Recommend a Brake Booster / MC Please

[Luke87gt]

Hi guys, my truck is 69 i6 with 4wheel drums (manual)

I will be upgrading to CPP drop spindles and front 6-lug brake upgrade (I plan to add power brakes). Rears will remain drums.

Can you recommend a MC/Booster combo for me, preferably something I can buy on Rockauto? Should I be purchasing a 71-72 booster/MC? Any particular size booster recommended?

Also, if someone can steer me in the right direction for the proportioning valve below the MC that would help? Can I reuse the stock one?

Thanks

[Willshook]

I went with the CPP complete bracket/booster/MC/prop valve and it's a great piece for a great price.

The only caveat is that the pin for the booster is larger than stock...so if you buy this, your only solution for a replacement booster is theirs. Learned this the hard way, although it did say that in the catalog and I missed it.

[dmjlambert]

I am more familiar with converting 69 to front disc brakes with 5-lugs and putting conversion axle shafts on the rear to make them 5-lugs as well, and I went with manual brakes; I specifically did not want power brakes. So I may not be able to help with all of that, but I can say your 69 with all drum brakes doesn't have a proportioning valve, that is a distribution block and brake warning switch. Are your front brakes going to be disc brakes? If so, for proportioning I bought an original 71-72 combination valve from the parts section here in this forum, and sent it off to White Post Restorations to have them restore it, and I like it quite a lot. If you have original 6-lug steel wheels for 1969 I believe those won't work with disc brakes, just so you know.

[Luke87gt]

CPP is perfectly fine but if I wanted to utilize OEM parts, could I use 71-72 booster/MC?

[A1971Blazer]

I got one of these from Frank here on the forum.
Very happy with it!
A little more expensive than a box store or RockAuto unit but well worth it
https://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/...hlight=booster

[72c20customcamper]

Originally Posted by A1971Blazer

I got one of these from Frank here on the forum.
Very happy with it!
A little more expensive than a box store or RockAuto unit but well worth it
https://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/...hlight=booster

I’ve used his products on two of my trucks . It’s so nice to have a unit that is just a direct replacement no fiddling around with brackets and hardware .

[Rust_never_sleeps]

I used CPP drum-disc kit, but I bolted on MBM's "booster conversion kit"
Nothing special, but works fine, and MBM's online docs are pretty good

A fair number of folks have problems with generic boosters and combo valves ootb, so if you've got the budget to jump up to Baer/Leeds/Wilwood as insurance against timesuck, it might be worth it

[burb71]

I got my booster/master cylinder here on the board from Frank
About four or five years ago, still works great.

[weq92f]

Originally Posted by 72c20customcamper

I’ve used his products on two of my trucks . It’s so nice to have a unit that is just a direct replacement no fiddling around with brackets and hardware .

.

Soooo wish I'd went this route rather than replacing one piece, then another, then the next over time and all the parts just don't really work well together.

I'll be back to revisit this sometime in the future and I will just replace the whole thing all at once.

-Kevin

[Luke87gt]

I’ll reach out to Frank

Although I must admit, I thought this was going to be an easy/cheap piece together on RockAuto from a 71-72

What exactly doesn’t work from the 71-72 and why? Thanks

[72c20customcamper]

Originally Posted by Luke87gt

I’ll reach out to Frank

Although I must admit, I thought this was going to be an easy/cheap piece together on RockAuto from a 71-72

What exactly doesn’t work from the 71-72 and why? Thanks

You would need to piece together all the brackets and the linkage now add a rebuilt power vac and new master and a new portioning valve you would most likely be at the same price point .

It took me less than a half day to put the power brake unit on my 68 .

The only thing I had to get was the flare adapters for the brake lines . I was going to change all the lines but since this is a New Mexico truck the original lines were perfect.

[MikeB]

Originally Posted by Luke87gt

CPP is perfectly fine but if I wanted to utilize OEM parts, could I use 71-72 booster/MC?

Yes. My 69 has a 71-72 booster, master cylinder, combination valve, and brackets are from a junkyard truck. I installed it all back in the 90s. Over the years I have replaced the master cylinder and combo valve, and had the OE booster rebuilt. But that was after the OE parts were 30-50 years old.

71-72 OEM booster is 11" diameter and the master cylinder has 1-1/8" bore.

Here's a couple photos that might help. Yes, the aftermarket switch isn't connected yet because it's a 73-up connector.

[Rust_never_sleeps]

Master Power is another brand of power brake kit, seems comparable to the MBM
Kits include the linkages and the bell crank mount gizmo.
Never priced them separately, but off RA, you could certainly piece together this Centric M/C with a reman(Cardone etc) booster. Don't see combo valves on RA though so it's pretty far from a one-stop shop
https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo...t=1836&jsn=782