How do you replace front brakes 1940 ford?

Answer 1

Assuming you wish to replace the 1940 Ford brakes with new 1940 Ford brakes:

Each wheel has a conventional cotter-pin, washer and spindle nut that holds the drum in place with an inner-outer tapered roller arrangement, as you would see on most any 50's thru 80's drum brakes. the shoes are held to the backing plate with one hold-down pin and spring clip each, and one return spring running from one to the other over the top of the spindle and the tops rest against a common wheel cylinder. Each shoe is mounted on a threaded pin at the base of the backing plate. These pins have a cam style mounting that allows adjustment of the brakes by turning the pins and locking them with a lock-nut. Turning these pins causes the mounting points to move in or out toward the drum. The drums can be cut on any common drum laythe. The proceedure is fairly obvious once the drum is removed. I've seen shoes advertised on line $45 to $55 range and new drums for around $120 (each). There is more than one style drum with over or under hub mounting, but I believe the over hub is more common.

Assuming your wanting to upgrade your brakes there's several options. Around 36 or 38 Ford switched to a "floating brake shoe" arrangement with a self adjuster and no solid mounting of the shoes. This provides a 'better" brake. Kits are available to get the bearings and seals necessary to upgrade. And of coarse disc brake conversions are popular with kits available for around $90 that supply the bearings and brackets needed to put common Ford or GM rotors and calipers on the existing spindles, up to $600+ for lightweight aluminum hubs, calipers and everything needed. Keep in mind that converting to disc will require a dual master cylinder designed for disc brakes.