flyingd

I have an early 98 dually. What are my options if I want better braking? Mine work ok but if I have to stop fast with the camper on it and pulling a trailer it just is not happening as fast as I think it should.

Thanks for the options

SIXSLUG

Easy= Chevy brake cylinders and properly adjust the shoes. Check your front brakes to ensure the calipers are lubed, the pads are in good shape and the rotors are to spec and not grooved or polished like a mirror.

Not as easy= install an exhaust brake

VADSLRAM

Hands down best and cheapest upgrade. You will have to adjust your braking style afterwards because if you aren't careful you will wear out the seatbelts or put a passenger through the windshield stopping

flyingd

I figured that the one ton dually already had the good brake cylinders........

Stamey

You could also find a mid-90's F350 ball-joint front axle and swap the outer parts, from the u-joints out, onto your axle. This gives you the dual piston calipers Ford uses. This will give you lock-out or automatic hubs also, depending on the axle you use. Granted, this is not a very cheap fix, but it is very effective. I did it on my 96 2500 in 2011 and have been very happy with the results. I bought the axle for 800 and then put reman calipers on, and new u-joints and brake pads.

Chris

SIXSLUG

As good as Dodge offers...

THe chevy cylinders are larger and provide more push into the shoes...

Ford brakes have a reputation for being the strongest...Our 97 F 350 dually stops better than my 01.5 Ram

u2slow

Does '98 have hydroboost? Adding it was a huge improvement on my '95 F350 that already had dual-piston calipers.

VADSLRAM

It's not that the cylinders are bad they are just smaller.
I might be mis-remembering the exact numbers but I thought the dodge OEM had a bore of 7/8" while the GMC was 1 1/16. Doesn't seem like a lot but the old Pie are square thing says that's almost double the surface area. In hydraulic terms that's almost twice the force pushing out on the shoes to stop.

Midnite

Don't forget that the proportioning valve can also be bypassed to provide even more rear braking. Some guys have fab'd up ways to adjust it so you can lighten it up when you're unloaded.