The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline My brake pedal is too high. Can I shorten it?

Has anyone done this? My leg hits the steering wheel when I lift my foot high enough to get to the brake pedal. I only depress the pedal an inch or two before I'm at maximum braking. There's about 4 inches left before it hits the floor. I would love to have the pedal be 2 inches lower.

What are your thoughts?

I to have the same problem. Thanks for bring up the idea cut 2 inches off and re weld. Better make sure clutch is fully disingaged.

Can you block the pedal beneath the floor from coming all the way up and then shorten the pushrod to the master cylinder to be sure the master cyl functions properly.
Richard

You might consider using a torch to just bend it a bit.

I had mine cut three inches lower and, wow! What a wonderful difference it made!

You won't believe how much easier/better the truck stops!

Here's a picture:
http://alanhorvath.com/54chevy/battbox.php

Why wouldn't you adjust it at the master cylinder? You should be able to lower it quite easily. The pedal comes to rest at a certain height determined by a stop in the master cylinder, not the cab sheet metal.

3 inches worth??

Also ... if you actually lowered the pedal, wouldn't your brake lights be on all the time?

Alan,
I haven't put mine altogether yet, including the brake light switch but when putting the brakes together, I did notice that there is quite a wide range of adjustment on the master plunger rod. I am sure there is a way to solve the switch problem if it turned out to be so.

Cool. Whatever works. The main thing is you won't believe the difference in leverage after lowering the pedal 3 inches! It's great!

Hmmmmm, good idea. I dropped my seat 2" to solve this and the fact I just sat too high in the cab. There's a picture of my sectioned seat frame in the link below. With my long legs though, I might shorten the pedal too.

I strongly advise shortening the pedal. The thing is, if you look at your pedal, you start off by pushing it forward ... and *then* it goes down. Shorten it by 3 inches and you start off by pushing *down* -- and *that* makes a whole lot more sense to your leg and your foot!

I don't know what your state laws are but here it's against the law to cut and modify the brake pedal. If you do decide to shorten it make sure you have a qualified welder weld it back together, would hate to have it break off if you jam on the brakes hard. :blat: :hammering:

how would they enforce a brake pedal length law? thats an odd one

These laws were created by "the sky is falling" uninformed legislators after Bubbas hot rod that was welded together with rusty 6011 rods and a buzz box a/c welder got into a really bad accident. Every, repeat EVERY 300 mph dragster, 200 mph NASCAR ride, or 150 mph sprints running three abreast through the turns at the Knoxville dirt track are running steering, brake, and suspension with welded components. Whether it's spring perches, torque arm brackets, steering gear brackets or whatever somebody somewhere had to weld them on but some think unless it was the great welding god in Detroit that welded them they're not safe. I'm sure that the hungover union guy on the production line that's watching the clock and the girls cute butt the next isle over is going to do a better job than the guy that knows the driver personally, or maybe is the driver himself. Come on, if the shaft is properly cleaned, champhered for 100% penetration, and welded with the correct heat and wire/rod type then the weld joint will be stronger than the parent shaft.

I'm going to wiegh in on the side of trying to adjust the pedal height first. True you won't get 3"-I don't think you could anyway-this way, but you may get enough without cutting and welding the brake pedal shaft. I don't think the brake light switch should be a problem with this adjustment, either.

Disclaimer
Of course, this is all from my memory of how it looked on mine when I was working in that area about three months ago. My advice is only worth what you paid for it and maybe not that much.

Good advice, guys. Today is Friday and my to-do list is growing for the weekend, starting with adjusting the height of my brake pedal. I got her back on the road 3 weeks ago after a 5 month moth ball period. After the 400 miles I've put on this month, I figured it's time to make her a little more comfortable.

Thanks again!

Well, I got under the truck today to look around and see that the curved rod that the pedal is welded to is a round bar with the end flattened. The flat part has a single hole where it bolts to a strait, flat lever that actuates the piston in the master cylinder.

I'm second guessing the "adjustablility" of the pedal height. The only thing I can think of is to remove the pedal and attached, curved rod, then see if I can drill a new hole in it. The problem will be that I'll be drilling in the round part.

What do you think?

By the way. I didn't see anything on or around the master cylinder to act as a stop for the long flat lever. The lever does actually stop at the sheet metal of the cab where the brake light switch is attached. I suppose that explains the loud "thud" I hear when I slide my foot off the pedal and it springs back to the full out position.

Not having really accomplished anything on my 51 yet, I haven't had the opportunity to drive it LOL. I did notice though when I was checking it out that the pedal does seem uncomfortably high when you raise your foot to push it. Of course mine was unmovable from the MC being stuck. But I'm storing all this away in my mind until the day.

The brake pedal setup is designed to use the stop inside the master cylinder, not the sheet metal of the cab. This is covered in the manual.

I think the setup was originally designed to work with brakes that had no automatic adjustment. Between adjustments, on a hard working truck there would be a considerable drop in pedal height as the shoes wear.

I seem to remember a round rubber cushion almost an inch thick between the brake linkage and the firewall/cab floor area that kept the pedal from thumping the floor too loudly. I'd suggest finding something like a shock absorber bushing that will fit over the round part of the pedal shaft, even if you have to saw a split in it and then secure it with a hose clamp, etc. Then adjust the plunger stroke on the M/C to be sure the relief port isn't being blocked. By tinkering with the thickness of the rubber bump stop, the pedal height can be changed temporarily until you find the most comfortable position. If you want to make the change permanent, you can unbolt the pedal rod, take it to somebody with a torch, an anvil, and a BFH, and have him heat and flatten the rod enough to drill another hole.
Jerry