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I'm done retrofitting my '59 Galaxie with front disk brakes, and thought you guys might want to see how it went.
I don't sell any of these parts, but you can find them in different places. I bought most of my parts from eBay. The rest from my local discount auto parts store.
This job depends on how much you want to do. You can have disk brakes without power-assist. My goal was to get good power disk brakes because the '59 Galaxie is my wife's car, and it's a very heavy Fordor. We take long trips in it, so we need the best brakes possible. The OEM system worked ok for me (I'm a big guy), but NOTHING like it does now.
I used my stock spindles. <--That's a biggie because it means no machining or front-end suspension changes.
I also kept the rear drums, since rear brakes don't do much stopping. Any time your car has disk AND drum brakes, a PROPORTIONING VALVE is used, since disk pads require much more pressure than shoes. If you don't use a proportioning valve, the back tires will skid in a modest stop. I used an old one from a Mustang. Junk yards throw them out daily. I find, the valve doesn't have much to do with the weight of the car. It divides the pressure proportionally. Some guys use an adjustable proportioning valve because hotrods are drastically different from stock cars.
Since my '59 has no rear brake self-adjusters, I use a ten pound RESIDUAL VALVE ($5 on eBay), which keeps the shoes from retracting all the way when you let off the pedal. So, when I hit the brakes, I get immediate action with the pedal right at the top.
I didn't go into showing the two-stage power booster and dual master cylinder on my site, but I got that combo on eBay for under $200. If you don't want power, that's ok. I did it for my wife.
With this system, the brakes work the way you would expect. They will put you through the windshield, while the car steers straight.
Check out my RETROFIT site by clicking HERE.
- Dave Dare
I don't sell any of these parts, but you can find them in different places. I bought most of my parts from eBay. The rest from my local discount auto parts store.
This job depends on how much you want to do. You can have disk brakes without power-assist. My goal was to get good power disk brakes because the '59 Galaxie is my wife's car, and it's a very heavy Fordor. We take long trips in it, so we need the best brakes possible. The OEM system worked ok for me (I'm a big guy), but NOTHING like it does now.
I used my stock spindles. <--That's a biggie because it means no machining or front-end suspension changes.
I also kept the rear drums, since rear brakes don't do much stopping. Any time your car has disk AND drum brakes, a PROPORTIONING VALVE is used, since disk pads require much more pressure than shoes. If you don't use a proportioning valve, the back tires will skid in a modest stop. I used an old one from a Mustang. Junk yards throw them out daily. I find, the valve doesn't have much to do with the weight of the car. It divides the pressure proportionally. Some guys use an adjustable proportioning valve because hotrods are drastically different from stock cars.
Since my '59 has no rear brake self-adjusters, I use a ten pound RESIDUAL VALVE ($5 on eBay), which keeps the shoes from retracting all the way when you let off the pedal. So, when I hit the brakes, I get immediate action with the pedal right at the top.
I didn't go into showing the two-stage power booster and dual master cylinder on my site, but I got that combo on eBay for under $200. If you don't want power, that's ok. I did it for my wife.
With this system, the brakes work the way you would expect. They will put you through the windshield, while the car steers straight.
Check out my RETROFIT site by clicking HERE.
- Dave Dare
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