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WOW! Forgot how hard it is to stop without power brakes!

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bucko

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
My 67 arrived to my house yesterday. Driving from the hauler to my house was an eye opener! Pushing on the brake pedal was quite an effort in force! The brakes work, but holy smokes, they require a lot of foot effort to get the car to stop! It's a 4 wheel drum brake setup, without a vacuum booster.
No doubt, I'll be adding a brake booster/master cylinder conversion in the very near future!
 
#2 ·
My first '69 when I was 18 was four wheel manual drum with M20, 3.73's, and a 300+ hp 355. Near about wrecked it pulling out of the seller's driveway that was sloped to the street.
 
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#3 ·
I had the same experience when I bought mine. Learned really quick why that peddle is so wide!

First thing I did when I got home was ordered a front power disc conversion kit and shoulder belts. My wife was pregnant with our second at the time.

You don't really need 4 wheel disc. Front disc is more than enough.
 
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#6 ·
Yup, had the same experience when I bought my 69 in 2000. Stopping was an adventure! No wonder it had low miles. A quick fix for the shoes installed backwards and added a power booster. Now with power drums, it stop much better, not as good as discs, but good enough! I don't want to replace my drum only wheels :)
 
#7 ·
I'm the odd man out because I've survived with my 4 wheel manual drums for 15 years. I race it (12.7 @ 105) regularly. They are my next upgrade but they've never put me in any danger. And, I don't have to do leg-day at the gym! :)


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#8 ·
If the drum brakes are in good condition and adjusted correctly should not be a problem stopping the car even at higher speeds.
 
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#9 ·
Vega$69 said:
If the drum brakes are in good condition and adjusted correctly should not be a problem stopping the car even at higher speeds.
Click to expand...
I agree. I had 4 wheel manual drums on my first Camaro and after I got them all working properly they worked great. It took some leg pressure but not terrible.

I actually just got rid of my power brakes on my current Camaro, went with a manual disc conversion and the correct booster. It stops great and the leg pressure required is not bad at all. Not like my wife's SUV granted......

I think drums are clearly antiquated but if they are working properly they work great, just not repeatedly...:wink2:
 
#10 ·
When I had my '67 I felt the same way...but the shape the car was in, they were most likely worn out. I swapped them out for some Baer manual discs on all four corners and it stopped like a dream.
 
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#11 ·
I have manual brakes on my car as well although front disc. At first it was a handful, not in that it required a lot of effort but a ton of pedal travel to finally work and then the nose would dive down. Found the rear compartment for the brake fluid was blocked off with some gunk plugging up the fittings and the front reservior was almost empty. Also noticed there was a rear brake adjustment valve on the lines heading towards the rear and the valve was completely closed so I had no rear brakes at first.

After all that was resolved things worked pretty well.
 
#12 ·
bucko said:
My 67 arrived to my house yesterday. Driving from the hauler to my house was an eye opener! Pushing on the brake pedal was quite an effort in force! The brakes work, but holy smokes, they require a lot of foot effort to get the car to stop! It's a 4 wheel drum brake setup, without a vacuum booster.
No doubt, I'll be adding a brake booster/master cylinder conversion in the very near future!
Click to expand...
I had a 64 vette a lifetime ago, drums all around. After about 10 hard stops the brakes really faded, and I really had to lean on it to stop it.
 
Discussion starter · #15 ·
I recall my 61 vette had all drums, and I don't recall it having so much foot pressure to stop. However, that was almost 30 years ago; I'm much older now, and have been spoiled with newer cars. My current daily driver has power everything, so stepping back almost 50 years is an eye opener.

I do like the raw basics of this almost 50 year old Camaro. No A/C, no power steering, and no power brakes. Plans are to remove each wheel, inspect brake parts, replace what's required, then go from there.

I should note that it stops fine, although I've only driven it at about 25 to 30 MPH. After a complete brake inspection, I'll hit the highway.

So simple to work on these cars. Love it!
 
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bucko
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