I am in the middle of converting my 64 f100 2wd to having the dual resivor master cylinder. On the original master cylinder there are two wires conecting to the switch. The dual resivor I bought is off of a 1968 mustang with no power brakes. It does not have the switch on the master cylinder. I am wondering what I need to do to make this conversion sucessful. Any help would be good. thanks

 

I attached a "T" to the outlet for the front brake line and ran a short tube around in front of the m/c and installed the switch in much the same position as on the original. It's not especially pretty but it works. Another option I considered was to attach the switch to the distribution block on the frame which is really unnecesary once the front and rear lines are split up... I ended up using the block as a union and plugging the extra hole.

 

Here's a consideration you may want to mull over. . . .

There's essentially 2 types of brake light switches in use. Pressure Activated Switch you're asking about & "Touch Activated" type used in later vehicles, I believe 1968 in Automobiles maybe. Anyway touch type is triggered by touching brake pedal, inside a vehicle, under the dashboard. FoMoCo trucks 73 & up use them. Difference is a safety oriented issue. It actually makes both a lot of sense & is a great idea too because it increases your chances of survival, especially if your Fuel Tank is still in your cab with you, in a hard rear end collision incident.

Before PSI style switch closes it's circuit & lighting your brake lights, you've already begun stopping or slowing as same PSI also moves your brake shoes or pads. A vehicle behind you has to see your lights, then react w/action before it can slow. There is a greater risk of being rear ended with a PSI type switch due to time delay it has.

Touch type switches, when adjusted right, light brake lights the instant you touch a brake pedal, long before your brakes act or slow you down. When that time's removed from a following drivers reaction time, you can gain as much as 1.5 sec more warning to vehicles behind you, than you have with PSI Switches. 1.5 seconds @ 60mph equates to 132 feet of distance traveled. If you're panic stopping @ 60mph, & there's several cars behind you, you may need many more feet w/ PSI type brake light switch than you will have. Touch switches buy you that operating room the PSI switches deny you. Just thought you may want to consider this EZ upgrade.
FBp

 

I agree with FordBotPete, upgrade to the later type switches. I did on my 65, its very simple to do. I fashioned an "L" shaped bracket , drilled a hole in the bottom of the "L" and mounted the switch so the buttom stickes out the bottom. The vertical side just clamps to the steering column with a hose clamp or what ever so that as soon as the brake pedel moves down, the switch is activated. Then tap into the two wires going to the old swtich and just plug into the new one.

Very simple, quick and safer.

Keith

 

Hey kwanderi, I'd like to see a picture of that switch. I'm having trouble visualizing how it would work without intefereing with the pedal. FordBoyPetes reasoning makes sense to me. I plan for my 16 yr old son to drive this truck and he could use that extra second of reaction time!

 

I put a pic in my gallery in case this doesn't link. You're looking up from the pedal with the wires pointing toward the steering wheel. The switch is an early 70's Ford type.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/user_gal...=43845&width=0

 

jnsprigg,

The switch plunger, which is adjustable for depth, rests against pedal lever which holds it open as long as pedal lever's up against it. When your foot hits the pedal the pedal lever moves. Switch plunger moves out closing circuit & brake lamps light. let off the pedal lever retracts pushing plunger back in & circuit opens, lights go out. It's adjustable too. You can hair trigger the lights (I do that) or you can allow lever play, which I think defeats the whole purpose of the touch switch, but to each their own.

In kieths pic, that red thing is a mast jacket tube around strg column. There is a large
"Hi Gear" clamp holding his "L" shaped bracket in place. Switch is wihite & black thing with wires on the end. The pedal lever is flat black part behind switch. For reference the pic is taken upward off floor board @ 90 degrees to mast jacket, the brake pedal being on R/H side of steering col. right?

It's amazing such a small deal can make such a big difference when we think about it.

Like Kieth says just bring your original brakelight switch wires inside, and solder bullet ends, or the connector off a OEM Harness "pig tail" piece on them so they just push on to the new touch style switch. If you want to get a "Feel" for how it will function, temp attach the 2 wires to your new [or good used] switch and you will see when the plunger is depressed into the switch lights are off/ circuit is open & slightest movement lights go back on/ circuit closes.....
FBp

 

Oh yeah,
I almost forgot. good job Kieth, & good pic too. Thanx for the graphic help Man!
FBp

 

Well that clears it all up. Thanks guys. After I posted earlier it occured to me that the switch must be open when egaged by the pedal in the up position. Sometimes I'm a little slow but I get it eventually ... often with help from this forum!

 

Thanks to Ford B. pete and kwanderi for this useful information and pic. Awhile back at the salvage yard I harvested a switch just on general principles (small, easy to remove, low cost, and potential for use). Now that my '66 work has evolved to installation of vacuum boost w/dual MC, I have a great blueprint. This will put a nice finish on the project's new brakelines and power unit. Very timely. Thanks again!

 

I have the no bracket, no drilling version of installing one of these switches on my truck. You can read about it here. The only problem I've had with the way I did it was, if the pedal is allowed to slam back up, it can push the switch back out through it's holder. All you'd need to do is add a rubber bump stop to the top of the pedal, easily done by drilling a small hole for a screw to hold it on top of the pedal.
I also illustrate the various switch types on the page for reference.
The difficulty in re-using the hydraulic switch is the thread pitch compared to the brake lines themselves. The T adapter with the right combination is tough to find, though they do exist (I finally saw some in a racer's parts catalog).

 

When I did mine, I bought the "T" adaptor from Speedway in Omaha. Got a new pressure switch too. And then I didn't use either of them. Ended up following the advice above (which can be read over and over in a search). The plunger switch, which lights the brake lights much sooner, is a better, safer design.

If, however, someone wants the correct "T" -- 3/16 double flair on both ends and a 1/8" NPT out the side,-- with a new switch attached let me know and I will part with it very cheaply.

But I really don't recomend it.

 

I had it made in the shade & sold in the sun.

Not being fond of a Slicks' dash board or instrumentation, I used a cut down 79 F150, whacked up, 79 A/C dash board instead. I wanted A/C registers & defroster ducting, Heat - A/C controls & tunes that wouldn't all fit in 66 dash. I like 73-9 better anyway.

66 dash was so ragged out and chewed up by the P-O it looked like he rescued it from a shredder, or got it from bonnie & Clydes car after FBI got done air conditioning it! It had 2 cigarette lighters & I don't even smoke. I think he used on of the lighters as a power tap source for some accessory that probably worked terrible. . . .

I used A/T swing pedal & bracket assy out of same 79 F150 donor, so my brake light Switch is a box stock OEM 73-79 F series set up. FWIW. . .
FBp.

 

I was thinking of a pull type universal brake switch with long spring on it.
a good example;
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...category=35592

I have several of these somewhere around here I had for cycles Ive owned. I'd want a new one for the truck but the principle would be the same. small easy to install under th dash and a small hole drilled in the pedal arm would hold the end of the spring connected to the pull-on switch.

hows this idea? I am not sire but I think I have seen cars with this kinda switch too. (this example being for a motorcycle)

 

2nd Mouse,

If it has the amperage capacity to deal with wattage of 2 brake lights being on for a longer periods of time, it should work after you hook it all up.

But a mid 70s FoMoCo Switch is so easy, reliable, compatable, plentiful, and adjustable I doubt anything else can work that much better. . . . . .ya know?

FBp