1981silverz28
08-15-2011, 07:13 AM
I have stock 81 disc fronts with 79 TA rear disc and power brakes . I have a SBC with a 550 lift roller cam and now I don't have enough vaccuum for the brakes to have a really good pedal at low RPMs. I put a vaccuum canister on and that didn't help at all . I don't know wether to go manual or a vaccuum pump. I don't really want to spend 250.00 for a vaccuum pump if I don't have to . I have heard that some diesel trucks come with a small electric vaccuum pump but don't know which ones do . Any ideas ?
TT302Z28
08-15-2011, 07:25 PM
I have a vacuum pump I would be willing to sell for $75.00 plus the ride. If your interested PM me.
This came out of a buddies car that had a wild cam and no vacuum. He went LSX and didn't need it anymore. $75.00 is what I paid.
Apogee
08-15-2011, 10:07 PM
Did you measure your vacuum levels? If so, what are they?
The funny thing about accumulators is that they can't accumulate what isn't there. While they can help in situations where the vacuum levels become marginal under very specific (and temporary) operating conditions, they can't help the engine create more vacuum, either in terms of magnitude or supply, they can only capture and store what vacuum is produced. Electric auxiliary vacuum pumps tend to be loud and somewhat obnoxious IMHO, but they could possibly solve your vacuum issues. There were some OE auxiliary vacuum pumps, both belt-driven and/or electrical units, but I've never had much luck finding them when I've needed or wanted one. The aftermarkets seem to be a mixed bag...I've never found one that I could whole heartedly recommend.
Not knowing how you use your car, I'd probably go one of two ways. First would be manual brakes. It's dirt simple and with the proper master cylinder bore size and pads can and will work quite well. In manual installations, I like moderately aggressive pads like a Hawk HP Plus (GG), so this can be advantageous for a car that will see some track time. The down side is the added dust, noise and rotor wear. My next choice would be hydroboost as mentioned by Vince above. This would be my preferred choice for a driver that's going to see a lot of miles and is much better suited to a less aggressive (EE or FF) pad with lower dust/noise/wear characteristics.
Tobin
KORE3