Well, it's no secret that old trucks are heavy steel bricks lumbering down the road, built to haul goods or materials from one place to another in a world that was a bit slower than the hectic planet we call home today. This is a well-accepted fact in modern times, but stopping one of these four-wheel drum brake behemoths is another story, especially when there happens to be cargo in the bed!
Except in nitty gritty restorations, it's harder for any of us to justify keeping the stock, often worn-out or obsolete brakes as personal safety becomes a concern, not to mention those riding with us or driving directly in front in traffic. And when we look it this way, there is little to justify, right? For those of us driving on populated highways and city streets, the price of a disc brake upgrade is now second to the necessity of living another day.
But never fear: As many of you already know, there are plenty of companies out there with products to help rectify this life or death situation. We turned to Master Power Brakes when a fellow co-worker and friend, Jeff Holt, came to us with his dutiful and stock '68 F-100 that was now too sketchy to haul big bikes in thanks to its inadequate stock brakes. Even though Jeff's truck was equipped with power drum brakes from the factory, they would just barely do the job with the truck empty. After looking at what it would cost to totally rebuild the OEM brakes-which still might not do the job-he opted for Master Power's power disc upgrade for the '67-72 F-100s since both his wife and infant daughter frequent the '68's cab.
About a week later, we opened the boxes from Master Power and were surprised to see a well-thought-out kit that came with both spindles assembled with rotors, bearings, seals, calipers, and brake hoses, along with a new 7-inch power booster, dual-chamber master cylinder, combination valve, fittings galore, and a new kingpin kit-basically everything except brake fluid and someone to install it! But before starting in on his truck, we looked over all the suspension, brake, and steering components to make sure there weren't any preexisting conditions that might stop us along the way or give us what might appear to be bad end results, such as alignment, tie rods, radius rod bushings, kingpin issues, etc. Luckily the truck had been well-maintained and things checked out OK.
One last thing: Read the directions completely BEFORE starting on the install to get a good idea of what needs to be done, and if you need to round up some help, which is good to have when it comes time to bleed the brakes. One of the most important and easy steps along the way is a simple one that people often try to skip-bench bleeding the master cylinder. There are detailed instructions included, and as always, Master Power has competent people on their side of the phone in case you hit a snag and have questions.
So what are you waiting for? Upgrade those brakes and stop rolling the dice when life throws all its curve balls, aka teenagers in compact cars, your way!
