The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline Huck to Bendix conversion

I am in the middle of putting together the parts that I need to convert from Huck to Bendix on the front axle of my '50 3100.
Here is what I have.

1) Huck front axle.
2) Huck spindles.
3) Huck hubs.
4) Huck steering arms.
5) Bendix backing plate.
6) Bendix wheel cylinders, and soft hoses.
7) Bendix brake shoes, and springs.

At issue.
-The 2 lower holes in the Bendix backing plates are 1/2". These 2 holes on Huck backing plates are 7/16".
Since the upper bolts are the same on both Bendix and Huck, and therefore will effectively locate the backing plate into the correct position, will it be acceptable to use a heavy flat washer on the lower bolts (7'16") were they contact the backing plate to make up for the oversized hole in the Bendix backing plate?
The Huck spindles and the steering arms I plan on using have 7/16" holes, so the only mismatch is the hole size in the Bendix backing plate.

-Will Huck hubs work with Bendix drums?

-Am I missing anything else?

Carl

Hello

I am following with the same issue so thought I would piggyback on your post.

I have had the 50 Chevy 3100 for 4 years. It is completely stock and original except for paint and master cylinder. Everything is correct except I replaced the original master cylinder with a dual master cylinder. I feel better about the brakes, but the truck does not stop any better. I would like to upgrade the drum brakes to a newer drum system that will give me more stopping power. I do not want to go to disc brakes. I have heard from several people that newer drum brakes will work, but I haven't found anyone that has done it. The 1950 Chevrolet 3100 has the Huck brake system. In 51, they went to the Bendix system. I have the original 6 lug 16" wheels and I do not want to change the wheels if possible. Any input would be greatly appreciated.
Leon

Here is what I am in the process of doing to allow the use of 7/16" bolts in the two 1/2" holes in the bottom of the '52 Bendix backing plate.
I welded 3/4" X 3/4" piece of flat stock steel over the holes on the outboard side of the backing plate. The welded-on steel is the same thickness as the backing plate material.
I will then use a 1/2" self-centering punch through the 1/2" hole in the backing plate to mark where to drill the new 7/16" holes.The simplest way to go would be to find an entire, serviceable '52-'55.1 front axle and swap it out.

Not having a set of Huck spindles and steering arms to look at, wouldn't a simpler approach be to drill out the holes to 1/2". I'd be surprised if there wasn't enough meat in those areas to allow that without substantially weakening the parts, especially the spindles. If the steering arms were a concern, a pair of '51 or later steering arms would solve that issue. Your plan would work, but is quite a bit more work. Are you sure the additional thickness and the farther outboard position of the bolt heads won't interfere with the brake hardware?

There will be no interference with brake hardware from the slightly less than 1/8" outboard position bolt heads on the lowers (the uppers didn't need anything done to them. Those holes are 7/16").
I was not comfortable with the thought of drilling the steering arms and the steering knuckles because of concerns with ending up with imprecise position and hole size. All of those parts are awkwardly shaped and difficult to secure in a drill press.
Welding the plates over the 1/2" holes and drilling them to 7/16" went very well.
Carl

I wouldn't worry myself about getting the holes off of their proper location as they're only getting larger by 1/16" and the bit will follow the existing hole. I'd probably do it with a hand drill.
But you're the guy on site. I'm glad you got it done to your satisfaction.

I'm a little on the skittish side since my recent death wobble experience with a loose steering arm on my other 3100.

I totally understand. I've experienced death wobble on my Model A. It's not fun. I did survive though.

Hey Carl, where did you find the backing plates? What year pickup were they for? Were they new or did you find some used ones?
Thank You
Leon

I have done this swap on my '40 .

I just drilled the 7/16 holes out to 1/2" . It works .

Does anyone know if this conversion would work on the Big Bolts (6400)?

Off a '52 GMC 150.

I converted my '47 to Bendix brakes. I friend of mine was parting out a '58 GMC so I was able to scrounge the backing plates from him. The rest of the parts are for a '70 C10 which gives me self-adjusting brakes.

Update. I sprung for new hubs and roller bearings kit for Bendix from classicparts.com.

Carl, Could you refresh us us on your decision process -- *why* did you feel it necessary to switch from Huck to Bendix?

I'm asking as one who still has Huck brakes and wants to make sure I'm not missing something in my own decision process. Also at issue are those fellow Stovebolters who may have Huck brakes as well and may be thinking that they *have* to switch to Bendix brakes for some reason that I (and others, perhaps) have yet to fathom. Please educate us.

BTW, my Hucks did just fine taking me through the heart of bad traffic through Fredericksburg to and from Winchester recently. Approximately a 270 mile round trip involving two stints on two different interstates.

Roger that!

Carl, another question. You mentioned sometime ago there was a set of nos shoes in your excess inventory (with non organic lining) and you were going to try them out for there (possibility) superior braking. One, did you every try them? Two, if not let's talk via pm.

John/moparguy,
I have had issue with the Huck brakes on my '50 due to a bad set of NOS shoes. It turns out that they delaminated. The parts for Huck brakes are very expensive compared to Bendix. Hucks also take a while to wear into a good working condition due to their design and the lack of anyone who still arc grinds brake shoes.
I have Huck brakes on my '49 which perform very well finally, after many miles and several adjustments after the drums finally "machined" the shoes into the correct arc.
I decided to go with the Bendix swap because I did not want to pay for more expensive Huck shoes, and more significantly, because I had all of the Bendix parts in stock to do the swap already.
So, as you can see, I am not against one style over the other. I just went with what I had on hand to try to save some money.
Carl

Thanks for the update Carl. I had some concerns about nos bonded shoes disbonding. Any noticeable improvement over organic before they swarmed?

I have reproduction Huck brake shoes on the '49 and the truck stops in a straight line. It makes all of the noises of a stopping vehicle (squealing tires) and eventually comes to a stop just as designed.