[Tigers] Brakes

[genepadgett at comcast.net]

Regarding a proportioning valve, I would delay a decision until after the brake changes, whatever they may be, are installed. Test the system and see if front or rear lock up first. 


Put 4 white shoe polish stripes on the tire sidewall, equally spaced, front and rear on one side. In some deserted parking lot, get the car up to about 30+ mph and hit the brakes hard to lock them while some one is watching/or filming the test. You do not want the rears to lock up first as a sliding tire has less traction than a rolling one. 


If you decide to put in a proportioning valve, remember that it is a detuning device. It lowers the effectiveness of the better performing brakes to be more in keeping with the lesser performing brakes for better balance. 


Were it me, I would try to upgrade the lesser performing end to be more in keeping with the better performing end for better overall performance. You do that by using different brake pads, shoes. With the stock system on my car, I am very happy with Hawk HP pads in the front and Porterfield custom relined shoes in the back using vintage racing shoe lining. The Hawk HP pads do "dust" a lot, but that is a small price to pay for how well they work. If you go to something like the Hawk pads, be sure to break them in properly. 


My 2 cents. 


Gene 

----- Original Message -----
From: "Tom Parker" <tkparker1941 at gmail.com> 
To: "LIST TIGER" <tigers at autox.team.net> 
Sent: Tuesday, May 14, 2013 9:33:21 PM 
Subject: [Tigers] Brakes 

In response to Karl Adey's post, some thoughts on brakes and some 
observations based on experience. Regarding the dual master cylinder, no 
practical experience. The dual Wilwood, if memory serves, has something 
like a 1" diameter bore. This may cause braking issues with the stock Tiger 
brakes. I haven't done it, so I have no practical experience. 

First the proportioner: I'd suggest using one because you want the bulk of 
the braking to be on the front brakes. Granted the rear drum brakes are 
somewhat anemic, but you may find some handling issues with too much 
pressure to the rear. Again, I haven't done it, so I'm speculating. 

What I did do was bypass the Girling booster - out of necessity - using the 
stock Lucas 7/8" bore single master cylinder. The pedal feel was so hard 
the car - to me - was almost undrivable. I ended up buying a 3/4" bore 
master cylinder from C.A.T. which worked well. When I reinstalled the 
Girling I stayed with the 3/4" bore master; the braking is, imho, 
excellent. A much better feel than the 7/8" bore cylinder. 

When Tim Suddard wrote about the Wilwood brake conversion in Classic 
Motorsports I had some conversation with Wilwood management on the 
conversion. I'm told the Wilwood masters are designed for use with Wilwood 
calipers front and (preferably) rear. They have a lot more volume, I'm 
told, than the stock front Tiger calipers, and certainly a lot more volume 
than the single piston rear brake cylinders. Summit Racing carries the 
Wilwood front brake kits for the Tiger. Dale A. sells rear disk brake 
kits. My point: the Wilwood dual master cylinders may be overkill for the 
stock Tiger braking system. As a result the pedal feel may be really really 
hard. 

Tom 
'67 Mark 2 
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