was in your position I'd get a power master cylinder set up from CPP or any number of other vendors. The kit should come with booster, master cylinder, porportioning valve, mounting brackets, etc. The only issue is where you want to mount it. If your keeping the clutch be sure you buy the right kit that allows you to mount both the brake and clutch.
Not knowing your skills I need to warn you, if you add, subtract, or even break a hydraulic line you MUST bleed the system. It's not hard but air in the system can adversely effect your braking ability.

Good luck!