Since the pressure in a single line system is the same at all cylinders the pressure build up at all four cylinders will not peak or build until there is resistance at all four cylinders. Meaning that the pressure at the front disc will not build till the rear shoes hit the drum and therefore the braking will occur at the same time for all four wheels. Now how much braking will be applied is the question.
The differences that will present themselves with a "hybrid" system, if I can call it that, is in the cylinder piston area, the friction area applied to the rotating member, the mechanical design of the brake system components and the factor of weight transfer, i.e., most of it being transferred to the front wheels during braking.
Disk brakes require a lot more pressure to stop the wheel than does a drum brake. This you would know if you have ever driven a disc brake vehicle without power assist. Of course their advantage is that they don’t suffer from the brake fade that a drum drum brake does. It's for these reasons that I believe with enough pressure applied to the front (disc) brake that the rear (drums) would have a tendency to lock up especially during heavy (panic) braking or on slippery surfaces. This reasoning is what lead me to question the installation documented on the CPP site. I’m sure if one called them on this that they would agree that a means of adjusting the proportion of pressure to the front and rear is highly recommended.
Simply pulling the front drum-brakes and replacing them with discs with no other plumbing changes just doesn't sit right with me.
Lots of opinions surfacing on this one guys. Seems like ya gotta apply some common sense along with that hydraulic pressure.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL
