64 valiant disc brake conversion

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husker2733

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I am doing a disc brake conversion on my 64 valiant and I ran into a bit of a problem. I got the spindles, lower control arms, and upper control arms from a 75 duster, but i need to change the lower ball joints as well because the ones off the 64 dont work. I was wondering if I needed to change the tie rod ends and the centerlink as well. Any feedback will help thanks, Eric
 
You will need to change the upper a-arms with top and bottom balljoints and spindles. The lower arms and tie-rods along with other steering components will stay the same.
 
you will want to change the proportioning valve and upgrade to the master cylinder and the brake lines for it also.
 
You can use your original '64 lower control arms if you get the '66-72 disc brake lower ball joints. Keep your '64 steering components.
 
I did the conversion on my '65 and got everything I needed from a scalped '65 cuda. The problem arose when the brake shop was rebuilding my calipers he said not only did I need the correct tandem master and proper proportioning valve but the power assist was a must to push the hydralics evenly with good feel. The correct booster is very, very rare. There are several that have the needed gooseneck bracket to clear the hood springs that are easy to find and look like horizontal coffee cans but you have to have the larger air capacity can (looks more like a sideways b-cake) to get the proper action. Good luck, Frank
 
Frank Miller said:
I did the conversion on my '65 and got everything I needed from a scalped '65 cuda. The problem arose when the brake shop was rebuilding my calipers he said not only did I need the correct tandem master and proper proportioning valve but the power assist was a must to push the hydralics evenly with good feel. The correct booster is very, very rare. There are several that have the needed gooseneck bracket to clear the hood springs that are easy to find and look like horizontal coffee cans but you have to have the larger air capacity can (looks more like a sideways b-cake) to get the proper action. Good luck, Frank
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There's a bunch of master cylinders that work fine. The later boosters work fine too. The original factory one that year wasn't all that good, plus you had to have a separate reservoir that got in the way. I like the manual disc brake setup myself. It has a better feel for my taste. The calipers don't care which system you use....they work the same.
 
If you decide to change tie rod components, think about using C-body parts. They are much heavier.
 
I just scored a front disc setup off an old A, kelsey 4 piston calipers, knuckles, SBP rotors, lowers, strut rods, and its manual brake cylinder. Everything from the LCA bushing on out. Didnt get the upper A arms though. Do I need them or can I use my 10 drum ones? I hope I can so I can get them in this weekend. Nice thing is I didnt have to pull them from a rusting wreck, and they were working up until 2 weeks ago when he went to a LBP setup. Even the rotors are nice. He also threw in a good gas tank and a DC chrome unsilenced air cleaner, Im golden!
 
Sounds like you scored big time, yes you can use your upper A-arms. Did you get the lower A-arms with the tab for the sway bar? If not you can weld one on.
 
husker2733 said:
I am doing a disc brake conversion on my 64 valiant and I ran into a bit of a problem. I got the spindles, lower control arms, and upper control arms from a 75 duster, but i need to change the lower ball joints as well because the ones off the 64 dont work. I was wondering if I needed to change the tie rod ends and the centerlink as well. Any feedback will help thanks, Eric
Click to expand...


As stated above it sounds like you have more than enough. As far as as the center link I needed the drop center link for the V-8. Which I had one from a 65 Cuda already. You don't need the lower control arms like stated above. If I remember right I went with the newer tie rods in my swap. I also swapped the 74 spindles around on my car to put the calipers in the back. I do believe that you need to run the newer lower ball joints and they should just bolt on. I did this swap back in the 90's.
 
cudamark said:
There's a bunch of master cylinders that work fine. The later boosters work fine too. The original factory one that year wasn't all that good, plus you had to have a separate reservoir that got in the way. I like the manual disc brake setup myself. It has a better feel for my taste. The calipers don't care which system you use....they work the same.
Click to expand...

On my Valiant I just used a 76 Duster disc/drum manual master cylinder and an adjustable proportioning valve. You really don't need power assist....
 
Found out the Lower ball joints I got in the buy were dust. BUT,my new old rebuild 10" drum lower BJ;s (that are perfect), just needed the mounting holes drilled out from 1/2 to 9/16 to receive the bigger disc BJ mounting bolts (drums are nut backed bolts, disc are threaded bolts) After speaking to a machininst, he told me it might be better to get a 9/16 to 1/2 stud instead of enlarging the hole to keep the integrity of the LBJ. Both are fine pitch I believe. I have the old disc setup so my uppers,sway bar tabbed LCA's and modded lower BJ's will work. That is huge as the LBJ's are $80 a pop now. Getting pads tomorrow and then on to my PST poly bushing master kit install. And Im losing 5 lbs of crusty road grime grease to boot!
 
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