To brake or not to brake...that is the question
 

My 69 C10 P/U runs pretty well for a truck thats 33 yrs old.
The brakes also work...but I really have to stand on them to
stop the truck from 60 mph. Its not unsafe to drive but my brother
seemed to think that I should be locking up the brakes...given
how much pedal pressure I'm using. It equipped with a power brake booster. When I initially press the pedal the brakes really
take hold but I'm having to exert a good deal more pedal pressure to bring it to a full stop. Is this just the way 4 wheel drum brakes work...or is possibly something wrong with the
power boost? There aren't any screech or scrapping sounds
so I'm not down to the rivets. Maybe this is just a matter of
adjusting the drums?

Jim M.
:bowtie:

I would first change your brake fluid. This is the most overlooked part of the braking system. 30 year old brake fluid will contain a lot of moisture, moisture reduces the boiling point. Boiling fluid means brake fade. Second I would check the adjustments. It you do decide to change the shoes, check out www.praisedynobrake.com

FWIW....Im not a mechanic but I can tell you from experience, I helped my kid w/his 63 Impala, redid entire system. BIG difference! It stopped w/minimal effort. When you really hit-em, tires would screech.

First thing I did when I got "my toy" was to do the same. I'll give ya, its not 4 drums but I just didn't feel comfortable. My booster was bad, lines looked worse. It did cost a few bucks but I have no problems in Chicago area stop/go/highway (or should I say speedway) traffic.

Start w/the easy stuff and go from there. The post about the fluid is a good one. Moisture also causes premature failure on parts. Play safe....don t. ......

Even with drums, you should not have to put alot of ass on that peadle.
Something I have actually seen on an old truck, was where the brake fluid absorbed so much humidity in the air, that there was actually portions of the lines with just water (:eek:) in them.
Start with a very good inspection, and flushing the brake fluid out.

Heres my experience... I used to have drums all around. I let my neighbor drive my truck once and he commented on how hard you have to press the brake pedal in order to stop. Of course, I was used to it and really didn't know the difference. Afterwards, I swapped the entire front crossmember (including susp., steering and disc brakes) Master cyl, prop. valve etc. from a 71. The only thing I didn't change was the booster. Guess what?? The new brakes felt exactly the same same as the old. I then installed a new brake booster (3/4 ton) and that made a HUGE difference. Hardly need any pedal pressure to stop the truck now.