1939 pedals

[samsonized]

does anyone have experience with the drake 39 brake pedal assembly. i am trying to convert a 35 to hydrallic brakes and i did not know whether to look for an original 39 brake pedal assembly or buy a drake reproduction

[35fordtn]

I recently installed a drake pedal assembly in a car. It's the third one I have used. The frame will need to be cut as you likely know to install any 39 pedals in your car. The drake pedals have a option for a later dual resevoir master cylinder or the original. Due to this the frame has to be notched slightly where the master cylinder flange is.

My theory is by the time you buy original pedals, and rebuild them (one of the bushings is not reproduced) you will likely have more money into it than what the Drake pedals cost new

[Zeke3]

You can also check out the Early V8 Garage for their hydraulic brake conversion kits. They use the original pedals and don't require cutting out the pedal hole in the frame.

www.earlyv8garage.net
626 332-2282

[hop up]

Mike , I have a few sets if you want to take a look at them and get a idea what you need to do. I do have a extra set of 39s as well.. Plus I still have the 33 pheaton that you need lol

[JM 35 Sedan]

Originally Posted by Zeke3

You can also check out the Early V8 Garage for their hydraulic brake conversion kits. They use the original pedals and don't require cutting out the pedal hole in the frame.

www.earlyv8garage.net
626 332-2282

That's the way I chose to go on on a '35 tudor sedan that I converted to hydraulic brakes. Everything bolted up very well, with no cutting (sometimes known as butchering) of the frame. The only negative thing I saw with this conversion was some slight difficulties when adding brake fluid to the master cylinder, unless an access hole is cut in the floor pan, which I didn't want to do.

[blucar]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

Most of the aftermarket master cylinder conversions I have seem leave a lot to be desired, the big problem is that they tend to hang below the frame, and therefore are an eye sore.
Converting to hydraulic brakes will generally require re-locating the battery from under the floor boards to a more suitable location. I put mine behind the seat in the trunk, plenty of room in a coupe and it did not clutter up the engine compartment, or require altering the cowl/firewall.

[samsonized]

thanks

[FlatheadTed]

On 34 pedals I used 2nd hand king pin bushes reamed out to the next size this should work on 32 cross shafts as well ,new ones are available .

[Steve Kennedy]

I converted my '36 to hydraulics. I used '39 pedals, what a pain. Certainly not a bolt-in. And the '39s do NOT line up with the holes for the original '36 pedals. I also have dual exhaust, which now sits about an inch away from the master cylinder. If I had it all to do again, I would remove the dual exhaust and install one of, is it Richard Lacy's, kits that uses the original pedals and mounts 90 degrees to the chassis. Oh, the clutch arm will have to be modified too.

[Tinker]

It's hard to say. Did the lacy on my 38 truck then put in some pedals later. 36 was already converted. It is a very good system and I guarantee everything will be provided and correct. Lacy will also supply all the lines if you want to add the pedals. Top notch stuff. I used 95% after converting to pedals on the 38. Brake lines with the correct spiral rock guards. I'd at least talk with them first. All the brake lines were spot on with all the hardware to convert.

[Tinker]

The Drake pedals are fine. I sold mine because I was able to find a great set of originals with rebuilt bearings. Only difference in the drake pedals is that they have drill pattern for a mustang 4 bolt. Nothing is as easy at it seams. even from a 38 to 39 pedal. Small frame cutting it required. Small job. With early yrs your cross member is not inline. I can look for how to's. But you can too.

[35fordtn]

The drake pedals come with a diagram of what has to be cut and what holes need to be drilled

[30Murray]

I bought a Drake assembly for my AV8 project as I couldn't find an original around here. It cost me close to CDN$400, but it was the best option for me. I had to bend the pedals to fit through the floor, but while heating up the clutch pedal and bending it, I let it cool too much and the cast iron body snapped in half (Chinese cast iron). It's a good thing there were no youngsters around to hear me. Fortunately I was able to salvage it by welding up a strong support bracket that it bolts up to. Other than that it seems to work well.

[V8COOPMAN]

Originally Posted by 30Murray

I bought a Drake assembly for my AV8 project as I couldn't find an original around here. It cost me close to CDN$400, but it was the best option for me. I had to bend the pedals to fit through the floor, but while heating up the clutch pedal and bending it, I let it cool too much and the cast iron body snapped in half (Chinese cast iron). It's a good thing there were no youngsters around to hear me. Fortunately I was able to salvage it by welding up a strong support bracket that it bolts up to. Other than that it seems to work well.

SO....that answers THAT question! These B.O.B. pedals (no big surprise here) are NOT made anything like Henry's wonderful "forged steel" originals. Any of this reproduction "CAST crap" scares the hell out of me. Under the right circumstances, anything 'cast iron' (especially cheap 'far eastern') can crack or break when applying even light forces. What a shame that you didn't know they were cast. You CAN'T bend cast stuff......bummer! DD

[hop up]

Originally Posted by 30Murray

I bought a Drake assembly for my AV8 project as I couldn't find an original around here. It cost me close to CDN$400, but it was the best option for me. I had to bend the pedals to fit through the floor, but while heating up the clutch pedal and bending it, I let it cool too much and the cast iron body snapped in half (Chinese cast iron). It's a good thing there were no youngsters around to hear me. Fortunately I was able to salvage it by welding up a strong support bracket that it bolts up to. Other than that it seems to work well.

It’s amazing so many aftermarket parts are just crap and potential to be unsafe. Plenty of original Ford parts around but patience is sometimes needed.

[35fordtn]

Originally Posted by V8COOPMAN

SO....that answers THAT question! These B.O.B. pedals (no big surprise here) are NOT made anything like Henry's wonderful "forged steel" originals. Any of this reproduction "CAST crap" scares the hell out of me. Under the right circumstances, anything 'cast iron' (especially cheap 'far eastern') can crack or break when applying even light forces. What a shame that you didn't know they were cast. You CAN'T bend cast stuff......bummer! DD

Not all original pedals were forged. I would be Leary to modify any cast piece whether original or drake.

[hop up]

Originally Posted by 35fordtn

Not all original pedals were forged. I would be Leary to modify any cast piece whether original or drake.

The average guy isn’t going to know cast from forged either and safety is compromised if modifications are done to the cast product. Just another reason to buy Ford goodies.

[DavidG]

Whoa! Not all original Ford pedals are forged as some were cast. The difference is easy to spot given the cross sections (I-beam equals cast, oval equals forged), but of course you have to know not to try and bend any cast pedal or any other cast part, be they original Ford or modern replacements, regardless of when or where they were made.

[V8COOPMAN]

Originally Posted by 35fordtn

Not all original pedals were forged. I would be Leary to modify any cast piece whether original or drake.

You're correct, Michael! I was involved in that thread some time back when "WE" all kind of figured-out that the Ford pedals with the "I-beam" cross section were 'cast'. Also interestingly, I ran across this reply in 2014 from the Drake folks stating that their '39 pedals were, in fact, FORGED! Hmmmm!! DD



Old 01-17-2014, 01:39 PM #33
Bob Drake Repro
Member

Bob Drake Repro's Avatar

Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Grants Pass, Oregon
Posts: 39

Default Re: Drake's 39 pedal assembly

"Inquiring minds... our pedal arms are forged."
Bob Drake Repro is offline

[30Murray]

Just to clarify, it wasn't the pedal arm that snapped - yes they are forged and hard to bend unless red hot. It was the body that attaches to the master cylinder or k-member. If I had been more careful, it likely would have been fine.