dlynch

not having the money to do my dream disk brake set up. how can i get better performance from the drum brakes i have now.any sujestions?

Starfury

Make sure they're in proper working order. Assuming they're working properly, drum brakes should be fine for daily driving. I still have them on my 331 (because, like you, money is an issue). They fade faster than discs and don't always adjust properly (resulting in a brake pull), but day to day it's not a huge deal.

If you don't have the technical know-how, you may want to just take it into a shop and have them evaluate your brakes. Many places will do this for a nominal fee, or even free sometimes. Then you can decide whether you'd rather spend the money on maintaining/fixing the drum setup(if necessary) or a whole new disc setup.

If you've got time and some confidance in your wrenching abilities, tear the drums off and take a look at everything. Replace anything that looks worn, including the springs, hoses,and wheel cylinders. Lube all metal-to-metal contact points and the star adjusterswith synthetic brake lube. Do a full fluid flush and bleed, then adjust the shoes. If you get everything right (adjusting may take a couple tries), it should stop just fine, and even in a straight line.

JamesW

Granadas and Monarchs are still out there. You can still find the spindles and piece it all together for a few hundred.

Kramer

or of course, if you've got $600 laying around you could do a disc brake swap, that would help alot