Gimme Me A Brake!

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I believe scarebird makes a kit for less than both of those kits. Also at your local junkyard all of the parts off an 80s dodge diplomat should have the brake parts you need to convert to disc brakes.

Many members here also probably have the parts you need.I know I have extra hoses, calipers and rotors sitting in the garage....

To convert to bbp you need 5×4.5 discs, disc/drum prop valve, disc drum MC, new hoses, and calipers. I pieced my kit together which was a little more expensive but if I did it again I'd probably buy the scarebird kit.
 
Dr Diff's kits are nice. As for being lightweight, a lot of people have ran into issues with longevity running the wilwoods heavily on the street. those thin, lightweight rotors really aren't designed for heavy stop and go braking of the street.
 
DentalDart said:
I believe scarebird makes a kit for less than both of those kits. Also at your local junkyard all of the parts off an 80s dodge diplomat should have the brake parts you need to convert to disc brakes.

Many members here also probably have the parts you need.I know I have extra hoses, calipers and rotors sitting in the garage....

To convert to bbp you need 5×4.5 discs, disc/drum prop valve, disc drum MC, new hoses, and calipers. I pieced my kit together which was a little more expensive but if I did it again I'd probably buy the scarebird kit.
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Scarebird only shows 72 and earlier. Then the right parts (whatever they would be) have to sourced, I guess. Their site doesn't get specific.

mderoy340 said:
Light weight or aftermarket you gonna have to pay the bucks. Autozone carries manual master cylinders and Summit has an adjustable valve.
If you want to go budget OEM read this:
Disk Brake Conversion Info
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All the odds and ends needed make it even more expensive.
Thanks for the link to BBD. I never thought of them. That page explains a lot of the things that are taken for granted. Like what fits what.

dukeboy_318 said:
Dr Diff's kits are nice. As for being lightweight, a lot of people have ran into issues with longevity running the wilwoods heavily on the street. those thin, lightweight rotors really aren't designed for heavy stop and go braking of the street.
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This car won't get used on the street much, but I've wondered how a lightweight set-up would hold up. Wilwood looks to be the most expensive way to go, the kit plus all of the other stuff needed.

I'd seriously consider 10" drums with the BBP, if I could figure out what I need. I don't believe A bodies ever came with BBP front 10" drums.

I have to see if I could use BBP 10" drums on an A body 10" drum set up (SBP).

Thanks for the replies. I gots ta figure this out!
 
V8 318 A bodies came standard with 10" drums front and rear. 72 down 4" SBP, 73 up 4.5" LBP.
 
SpeedThrills said:
Scarebird only shows 72 and earlier. Then the right parts (whatever they would be) have to sourced, I guess. Their site doesn't get specific.

All the odds and ends needed make it even more expensive.
Thanks for the link to BBD. I never thought of them. That page explains a lot of the things that are taken for granted. Like what fits what.

This car won't get used on the street much, but I've wondered how a lightweight set-up would hold up. Wilwood looks to be the most expensive way to go, the kit plus all of the other stuff needed.

I'd seriously consider 10" drums with the BBP, if I could figure out what I need. I don't believe A bodies ever came with BBP front 10" drums.

I have to see if I could use BBP 10" drums on an A body 10" drum set up (SBP).

Thanks for the replies. I gots ta figure this out!
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10 inch drum brakes ? why? I mean you could get the stuff from a B body car but again, if you're gonna go that trouble, you're better off going disc brakes.
 
mderoy340 said:
V8 318 A bodies came standard with 10" drums front and rear. 72 down 4" SBP, 73 up 4.5" LBP.
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Oh, okay. I thought all of the 73 up cars were front disc. If I came up with a 73 up disc set up, I figure original OEM would be pricey. I don't need original, this car is far from it. lol

dukeboy_318 said:
10 inch drum brakes ? why? I mean you could get the stuff from a B body car but again, if you're gonna go that trouble, you're better off going disc brakes.
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Maybe they're lighter than factory type discs? I don't know how to find the weights.
But mostly, I figure it'd easier to do, not having to scare up parts from different cars. Junkyards are rare around here. Also, I'd bet that someone who put front discs on would just about give away the drum set up.

One reason I'm not afraid of drums (other than they're probably cheaper lol):
A partner and I raced a 3900# Road Runner in Stock Eliminator. It had 10" brakes because it was a Satellite that we cloned. Aftermarket discs weren't legal at the time, and factory discs were considered to drag. Anyway, we stopped that from 116 mph with no problems.

Hell, I'd probably use the 9" with an adjustable proportioning valve (Assuming they wouldn't get along with the GM 9 1/2 rear drums. Long story.) if I could make them BBP. hmmm...
 
You will get the same information here as you did with your last thread. Probably from the same members. I am going to move this one to "brakes" where it belongs.
 
SpeedThrills said:
Oh, okay. I thought all of the 73 up cars were front disc. If I came up with a 73 up disc set up, I figure original OEM would be pricey. I don't need original, this car is far from it. lol

Maybe they're lighter than factory type discs? I don't know how to find the weights.
But mostly, I figure it'd easier to do, not having to scare up parts from different cars. Junkyards are rare around here. Also, I'd bet that someone who put front discs on would just about give away the drum set up.

One reason I'm not afraid of drums (other than they're probably cheaper lol):
A partner and I raced a 3900# Road Runner in Stock Eliminator. It had 10" brakes because it was a Satellite that we cloned. Aftermarket discs weren't legal at the time, and factory discs were considered to drag. Anyway, we stopped that from 116 mph with no problems.

Hell, I'd probably use the 9" with an adjustable proportioning valve (Assuming they wouldn't get along with the GM 9 1/2 rear drums. Long story.) if I could make them BBP. hmmm...
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drums are much heavier than disc brakes. Most A bodies and most cars went to discs in 73, but not all. slant 6 abodies had drums until 75/76. My 74 had SBP drums and rear 7.25.
 
Drums are not only heavier, but less efficient also. Personally, I don't recommend light weight stuff for the street due to rotor warpage although I have used them.
 
I thought the drums would be lighter. Guess it depends on the drum. On the Road Runner I mentioned, we ordered two different numbers, I think to check weight. One was 10# and one was #19. We gambled and went with the lighter one. I'm guessing we probably didn't want to cut it. lol This was all back in '93 or so, so I'm sure it's irrelevant now.
 
SpeedThrills said:
I thought the drums would be lighter. Guess it depends on the drum. On the Road Runner I mentioned, we ordered two different numbers, I think to check weight. One was 10# and one was #19. We gambled and went with the lighter one. I'm guessing we probably didn't want to cut it. lol This was all back in '93 or so, so I'm sure it's irrelevant now.
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i dont know if Mopar did it factory or not, but I do know that at one time, you could get aluminum drums with steel linings that were lighter. at least on some brands, GM G bodies especially
 
toolmanmike said:
You will get the same information here as you did with your last thread. Probably from the same members. I am going to move this one to "brakes" where it belongs.
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I get it. I didn't want to re-post in General Mopar Discussions, I understand it's not right. My apologies. However, I got many more views and several new replies in half the time.
 
mderoy340 said:
Light weight or aftermarket you gonna have to pay the bucks. Autozone carries manual master cylinders and Summit has an adjustable valve.
If you want to go budget OEM read this:
Disk Brake Conversion Info
Click to expand...
That info is from Mopar Action article decades ago. Not everyone agrees with their thoughts. Lots of different opinions as to spindles and geometry.
 
Well, now I’m really confused, but it’s a good confusion! I’ve never had the front wheels off of this car. I have the rear out because I’m putting a 9 inch Ford in it. The original rear is a 7 1/4. It had 9 inch brakes. I figured the front brakes had to be 9 inch. Well with all of this information on this thread, I figured I’d look at the front. It has a 10 x 2 1/2 brake! Anyone ever heard of 10 inch fronts and 9 inch rear’s?
This car looks to be very original. It was a 198, three on the tree. I took it all apart to put a 360 in it.

So now the question is, can I just buy a 10“ x 2 1/2“ drum for a big bolt pattern car?
 
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Looking on Rockauto, it seems that 10" drums for a Satellite or other BBP car are no longer available. Of course, I don't know if one would work on an A body anyway.

Classic shows a 10" front drum for 73-76. SBP.

Back to square one.
 
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Some early A bodies seem to have had 10 in 7 1/4 rears and therefore 10 in front drums, assuming all was original oem stuff!!!!!
 
To get rid of the disc brake drag, just run the wheel bearing end play a lil on the loose side of the spec; the "wobbly" discs will knock the pistons back into the calipers at slow speed. Then everything works normal once up to speed. If your pedal seems a lil low when you stand on it, just get the next bigger bore M/C. A booster is nice with the 33/32 job.

If you have single-piston slider calipers, make sure the ways are smooth. If pin-type, lube the pins with silicon O-ring lube. Ignore the rattles,lol.
 
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