Hey guys, I'm wondering if anyone knows whats required to convert my 95 F-150 4x4 to rear disc brakes. Its got an 8.8" rear end and I'm pretty sure I can use componets off a late 90's Explorer/Marineer, but I'm not certian If I would need a new proportioning valve, booster, master cylinder etc...If any of you guys out there have converted yours or know how, I'd appricate it..

 

Search and you will get more Info. I personally wouldn't bother. The drums work fine and the front brakes do most of the work anyways.

http://tsmmfg.com/2530.htm

http://www.nloc.net/bigd/public_html...ake%20only.pdf

4 pages of search results
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/s...=2724101&pp=15

 

I agree. This has been discussed before. Its really not worth the effort and cost.

 

I disagree with the above two and think this would be a worthy upgrade especially on bigger trucks like the extended cab 4x4's, I'd dying to do this to my truck but I have neither the time or money at this point. As far as I can tell the Explorer parts are a direct bolt-on with the exception of the rotors which must be re-drilled for the 5x5.5" bolt pattern.

 

Did you change your mind about this? I am almost certain in one of the past threads on this topic that you were of the same opinion as us.

The surface area of the drum is probably larger than that of the rear disc. Most tow rigs use drums in the rear.

I'm not trying to say that drums are better than disc, but I think that the improvement would be little or not even noticable.

 

I swapped in a rear disc setup into my blazer which was easy enough cuz the whole rearend bolted in. But it didn't help as much as I thought it should it helped but minimally

 

under heavy use braking with a trailer like in hills, the disks may be able to dissipate heat better, most of you likely know that drums glaze when they get too hot and become useless.
however, I'm sure it can be done, and I'd love to see it if you do,

 

I was under the assumption that the Explorer 8.8's were narrower than the Fseries 8.8's....is this untrue Paul?

 

Yeah I think they are a little more narrow in the explorers...I'm really not looking for more brake performence persay, as i known the drums do indeed work fine, But I'm looking to do something unique thats not common with alot of trucks my year, and as long as I can make it safe and functional I'm gonna try it...worst comes to worst I'll just stick with the drums but I think itll be a fun prodject and worth trying, and Ill have some info to pass alot to anyone else whos been thinking about it if it works the way i want it to...

 

No you're right the Explorer axle is narrower, but that doesn't matter as far as the brakes are concerned since they are both 8.8 axles and the parts interchange with the exception of the rotors.

I have always like the idea of rear disks but it's not so much about the disk surface area versus the drums, it's about consistent rear axle braking power that doen't need constant attention and adjustment to work properly. I agree that as delivered most of the stopping power with these trucks is on the front, but in less than ideal road conditions(rain or snow) it's better to have a more balanced braking system. The little Ranger of ours has outstanding front brakes, they'll put you through the windshield if you stomp on them on dry pavement, but it may as well have no brakes in the winter, on wet roads, or when the trailer is behind it.. the front tires just lock up and the back ones do nothing. What's the good of that? My truck is totally different the fronts don't ever get anywhere close to locking(I probably need new lines), but the truck also has a lot more weight on the rear axle and these days there's always a few hundred pounds of tools and junk in the back so functional rear brakes would really improve stopping distances.. even if the disks offer now more power than the drums at least they would offer the same power all the time without the need for adjustments.

 

Yeah I agree man, more balanced braking is were its at, esp in the snow, Plus i think its a cool idea and i can say ive never personally seen rear disc brakes on prior 96 models so it would def be a cool upgrade if I can get it to work. I'll def do some more research and see if i can make it work. I get alot of people saying I dont need to, or its not practical or a waste of money...but I just want this to be a unique to my truck. Im hoping it doesnt affect the RWABS when braking, that was another question I had but I dont see why it would it would mess anything up...

 

Dredging this thread up to see if anyone has ever actually put Explorer rear discs on a '80 - '96 F150. The biggest hassle would seem to be re-drilling the hubs and discs for the 5x5.5 bolt pattern, and even then you'd need to do that again whenever replacing rotors in the future (realizing that wouldn't be a frequent thing). I'm assuming that there's not an off-the-shelf 5x5.5 rotor available that has the correct required offset/thickness/OD for this custom application.

 

Here is one way to use Explorer parts: http://oldfuelinjection.com/files/ex...isk-brakes.pdf

And another: http://www.tsmmfg.com/2530.html

 

Good link - thanks. I like this approach as it uses commonly available Explorer parts, which just so happens to be the same parts used in the later generation Lightning. Of course it does require some machining, but this link clearly specs out what needs to be done.

 

I don't mean to open a dead thread, but I would like to know if the op ever completed the conversion?