I need 2 brake drums , probably 4 will be bought if price is right !
I want aluminum drums , 12 inch or bigger shoes !!!
I do think I read aluminum drums are made , for this truck who knows............ha
Where is a good source for steel drums ???????

 

1968/72 F100 2WD's have 11" x 3" front drum brakes & 11" x 2 1/4" rear drum brakes.

Where are you going to find these parts you're looking for? Who makes them?

I haven't a clue and I've been in the Ford parts biz for 59 years.

 

Thank-you 4 the response.......
I ask because I see where Crown Vics are swapped into trucks , 1980's seats are swapped in , so I wondered if any members my have upgraded their drum brakes . I see where bigger car drum brakes have been swapped into other cars so I was hoping to maybe use a bigger drum brake from maybe a 4 wheel drive or F350 , or ....... F6.........ha...........
People are so big on disc & my drums seem to work great ..........I know they may get hot if racing , or maybe going down Mt. Everest , so that is why I want bigger shoes !!!
I will add more horsepower later so need bigger brakes.........Tractor trailers still use drums !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I'm probably going to regret getting involved, but why don't you start by telling us what you have. If it's a listed in a signature block or profile it's not showing up on my phone.

You probably won't find a bigger drum brake to swap in, these already had about the best drum brakes that would fit relative to the truck. Converting to power brakes might be an option if you don't have that already.

There may be some disc brake conversion options that could improve braking, but we would need to know what you have to make suggestions.

 

I have a 71 F100 , 302 Windsor . Thank-You very much for asking

 

With a heavy duty truck, I'm pretty sure there would be no aluminum alternatives unless you find one from some kind of import (think Ford of Australia for example) or a VERY old application. But even then I think they've been using heavy cast steel on trucks for their sheer mass and heat absorbing capacity and their lower flex under stress.
But an F100 might have modest enough rear brakes that something from a big seventies passenger car or station wagon might just cross over. Doubt it, but I never rule out stuff like that until I know better. Or hear it from NumberDummy!.

We used to find aluminum drums on '70's and '80's vintage Oldsmobiles in the junkyard that fit our older sixties vintage Chevy cars, but that was just the outer drum with no backing plate. Straight across swap, but I can't remember the last time I saw a really big aluminum drum on a truck, or any Ford.
You have a 2wd F100 like NumberDummy quoted, with the 11x2.25 rear brakes? What else had the same bolt pattern and shoe size other than a 2wd Ford truck?
And if you want bigger overall, then you need the whole assembly including the backing plate. Needs to bolt to a 9" rear end I assume? Might be a unicorn with hen's teeth?
We sell drum replacement assemblies for the Broncos (https://www.wildhorses4x4.com/produc...rum_Brake_Kits). But they are just the same size as yours are now, and have the larger 4wd bolt pattern. So not going to do you any good even if they did have the same "brake offset" as your truck axle has.

Aftermarket? Or is that what you were asking about in the first place? An aftermarket conversion?
Someone was selling aluminum drums to the hot rod crowd a few years ago I think. Used to see them in the magazines.
Save some weight, and maybe gain some heat loss capacity. But not necessarily "heat stability capacity" of a big heavy drum. I don't know the proper terminologization, but I think I'm on the right page.
Going for looks, or weight?

Good luck.

Paul

 

You have 2 better options than trying to adapter larger drums. The simplest is to buy some premium, high performance brake shoes while making sure the rest of the conponents are all in good shape. The second is to go disk.

 

X2 in my book

BTW the ALUM drums of back in the day had a steel liner that the shoes touched.
They did not touch the ALUM.
If they were that good they would have been used on all cars & trucks.
Dave ----

 

If talking about long grades, etc. NASCAR used drums into the '70s even. What they did was cut away parts of the backing plate and added ducts that flexed using hoses to funnel copious volumes of cooling air in. So much back then had 14" and 15" wheels, so drum size was limited. My '67 Chevelle SS had 9" drums with power, my Dad's Chevy II Nova had 9" drums, but 13" wheels. Our '68 Plymouth Satellite Sport Wagon with trailer tow pack and HD suspension had 11"x3" front drums .... it was a good stopper. Drums do have a self-energizing property as the rotation against the applied shoes tends to wedge shoe lining tighter against the drum as the shoe pair / train press against the anchor. I think you might find bigger drums on a school bus, but then what wheels? Pontiac even bolted a rim with tabs to the really big drum a few years, the cooling fins were the part you saw. I think better cooling is your option.

 

There was a Pontiac wagon at the father's day show that had the 8 lug wheels and Alum drums, cool looking you dont see much of.
The other thing Pontiac did you dont see much is the over head cam straight 6 with a v4 carb from the factory
Dave ----