Rear Disk Brakes?
Freshman User
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 28
Likes: 1
From: spokane wahington
If disk brakes are so much better at stopping a vehicle, then why wouldn't huge18 wheelers have them? And, just another thought, if you are able to lock up your brakes, with drum brakes, are rotors/calipers going to lock them up better? Seriously, the only reason I could see for making a switch from drums to rotors would be for looks or ease of brake replacement. $799 to "upgrade" no way!
Hotshot
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 11,958
Likes: 228
I don't like 4 wheel drum at all. I think having front disc is the most important.
Hotshot
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 11,958
Likes: 228
The kit is made by EGR Performance brakes. The price tag is $799. i am gathering parts for my restoration all winter long then when spring time comes i am having it restored. However $799 is alot of dough just for brakes. here is the link: http://www.egrbrakes.com/index-main.htm
It's $599 if i dont want to keep my parking brake and $799 to keep it.
It's $599 if i dont want to keep my parking brake and $799 to keep it.
I just think that its not going to be a substantial improvement.
Also, I wouldn't bother swapping to a 9 inch. There is no provision for the VSS.
Hotshot
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 11,958
Likes: 228
While it may or may not be worth the time and expense to do the swap the fronts do not do most the work all the time. As much as 40% of the braking power comes from the back wheels.
The rears activate first if adjusted and working right and when stopping under light pedal force the rears do a fair percentage of the work until fully stopped.
Stopping fast, sudden and hard on the pedal the combination valve on the master cylinder adjusts the pressure progressively more front bias as the the weight is shifted to the front keeping the rears from locking up.
While disks would be better, if your truck came with the smallest drum/shoe combination on it from the factory, upgrading it to the largest width drum/shoe combination available for its axle may be a more economical option/compromise.
The rears activate first if adjusted and working right and when stopping under light pedal force the rears do a fair percentage of the work until fully stopped.
Stopping fast, sudden and hard on the pedal the combination valve on the master cylinder adjusts the pressure progressively more front bias as the the weight is shifted to the front keeping the rears from locking up.
While disks would be better, if your truck came with the smallest drum/shoe combination on it from the factory, upgrading it to the largest width drum/shoe combination available for its axle may be a more economical option/compromise.
The drums are just as effective as the disc are.
Lead Driver
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 9,557
Likes: 44
From: Concord, NC
Disc brakes are easier to modulate with the pedal, are more heat-tolerant and fade resistant than drums. The auto-engage property of drum brakes makes it hard to accurately modulate braking force. Obviously the front brakes do most of the work stopping a vehicle due to the weight transfer under braking, but that doesn't mean that the braking force the rear brakes provide is insignificant. Add a load and/or a trailer and the brake balance shifts rearward. The rear discs might not provide more raw braking power, but they should provide a better feel. As for being worth the cost to swap, that's really up to the individual owner to decide.
Super Moderator
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 40,024
Likes: 1,519
From: Maine, Virginia
OK gentlemen, before I start a feeding frenzy, and understanding that we're discussing older braking systems, I want to say this about brakes.
My '04 Expy and '99 Taurus both have 4 wheel disc brakes. I've performed two 4 wheel brake jobs on the Taurus and one 4 wheel brake job on the Expy and the brakes wore very evenly at all four corners and needed replacing at the same time / mileage intervals. That would allude that all four corners are working about the same to stop the vehicle.
On my '88, I've typically done two front brakes jobs to one rear brake job.
Drum brakes can very easily come out of adjustment as the automatic adjusters don't always function as perfectly as they did when new. If you drive the truck every day you may not notice right away as brakes wear so slowly that when you do notice, your definately relying on your fronts more.
This is my third F-150 and I've had my drums professionally re-done but I typically do them myself. The end result has always been the same. At some point I have to climb inder the truck, lift a rear wheel and make a manual adjustment to increase brake performance and improve pedal feel.
Tim
My '04 Expy and '99 Taurus both have 4 wheel disc brakes. I've performed two 4 wheel brake jobs on the Taurus and one 4 wheel brake job on the Expy and the brakes wore very evenly at all four corners and needed replacing at the same time / mileage intervals. That would allude that all four corners are working about the same to stop the vehicle.
On my '88, I've typically done two front brakes jobs to one rear brake job.
Drum brakes can very easily come out of adjustment as the automatic adjusters don't always function as perfectly as they did when new. If you drive the truck every day you may not notice right away as brakes wear so slowly that when you do notice, your definately relying on your fronts more.
This is my third F-150 and I've had my drums professionally re-done but I typically do them myself. The end result has always been the same. At some point I have to climb inder the truck, lift a rear wheel and make a manual adjustment to increase brake performance and improve pedal feel.
Tim
Senior User
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 114
Likes: 0
From: Atlanta
I did the upgrade on my cherokee, and it was well worth it. How stopping your vehicle quicker "isn't worth it", i'll never understand. I've had vehicles with all drums, all disks and the disk/drum combo....disks are always better. The fact that front brakes do 60-70% of the work would want you to give them some help, no? I, for one, care to have shorter and surer stopping distances. I'll be doing my '89 as soon as i have the extra scratch.
Did you end up doing the rear disk brake conversion?
Cheers
Hotshot
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 12,341
Likes: 4,366
From: SW VA
IrishChef's last activity on here was back in March 2012. I don't think you will get an answer out of him anytime soon...
Disc brakes are far superior to drums. The comments by a few in this old thread are comical. I did a disc brake conversion on the D70 I put under my '78 F150. Holy crap did they make a HUGE difference!
Disc brakes are far superior to drums. The comments by a few in this old thread are comical. I did a disc brake conversion on the D70 I put under my '78 F150. Holy crap did they make a HUGE difference!
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Senior User
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 114
Likes: 0
From: Atlanta
IrishChef's last activity on here was back in March 2012. I don't think you will get an answer out of him anytime soon...
Disc brakes are far superior to drums. The comments by a few in this old thread are comical. I did a disc brake conversion on the D70 I put under my '78 F150. Holy crap did they make a HUGE difference!
Disc brakes are far superior to drums. The comments by a few in this old thread are comical. I did a disc brake conversion on the D70 I put under my '78 F150. Holy crap did they make a HUGE difference!
Freshman User
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 30
Likes: 0
From: Canadian Rockies
You can do this a lot cheaper than $799 or even $599, even with new parts. For the Sterling in my F350, I figured around $300 with all new parts.
Here is a link to a $328 kit for the Sterlings: http://www.ruffstuffspecialties.com/catalog/R2055.html
That said, I haven't done it. You'll want to add a proportioning valve, and dial the rear influence down if you do. Otherwise the back will have a tendency to overstep the front. At least, that was the case on a Chevy swap I helped with. I imagine it would be the same on these trucks. And you would need a parking brake solution, I intended to go with a pinion brake.
Here is a link to a $328 kit for the Sterlings: http://www.ruffstuffspecialties.com/catalog/R2055.html
That said, I haven't done it. You'll want to add a proportioning valve, and dial the rear influence down if you do. Otherwise the back will have a tendency to overstep the front. At least, that was the case on a Chevy swap I helped with. I imagine it would be the same on these trucks. And you would need a parking brake solution, I intended to go with a pinion brake.
Senior User
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 114
Likes: 0
From: Atlanta
You can do this a lot cheaper than $799 or even $599, even with new parts. For the Sterling in my F350, I figured around $300 with all new parts.
Here is a link to a $328 kit for the Sterlings: Sterling Axle Disc Brake Kit - RuffStuff Specialties
That said, I haven't done it. You'll want to add a proportioning valve, and dial the rear influence down if you do. Otherwise the back will have a tendency to overstep the front. At least, that was the case on a Chevy swap I helped with. I imagine it would be the same on these trucks. And you would need a parking brake solution, I intended to go with a pinion brake.
Here is a link to a $328 kit for the Sterlings: Sterling Axle Disc Brake Kit - RuffStuff Specialties
That said, I haven't done it. You'll want to add a proportioning valve, and dial the rear influence down if you do. Otherwise the back will have a tendency to overstep the front. At least, that was the case on a Chevy swap I helped with. I imagine it would be the same on these trucks. And you would need a parking brake solution, I intended to go with a pinion brake.
Cheers.
Freshman User
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 30
Likes: 0
From: Canadian Rockies
I just saw that you said you had the 9" rear end -- that kit won't work for you. Sterling is the manufacturer of the 10.25" and 10.5" axles that are under the 1 and some 3/4 ton trucks.
That said, that kit uses GM calipers you can buy anywhere, and rotors from an E350 (I think, I may be confusing kits). Either way, the only custom part is the bracket that allows you to bolt on the caliper. You can buy the bracket alone from them, and source the other parts yourself. I found them slightly cheaper through RockAuto. You'd still need to come up with a parking brake solution.
For the 9" under your truck, I think you can use some generation of El Dorado calipers and still retain your parking brake, but I don't know much about the details. So I may be completely wrong. I read about it on this forum, so you may be able to dig it up via search.
That said, that kit uses GM calipers you can buy anywhere, and rotors from an E350 (I think, I may be confusing kits). Either way, the only custom part is the bracket that allows you to bolt on the caliper. You can buy the bracket alone from them, and source the other parts yourself. I found them slightly cheaper through RockAuto. You'd still need to come up with a parking brake solution.
For the 9" under your truck, I think you can use some generation of El Dorado calipers and still retain your parking brake, but I don't know much about the details. So I may be completely wrong. I read about it on this forum, so you may be able to dig it up via search.
Lead Driver
Joined: Feb 2013
Posts: 5,006
Likes: 72
From: Roseville, MN
I put disk brakes on the 9" in my '71 Bronco using a kit from Jeff's Bronco Graveyard or Wild Horses (I forget which, I've used both quite a bit). It uses Chevy calipers. I used front calipers (cheaper but no parking brake) but I could have used Eldorado rear calipers to get a parking brake. Would've fit on the same brackets.
Hotshot
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 12,341
Likes: 4,366
From: SW VA
