Morris Minor Owners Club

Picked up my first ever Morris Traveller today and we went for a drive. It's a bone stock '68 Burgundy one with 65,500 ish miles on it.
All fab apart from the stock drums which in all honesty, I expected to have a tad more bite. I know the disc conversion is a thing, but I'd like to keep it stock for the moment.
anyway, I'm Jon, nice to meet you all!

Hi
Welcome.
Standard drum brakes take some getting used to, but the big thing when you get your first Minor is to make sure the Drum brakes are working as well as they should.
Give them a good looking over and see that all pistons are working, they are properly adjusted etc.
But yes there is a difference between Drum and Disc; when I drive my Minor, if I move directly to my Modern, like if car shuffling, I guarantee the first touch of the brakes in the Modern will be like hitting a brick wall!

There's lots of reasons for Disc Conversion, some drivers actually need them, other less so.....

Why on earth would a driver "Need" a disc brake conversion?

Well done with your choice of car. Drum brakes on a 1968 Morris Minor 1000 should be more than adequate. As above, just ensure they are working properly I have never felt the need to fit disc brakes to any of mine. Nothing wrong with converting them if you want to but far from necessary.

My take is that properly fitted and adjusted drum brakes on a standard Minor are absolutely fine. I suppose discs might be a good idea if a more powerful engine has been fitted but, outside of that, I agree with ManyMinors.

I have a disc conversion on my Traveller (a 69). I don't regret the conversion, they are better and do brake more firmly. That said, I never felt under braked with drums, and I agree that well maintained drums are perfectly adequate, certainly for a standard engine & running gear. The key there though is well maintained. Drums do need maintenance and adjustment, so don't skimp on that.

I'm waiting for a break in the weather then I'm whipping the front drums off, sticking them in the dishwasher, replacing the shoes and having a good look at the cylinders. My first car had drums and my old Triumph 500 had twin leading shoes so I have a residual memory of getting them sorted and adjusted.
After that, its sump off to replace the gasket, an oil and filter change, clean out the ancient grease from the wiper motor, a squirt of ACF50 corrosion inhibitor on the points and fuel pump contacts and a quick going over with Jenolite rust convertor in case there's stuff starting.
I have three owner's handbooks, the last one being a 1970 publication... it's interesting how the engine oil requirements changed over time as oil tech improved!