There is nothing inherently wrong with the 4 wheel drum brakes that are on it now as long as they are restored to original operating condition. After all, modern big rigs and dump trucks use 4 wheel drums.
I'd figure out what you have and what works before tearing it apart and starting from scratch.
I drive an unrestored 1950 1/2 ton as a regular work truck. I rebuilt the Huck brakes and put proper size tires and wheels on it and have driven over 10,000 miles in the last 4 years. 216cid, 3 spd trans, 4.11:1 rear end.. It drives nicely at 55-65 mph on the interstate.
How much faster would you really like to drive a 70 year old truck?
Interestingly, it gets more attention than the hot rodded AD trucks at shows and such because it's unique by being mostly original.
1950 Chevrolet 3100 (Ol' Roy)
1939 Packard Standard Eight Coupe (The Phantom) | 1956 Cadillac Coupe de Ville (The Bismarck) | 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 coupe |1966 Ford Mustang (Little Red) | 1969 Pontiac GTO (The Dishpit) I 1979 Ford F-100 | 1976 Ford F-150 (Big Red) | 1995 Ford F-150 (Newt)
