Upgrade to power drum brakes

[gotmud]

I want to upgrade my grandfathers 68 C10 LWB to power drum brakes....as of now it just has non-power assisted drum brakes....i.e. the stock 6 lug farmers truck package.

I am not at all interested in doing disks.

I assume I need the following:

1. booster
2. mounting bracket for booster
3. push rods

Is there anything else I need? I will be doing normal maintenance on the PU and will probably put on new drums and rubber hoses at the time.

Thanks all
Glenn

[Longhorn Man]

your list sounds about right. I would recomend a new booster. You have no idea how much brake fluid has leaked into an old one and brake fluid and rubber don't get along very well.
On a side note, you mentioned getting new drums... if you have old drums, and they are servicable still, then you'll want to keep them. Turn them if they are warped, but they are a million times better than the junk ones you'll get if you get new ones.

[gotmud]

Originally Posted by Longhorn Man

....if you have old drums, and they are servicable still, then you'll want to keep them. Turn them if they are warped, but they are a million times better than the junk ones you'll get if you get new ones.

Thanks Longhorn! They may be serviceable. I will check on that first before I buy new. Its not a daily driver so I can take my time.

[gotchamel]

My 69 has what I think is power assist and to be honest there will be alot of things I add or do before the disc conversion even though that seems to be a very popular improvement.I drive slow and the interstate is an hour away.

[dmack91]

Best mod I did to my truck. Takes about an hour if you have everything. Best tip is to disconnect and reconnect the rod to the pedal arm before the booster is bolted in. This drops the pedal low enough that you don't have to fight (drop) the steering column.

Here is a link to the FAQ on the swap: http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...ht=power+brake

[JJorgensen52]

Originally Posted by Longhorn Man

On a side note, you mentioned getting new drums... if you have old drums, and they are servicable still, then you'll want to keep them. Turn them if they are warped, but they are a million times better than the junk ones you'll get if you get new ones.

Absolutely 100% true. I bought the best quality drums I could find when I did mine and I still ended up with one that's out of balance and shimmies terribly at 35mph

[NC67Chev]

I might suggest replacing or rebuilding the wheel cylinders as well. I also ended up having to replace my lines because the they were pretty corroded. One of the small lines completely fell apart pretty much as soon as I touched it.

[gotmud]

Originally Posted by dmack91

Best mod I did to my truck. Takes about an hour if you have everything. Best tip is to disconnect and reconnect the rod to the pedal arm before the booster is bolted in. This drops the pedal low enough that you don't have to fight (drop) the steering column.

Here is a link to the FAQ on the swap: http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...ht=power+brake

I looked at GMC Pauls to see if he had a kit and he does. Do you know the pros \ cons of the 7 vs 9 inch kit? Why would you want one over the other?

http://www.gmcpauls.com/Brakes&Steering.htm

[Longhorn Man]

wheel cylinders are cheap and I have yet to see a quality control issue personally. I'd buy new.