Fuselage - Drums to Disc Brake Conversion

[70_NPORT]

With something new and/or custom... it's never a bad idea to recheck it periodically... and brakes should get regular check ups anyhow.

Glad you're pleased with the results. You are largely responsible for my softening my stance on disc brake changeovers. I still don't like anything halfassed to enter into this, but I see the benefits of a well done conversion.

Appreciate it. Yeah it was a pain in the ***...most of the time but yesterday I was out and someone on thier cell phone cut right out in front of me...dialing (yeh) . I had to step on the brakes right quick and the nose went down and we promptly stopped and catastrophe averted. The drums wouldve prob stopped us too, but wouldve taken longer...and then theres the fade issue. Yeh worth it.

Oh...and she gave ME the finger. Really?

 

[70_NPORT]

Wow. It's been a freakin year. I just closed my eyes and dove in.

 

[62 chrysler nut]

Gary, keep looking for OEM, the job will be easier and you won't regret it. Recently there was a member here that had the whole setup for sale.

Breaking down the front end and removing the spindles is not that difficult, I just did this last year to refresh my vert.

Find out if this one is still available, '71 with disks being hauled away after having its heart removed.

Well, you guys won’t like this one, sorry….(TNT b body transplant)

 

[wyrmrider]

Without reading more than the first page I'll put my 2 cents worth in
I did our 58 Polara with 73 New Yorker donor
I have a power unit but have never had to use it
MANUAL WORKS FINE
that's the easy part
what your really have to do is to change the rear wheel cylinders to smaller to prevent rear wheel sliding (or if you have front wheel lock up first go bigger)
or an adjustable proportioning valve
I'm using 15 x 7 cop car wheels (and V rated tires)
Would recommend these as a minimum width
Today go 16 or 17 to get the wheel away from the end of the A-Arm = and wider but with reasonable back spacing.
I'll post on a D Body conversion later

 

[Big Block]

I know this is not the tech forum, but I want to speak specifically to the fuselage crowd...and I have a feeling the answer will either be yes or no, LOL. I'm contemplating the drum to disc brake swap on my 70' Newport. It currently has 11" power drums all the way around. I know these were probably cool way back in 1970, and they still get the job done now ok. However there has been one or two times when I kinda would have liked discs up front....it came too close for comfort. I know there are complete kits out there that can be had to accomplish this, but I just saw nice brand name rotors at Rock Auto for $50 bucks a pop. I figure If I grab these, I could source everything else (calipers, pads, clips, new rubber brake hose..yada yada).
So then the BIG yea or nay question is can I keep my original spindles for the power disc brake set up??
View attachment 74511

Ram man on youtube shows and explains everyting with regards to c-body brakes.

 

[commando1]

Hey, where the hell is @70_NPORT anyway?

 

[Andrew Douglas]

I have 67 T&C with factory power front disk brakes with 4 piston calipers and i cannot find any replacment parts.
Can anyone point me in the right direction on getting new rotors, calipers and pads for her?

Thanks

 

[66furywagon]

Did anybody use the alum new style master cylinder like of a 84 dodge truck

 

[Snotty]

Did anybody use the alum new style master cylinder like of a 84 dodge truck

I didn't. I used the one designed for the car.

 

[AF.]

If I may, gentlemen - I went through this whole thread and didn't see mention of my favorite C-body trick, which is "re-rotor"ing '69-'72 disc brake hubs with an inexpensive rotor you can buy right now at any parts store. You don't have to look for '73 donor cars to do a swap, or you can reduce the cost / labor on your '69-'72 car if it already has discs.

It does require a bit of extra work the first time you do it (breaking out the studs and checking the hub face for runout), but those are one-time efforts.

Autozone part number: 5312
NAPA part number: NB 4885743
Interchanges if neither of those stores are near you:
Dodge Truck -> Ramcharger-AW100 1/2 Ton 4WD (1974-1981)
Dodge Truck -> W100 1/2 Ton 4WD - Pickup (1974-1977)
Dodge Truck -> W150 1/2 Ton 4WD - Pickup (1977-1981)
Plymouth Truck -> Trail Duster (1974 - 1981)

Write-up I did with more info: Only slow cars need excuses.

 

[66furywagon]

My two cents is if you can use factory parts, do so. Swapping the spindles is not that bad, and, unless you are doing a complete front-end rebuild, you don't need to touch the torsion bars at all, except to "unload" them when you start the job.

If '73 and up parts are getting hard to find, and '72 and older are being reproduced at a decent price, it should make finding a donor car easier. I went (mistakenly) with a '71 set-up, and the rotors alone were over $400. But I used new calipers and other hardware, while using the donor brake plates and spindles.

You will also need a proportioning valve from a donor car as well, and a master cylinder that is disk-specific. If you get all of the correct parts it can be done in a weekend.

View attachment 74703 View attachment 74704 View attachment 74705 View attachment 74706

What rotor did u use got a part #

 

[Snotty]

What rotor did u use got a part #

Sorry, that was over ten years ago; I have no part number for you. My parts man (now dead), using an older catalog, found the part number and did a search for original '71 C Body rotors. He found two; one in Kansas and the other Illinois. Price for both was over $400, but for me was well worth it.

The difference between the '73 and newer rotors and the older ones is one-piece verses two-piece. The latter are very expensive if you find them.

 

[twostick]

Sorry, that was over ten years ago; I have no part number for you. My parts man (now dead), using an older catalog, found the part number and did a search for original '71 C Body rotors. He found two; one in Kansas and the other Illinois. Price for both was over $400, but for me was well worth it.

The difference between the '73 and newer rotors and the older ones is one-piece verses two-piece. The latter are very expensive if you find them.

AFAIK they are now doing 1 peice unicast rotors that are machined for the smaller 69-72 wheel bearings. They are a little more money than the 73 style but nothing like an OEM style 2 peice will set you back.

I really like AF's solution above using Ramcharger/W150 4x4 rotors retrofitted to the original hubs.

Kevin

 

[commando1]

retrofitted to the original hubs.

What does that mean?
Which original hubs (spindles)? The drum or Budd disks?

 

[twostick]

What does that mean?
Which original hubs (spindles)? The drum or Budd disks?

Neither. 69-72 disc spindles used a 2 peice rotor.

AF's post is 4 above yours. There is a link at the bottom to his post detailing the procedure.

I can't believe someone hasn't figured this out before, especially when the only option was NOS $150+ rotors.

I've not actually checked the new unicast rotor that is supposed to fit the 69-72 application to verify that it isn't just a 73 rotor in a different box but assuming it's correct for the application, chances are your local Autozone is more apt to have the 4x4 rotor in stock.

It opens up a much larger supply of spindles now. I got the last set of 73 spindles out of my local vintage boneyard for my 66 but there are still several of the 69-72 variety in stock for when I convert the wagon.

Kevin

 

[Snotty]

I can't believe someone hasn't figured this out before, especially when the only option was NOS $150+ rotors.

I would have loved that price!!!

 

[GBsPanhead]

Guys, I think I'm going to take on another project...drum to disc conversion with OE parts. On my '69 300 'vert.

I fell asleep last night reading through this thread and some other articles I found on line. I just want to get the correct parts the first time round lol

Based on these two threads here, would either one of these spindle sets work? RA shows calipers, rotors still available for '72 and '73s, so that's not an issue.

These are my two choices so far....

For Sale - 1973 Spindles

and

For Sale - 1972 disc brakes

Would a '73 Coronet spindle work?

Thanks for all your help!!

 

[65sporty]

Coronet is a B body, I believe only the C body will swap

 

[GBsPanhead]

Coronet is a B body, I believe only the C body will swap

Thanks! I just bought the setup from Barnfind. Thanks to all the other guys that had offered up parts!

Barnfind's stuff came from a 72 c-body. I believe 69-72 c-bodies used the same parts. I hope, as I just got it. lol

Off to do some more research on the smaller parts over at RA and ebay.

Thanks again!

 

[70_NPORT]

Wow....been three years already...