white-rhino
Older than dirt
The one thing I have hated on my buggy from day 1 is lack of good brakes. The OB used a traditional dual Wilwood balance bar, dual 1" bore master cylinder braking system with one ton calipers in the front (Chevy KP 60) and 1/2 ton Chevy calipers on the rear 14 bolt. The day after I brought it home I ordered 3/4" masters and eventually ended up with 7/8" front and 3/4" rear MC's. It would always drive through the brakes and I got pretty adept at kicking the trans into neutral all the time to not fight the brakes. I was able to hold position on a steep incline but it was always scary and if I had to back out of something steep, I risked rolling too far back before I could stop it.
I looked at both Hydroboost and I-boost and packaging was just too tight. JohnnyJ and I came up with an idea for a remote I-booster but we agreed it was going to be claptrap. Then I stumbled on an electric brake booster sold by Jegs. Although expensive, I didn't feel I had any decent options so I ordered one up.
Directions were pretty straightforward.
With further research, it's actually made by a company in SoCal called American Brake and Steering. (ABS) Clever acronym.
Early on I had some pressure issues and they were very helpful on the phone.
JohnnyJ had a busted knuckle pedal assembly that he wasn't using so I picked it up to see if I could make it work. I had to bore out the bracket for the larger MC and it fit right in.
The pedal was too long and too straight with a > 6:1 pedal ratio. In a perfect world, 4:1 would probably be better but when it will work and it's free, don't complain.
I had to cut the pedal and bend it towards the driver seat. (just tacked up)
Also added an adjustable stop for the brake light switch.
So once I was comfortable with the pedal assembly, where to mount the pump unit? It's pretty small and my first idea was to mount it right behind the pedals. It would fit but would be hokey.
I opted to mount it in the front of the passenger footwell. The slick thing about this unit is that it only has two lines to it, a gravity drain from MC and a pressure line to the MC. Wiring is a constant hot and ignition hot. It has it's own built in pressure sensor and relay.
You will notice in this pic I have the return drain going through my inner console panel. Next time the panel comes out it will be slotted for easier access.
I looked at both Hydroboost and I-boost and packaging was just too tight. JohnnyJ and I came up with an idea for a remote I-booster but we agreed it was going to be claptrap. Then I stumbled on an electric brake booster sold by Jegs. Although expensive, I didn't feel I had any decent options so I ordered one up.
Directions were pretty straightforward.
With further research, it's actually made by a company in SoCal called American Brake and Steering. (ABS) Clever acronym.
JohnnyJ had a busted knuckle pedal assembly that he wasn't using so I picked it up to see if I could make it work. I had to bore out the bracket for the larger MC and it fit right in.
The pedal was too long and too straight with a > 6:1 pedal ratio. In a perfect world, 4:1 would probably be better but when it will work and it's free, don't complain.
I had to cut the pedal and bend it towards the driver seat. (just tacked up)
Also added an adjustable stop for the brake light switch.
So once I was comfortable with the pedal assembly, where to mount the pump unit? It's pretty small and my first idea was to mount it right behind the pedals. It would fit but would be hokey.
I opted to mount it in the front of the passenger footwell. The slick thing about this unit is that it only has two lines to it, a gravity drain from MC and a pressure line to the MC. Wiring is a constant hot and ignition hot. It has it's own built in pressure sensor and relay.
You will notice in this pic I have the return drain going through my inner console panel. Next time the panel comes out it will be slotted for easier access.
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