A while back I found a kit to convert the manual brakes system to a vacuum boosted system. I think the kit was from ugly truckling (?) but am not sure.
Does anyone know if there is a kit (or several) that will allow me to add vacuum boost to my 68 D-100?
As Trey said you don't need a kit, they came stock on our trucks if ordered, your master cylinder is a dual resivoir and 4 studs going into the firewall, these would bolt to the booster, and you should have a area on the back side of your carb (if you are running the stock intake) you'll need the plug for the hose to attach to.
If he has a stick with the hydraulic bell this will be a bit more difficult as the clutch master will interfere with the booster. The stock setup uses standoff brackets to clear and they are few and far between. You may be able to find a small enough booster to not have to use the brackets. BTW, if you are looking for an improvement in braking this won't do it. All the booster does for you is give less pedal effort. Your brake capability will stay exactly the same if there are no other changes to your brake system.
russ makes a good point. it makes life easier, but not better. with a good brake system, manual or power, these trucks stop the same. both my trucks will lock all four tires, and both trucks suffer from drum brake fade. all the power boosters in the world wouldnt help this.
The original brakes faded horribly on mine. Dad always said the only time he had decent brakes was when he pulled a trailer. I had the same brakes on my '73 and never did have any trouble with fade. My guess is that it had much higher quality lining installed. I always used top of the line stuff on brakes but I don't think Dad ever did. I wanted to make sure I had good brakes on the PW so I managed to snag an '84 1 ton rear axle to put under it with bigger brakes. With real good quality lining it stops really well and have had absolutely no fade.
When I brought home my 65 W-100 Town Wagon, It had a Bendix Large canister Vacuum Brake Booster hooked in line. Actually that was the major headache that sent the last owner to unload it. When you turned on the truck, the vacuum would cause the booster to engage and would lock up the brakes.
I looked into getting the Booster rebuilt but when I went shopping, it was like $200 bucks! I think I found a rebuild kit with new leather, rubber etc. but I haven't done anything with it as of yet. I just took it out of the series and the truck brakes fine. There is even more play in the pedal, which I like, but I am also not haulin' *ss at highway speeds either.
Has anyone out there rebuilt one of these Boosters? I am thinking of getting the rebuild kit and giving her a shot. When talking to some shops it sounded as if these boosters are saught(?) after buy hot rodders and the like?
If I am not using it, are there any recommendations on storage procedures on the shelf?
I Pulled off the Brake Booster off of the Fender wall, and I didn't think of having to deal with the Hose off the engine block. Should I just leave it alone and let it blow air? Or should I cap it off and if so How? Take the whole hose off to the top of the engine and cap it there? Is it going to be a problem to drive it like this...
The ideal method is to remove the fitting and buy a
plug fitting at your local parts store. You could
also cut the hose short and stick a bolt in it and
throw a hose clamp on it.... that's the "Hobcobble
Method" . Either way.... you have to
plug that port up.
John
A while back I found a kit to convert the manual brakes system to a vacuum boosted system. I think the kit was from ugly truckling (?) but am not sure.
I had the same brakes on my '73 and never did have any trouble with fade. My guess is that it had much higher quality lining installed. I always used top of the line stuff on brakes but I don't think Dad ever did.
I wanted to make sure I had good brakes on the PW so I managed to snag an '84 1 ton rear axle to put under it with bigger brakes. With real good quality lining it stops really well and have had absolutely no fade.
. Either way.... you have to