I have been getting a lot of "stuff" for throwing a 351W into my 52 F-1 without upgrading the brakes first.
While my stock drum brakes work as good as I could expect them to, I am interested in what options there are for upgrades.
Specifically - I am looking for low budget upgrades with the stock front assembly.

Links/ordering info appreciated... Seems like there are tons of options out there, but do not know how far to take it for the most bang for the buck.

Anyone think disc brake conversion is not a "MUST"? Anyone have good lucks with disc conversion without expensive cylinder upgrades?

The drums I have are strong enough to lock them up, but it's not like they are overly quick to lock up on me when I try to slow down.... I would think nice rubber would do more to improve stopping distance and practice with putting the right brake pressure on.

Tags: Brake Upgrade, Brake Conversion, Disc Brakes, Drum Brakes, Low Budget Upgrades,

 

In my opinion, doing a disc brake swap is not mandatory, but it could be considered highly beneficial. The stock brakes are not significantly different to ones used through the 60's and into the 70's with heavier and more powerful trucks with larger load capacities. That does not mean they can't be improved upon.

All that said, doing a disc conversion is not that expensive, relatively speaking, and is about the same money as rebuilding the stock setup if you compare apples to apples and replaced everything including drums, shoes, cylinders, hardware, bearings, seals, hoses, etc.

Whatever you do, do not attempt to use the stock master cylinder with disc brakes. You must use a m/c with the correct fluid capacity designed to work with the discs, and there will be other assorted plumbing changes necessary, too.

There's a couple ways to go if you do decide on the swap. You can pony up and buy the kit and have everything you need delivered in one box, or you can buy the special bracket and bearing spacer separately and procure all the rest of the pieces locally. Either way it'll run about the same money.

Bottom line is, if you're relatively happy with what you have and they work well, and feel you can make other improvements to the truck that will be of a better benefit, do those first and see what happens. Keep the brakes properly adjusted at all times for maximum efficiency. They don't have self adjusters and do need periodic maintenance.