axles

I found THIS:

viewtopic.php?f=18&t=3254&p=23130&hilit=Big+six#p23130

Turns out that big six and 1/2 ton FRONT brakes of that era are mostly the same. The big six stuff requires a different brake drum.

I'm sure Hollander and others list this, somewhere. I'm no pioneer. However, I'm the first one on this forum to do this minimal conversion.

You gotta laugh at our "heavy duty" view of IHC big six, at least up front.

BTW, in a previous life I was Smog Guy.

The Ford 8.8 should be limited to half ton pickups. The 8.8 is not suitable for a 1-1/2 ton truck.

first a L-130 is a 1 ton, not a 1 1/2 ton, and as Smogy posted front brakes are basically the same as 1/2 ton, so cylinders and shoes are available, drums of course are specific,

rear shoes are wider than 1/2 ton so you do have to reline or find,

looks like rockauto.com has master cylinder, front wheel cylinders, front brake shoes, rear wheel cylinders, if you look at 1956 S series, the running gear on 1950-1956 is almost identical for L-130, R-130, S-130, I'm sure NAPA has it all too,

if your drums are turn-able then you can get everything you need except rear shoes and you can get yours relined,

changing out axles is an option, but if you want to keep your original wheels, it's rebuild time

I looked at the date of my ( Smog) post.
That was the last thing I did before getting my hip replaced...ugh!
WOW! S@@t went downhill quick from there.
I've never completely recovered. I seem like superman then compared to where I am now.

Thanks guys
its the rear drums i cant find

what is this thing you call sleeving the drums

Here is where some disagree with me, but. Do you have a worn in edge on those drums? do they have rivet groves in them? Who has determined that they are bad? By todays specs they might be, but if you look at them compared to todays comparable drums they might still be "massive" in the "meat" still on them. Can they be turned smooth, I am sure not especially if you want a totally smooth surface for the shoes to "run" on. How ever if they are not out of round and only have rivet grooves in them, polish them up with just a light smoothing, The shoes will wear into the "fit" and you can put on a thicker shoe material. if needed. you just have to make sure the shoes are arched to fit the drums.
These are my thoughts and also why I encourage anyone who is going to "junk" out the 6 lug frames to save the drums.

My OPINION is...

If you want to keep this ONE-TON truck a ONE-TON truck using modern components, your "Big-6" wheels are going to be history.

If you just want to make it a functional ONE TON, Measure the axle widths and then take those wheel-mounting-surface to wheel-mounting-surface specs to the salvage yard with you. Might be good to also have the width between the spring mounting pads.

If you just want an "old truck," swap in the Explorer 8.8 rear. For the front, there are several choices...AMC Pacer [not real popular, but you get disc brakes and rack-and-pinion steering], Aspen/Volare, or a Fatman Fabrications setup based on the Mustang II.

Any/all of these are going to take some work...be it legwork, working the phone, or actual fabrication work [or some combination thereof].

Good luck!

Thanks guys
its the rear drums i cant find

what is this thing you call sleeving the drums

unless your drums are chewed almost thru, they are usable, they can be dressed lightly if desired,

I redid the brakes on my KB-1 panel last year and checked drums to make sure they were not worn beyond legal, I just dressed them with sandpaper to clean up surface rust from sitting,

brake shop guys love to turn them to "beautiful finish" taking 1000s of usable miles of braking off them, that's OK if new drums are available, these are not,

find a small shop guy willing to spin the minimum off them to clean them up if at all, brake shoes will wear to match the drum, and are a lot cheaper to replace than a drum,

To answer your question sleeving is when a drum is turned to a spec then a new metal ring like a giant bushing is pressed in then turned to true it,
not a very common practice, may be hard to find someone to do it, I've also seen where a replacement drum is impossible to find they spray weld the inside surface to build up the metal then turn to true up, both of these options are expensive and challenging finding someone to do it,

Do a craigslist search for someone parting a 1950-1956 L, R or S 130 and get some used drums if yours are gone beyond using, lots of guys hot roding these and selling running gear for scrap prices,

or replace the rear end, options,

The thing about sleeveing, if done well will give you a drum as good as new, and depending on how much you use the truck, it may last longer than you are driving. Initial cost is high, but saves in the long run. There is no such thing as a bolt in conversion, and a lot can be spent on nickel and dime things to make it right.
High end cars in the 50's and 60's had aluminum drums and cast sleeves in them. I had two like that, A Porsche and a Fiat. In both cases the sleeves never were a cause of a problem.

^^agreed^^ there is no issue with them really, but who currently will do it on old stuff?

google search brings up a lot articles about pro and cons and people looking for someone to do it,

but no real links to an actual person who will sleeve ancient brake drums,