Kit allows you to install 1953-1956 Ford F-100 pickup 11" x 2" drum brakes on your 1937-1948 Ford car spindles. Kit includes new bearings and seals to allow conversion. You must supply 1953-1956 F-100 front backing plates, hubs and 1953-1966 brake drums. Minor grinding required on 1937-1941 spindles.
Why should you convert to F100 drum brakes? This is a popular upgrade over the factory passenger car mechanical drum brakes or less powerful leading edge design "juice" brakes. F100 brakes outperform the leading edge "juice" brakes because they use the rotation of the drums to cause the brake shoes to twist and press against the drum lining much harder and in a more even pattern, reducing shoe wear. As a side benefit, they also require less pedal effort to operate.
Tech Tip: If replacing all brake hardware, 1966 F-100's had self adjusting brakes.
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This is a fairly straight forward modification that rodders have been doing for 50 years. The two areas of concern are at the fillet radius of the spindles, and the upper kingpin boss.
Looking at the spindle where the large bearing slides over the "candlestick" we note a gentle radius on the early passenger spindles. On the F100 inner wheel bearing there is a sharper radius. The inboard ID of the F100 bearing inner wheel bearing needs to be opened up slightly to fit on some spindles.
It should seat on the flat step of the spindle, not bind up on the gentle radius. The other area is the upper aft edge of the kingpin boss. It oft times needs a small crescent shaped divot ground out for clearance to the brake line.
Summary: The perfect kit for the hub conversion, just like it states, but be advised that the inner bearing will require some grinding to match the spindle shoulder. I'm surprised that Speedway doesn't have this bearing manufactured with the correct edge on the bearing. The bearing kit that came with the early Ford spindle (From another source) had the inner bearing with the correct edge. Sometimes hot rodders like "Plug and Play" too.
Yes, I recommend this product.
Summary: 1953 F100 brakes on 1948 spindles perfect fit
Pros: perfect fit
Yes, I recommend this product.
Summary: Fit as stated. Nothing was weird.
Yes, I recommend this product.
Summary: Needed this conversion kit to install the front brakes but the project changed and I have not yet installed this kit.
Yes, I recommend this product.
Summary: A nice kit but the seals are not the best. To wide and when installing them, they stop the bearing from turning. Plus they are hard to get started. Went to my old auto parts and bought the proper one's. Everything is good now.
Yes, I recommend this product.