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"Brakes locked up avoiding a collision" Lets not loose sight of the fact this is a good news thread. 59 navy was paying attention and took the necessary steps to avoid an accident. All without the help of modern technology.
The issue here is the other driver was not paying attention and endangered property, someone's well being and maybe his own all of which leads to higher insurance rates that we all feel the effects of. Whether you're in you newer daily driver or your classic Corvette you need to constantly be on the defensive to avoid an encounter with someone not obeying a traffic sign or signal or just not paying attention to what the heck they are doing.
My original 59 brakes worked fine today. A guy pulled out of a side street forcing me to hit the brakes hard. I stopped from 40mph with all wheels locked. He still didn't see me until he heard my tires squealing. Great breaks 59 navy
The first midyear I drove was a '63 roadster that we were looking at purchasing about 12 years ago. We had driven the car about 5 miles, and we were within about 3 miles of the seller's home when we had a similar encounter.
A lady in a mini-van pulled out of a subdivision from the right, and she froze and stopped dead in the road when she finally saw us. We were on a divided 4-lane road, so I swerved as far to the left as I could and locked the brakes. We slid to a stop within a few of feet of her car. Scary stuff for sure - especially when you're driving some else's car.
These cars have one safety feature beyond brakes - that's your seat belts. No ABS brakes, crush zones, collapsible steering columns, non-guillotine glove box doors (C2s), side impact protection and on and on.
Everybody agonizing on here about the old drum brakes should check their seat belt condition carefully; especially the anchor points on the C1s...
The little town I live in across the lake from Disney has now become a 'bedroom community' of downtown Orlando and corporate Disney....citrus fields are near non-existent and Yuppie-ville cluster houses on zero set back lots with many Northerners now living there thinking they are experiencing the 'real Florida' because they look outside and see one lonely palm tree in their yard instead of a parking lot.
Driving is a cross between clueless idiots and aggressive nutjobs. I run a dash cam full time now so anything that happens is recorded.
To wit, I just don't enjoy driving so much anymore and my classic cars even less. I wouldn't even consider a motorcycle.
BACK ON TOPIC:
Many folks with complaints about drum brakes don't understand that if they overheat them (say driving down a mountain riding the brakes) that they can glaze the shoes and make them very ineffective.
Then, later on, their brakes work like crap (its their own fault) and blame the drum brakes. It pays to pull the drums regularly to inspect the shoes for such a condition and avoid over-heating them in the first place.
Last edited by Frankie the Fink; 08-20-2017 at 07:59 AM.
" The brakes locked up and worked just fine " ...............
Don't believe this is supposed to happen. Sliding tires loose friction ( like rolling on marbles ) doing nothing to slow the vehicle. They work fine when applied when rolling resistance is at its greatest.
For normal driving in todays crowd I would prefer rotors to drums.
It amazes me how ignorant drivers are today. Last evening going to a cruise in I observed a moron while in my 60. I was merging and the guy behind me was also. At the last second before the lane ended I observed some moron about drive the guy behind me off the road and then gets right on my bumper. For about 10 miles he would alternate between tailgating me and laying back. Him and his girl were laughing and carrying on and between looking at his phone and talking to her he was majorly distracted. I just left a big gap between me and the guy in front of me. I tried to brake check him as I started through a yellow light but he just flat out ran the light.
my wife usually rides behind my daughter and I in her car going to the shoes. She is amazed how many people will just pull right out in front of us.
My 1962 still has its original drum brakes, well-maintained. It stops just fine, and yes, I have had to "stand on 'em" a couple of times due to unobservant idiots. Now, are they just as good as the brakes on my C7? Of course not . . . but I don't drive the '62 the same way I drive the C7. Use your head - know your car's limitations - drive accordingly. A stock '62 Corvette in good condition is not an unsafe car - it is just not as safe as a new one.
This is what can happen if you drive a drum brake corvette.
OMG- was any body hurt in that accident? With no airbags I hope they didn't hit their head on the steering wheel and get a concussion. That can lead to CTE, Alzheimer's, and Dementia - all due to drum brakes!!!
" The brakes locked up and worked just fine " ...............
That is exactly what is supposed to happen unless you have ABS..
Roll your big tool box across the garage floor on the rubber casters, now, engage the wheel locks slightly and push it... Engage the wheel locks fully and try to push it.
Then consult a surgeon about hernia repair.
Last edited by Frankie the Fink; 08-20-2017 at 10:39 AM.
It amazes me how ignorant drivers are today. Last evening going to a cruise in I observed a moron while in my 60. I was merging and the guy behind me was also. At the last second before the lane ended I observed some moron about drive the guy behind me off the road and then gets right on my bumper. For about 10 miles he would alternate between tailgating me and laying back. Him and his girl were laughing and carrying on and between looking at his phone and talking to her he was majorly distracted. I just left a big gap between me and the guy in front of me. I tried to brake check him as I started through a yellow light but he just flat out ran the light.
my wife usually rides behind my daughter and I in her car going to the shoes. She is amazed how many people will just pull right out in front of us.
good job on getting stopped!
People tailgate the split window like they have no frontal lobes.
First to see what it is, then to read the vanity license plate and lastly to take a smartphone pic to post on some web site to show everybody how exciting their life is. They don't care they are 3' off the bumper of a half-century old car worth $100K at 70mph.
The thought that you would even take issue with their driving never even crosses their minds...
In fact, you should be honored that you will grace their Facebook page...and be a small part of their enviable life...
i agree with boyan. You are telling a sick fairy tale here. Drum brakes are killers. They don't work. Anyone that says they do is spreading misinformation. I know this because i have read it here dozens if not hundreds of times. Even before people buy their pre-1965 corvettes they are already making plans to changeover to discs "to keep their family members safe". Stop spreading these lies about drum brakes. All cars that have them should be junked, immediately.
Are there any drum brake vettes s still around? sounds as if they all crashed back in the 60s. Cannot be any virgin glass pre 65 vettes in existence.---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here is one---------but admitedly, it has HD finned drums.
08-20-2017, 12:45 AM
