I have read a lot of posts including mine about disc brake conversions. And with that I have seen 73 spindle sets for sale that with the cost of them with shipping and then rebuiding all the parts through exchange and or machining rotors the cost is at or exceeding 500 dollars. Scarebird bracket and then buy all the parts is about the same. Kits run from 420 for non master cylinder kits to $$$$ for the full monty kits. I am still wanting and needing the brakes so the car can stop well and the wife will let the kids ride with me. So is the only $ choice 500? And if that which is still the best choice? Opinions please. PS when I was young and had a fast car brakes were second thought. Now old...er I made the car go fast and I want to stop faster.
It's not that the brakes were bad back then (the big Cs had large rotors and drums),by todays standard,...yes they are BAD. What was bad were the tires,..the bias plys did not cut it. If you have a premium tire with a little more footprint than the old ones it is surprising how they will stop in a panic situation. So even if you upgrade to a better quality of pad or shoe and a soft compound premium radial,you are still miles ahead. I am putting the Scarebird system on my monaco,because i feel that if i'm in the middle of knowhere and i loose a caliper or brake hose ,it will not be impossible to get such as the budd brake system.I get all my parts at cost so i'm figureing on about $350 CDN as i've priced everything and it's all in stock.
Joined: Sat Sep 23 2006, 04:30AM
Location: Sharpsburg, GA
Posts: 924
I think the cheapset way to to get the parts is to find them locally and pull them yourself. I was able to pull a set of spinles, rotors and calipers for 125 dollars. You might try calling the places on this list- especially numbers 2,8,9 and 50. They should be within driving distance
It is my opinion, and I know there those that disagree, that none of the bracket adapters and Chevy caliper units can out perform the stco Moper design. This even includes Stainless Steel Brakes kit. That is my opinion and I am sticking behind it until someone can prove me wrong. I have even talked to several of the manufactures and asked them specifically if they felt their system was better, none were willing to say yes. Now something fancy with multiple pistons and larger rotors is different.
The real trick is the spindles. If you can source them locally or cheaply then the 73 is top notch unless you plan to autocross your yacht. And the only parts you really need are the spindle and the caliper bracket. Eveything else should be new no mater which direction you go.
$125 -$150 seems to be the typical rate for spindles, there are some that try to get $250+, don't go there.
If you shop wisely, you should be able to do the swap with all new parts, including the master and booster, and do a complete front end rebuild for the $500.
Joined: Thu Jun 08 2006, 09:54AM
Location: Spanish Springs, NV
Posts: 36
Just one other consideration: Do you intend to reuse your current wheels? The SSBC kit WILL work with 14" magnum wheels (but not regular steel wheels). This was important to me because I had a set of magnum wheels that I had a sentimental attachment to as well as a nearly new set of 14" tires. SSBC was the only kit I could find that would work with 14's.
I know I'm probably the only C-body guy running 14's, so this may or may not apply to you, but just a consideration.
Note: I got my SSBC kit (A154) w/ master cylinder in 2003 from Summit Racing for just over 6 bills. It was on sale and I had a 10% off coupon. I just checked and it's listed at $900 now. Not sure I would go the same route for that price. It was a nice kit, but...
Joined: Sat Dec 10 2005, 04:28PM
Location: United States
Posts: 4954
If you want to really do the job right, do both the fronts and the rears in Disc. While the brakes in my 72's are very good, there is no doubt about having rear disc brakes.
While looking into it, don't forget the rear parking brake version. Uses a Z28 Caliper.
Drum brakes are really not that bad, if you only need to stop once. They do not dissapate the heat as fast as discs, so repeated stops or heavy use (like driving in the mountains) will produce fade, and eventually you have no brakes at all. Any kit or conversion from drums to disc is a good idea. It's amazing to me that some of the factory drag cars and big block muscle cars came with manual drum brakes! As far as Budd brakes, the pistons are prone to getting stuck in the bores (and there are 8 pistons) which can cause dragging on the rotors. Plus parts are so high. An upgrade to single piston floating calipers seems like a good upgrade.
As Steve mentioned, the rear discs are sweet! I didn't mention it since it sounded like more of a budget oriented question. Not only do they break better then any of my other cars, but discs are just some much easier to work on. I have just under $1000 in my braking system. That includes the 73 system with all new or rebuilt parts, rebuilt master and booster, TSM rear discs (opted for no park brake) and all new Stainless lines and fittings.
Joined: Sat Dec 10 2005, 04:28PM
Location: United States
Posts: 4954
As I mentioned, Polaraco has disc/Drum. They work very well for an old beast. But as mentioned, todays driving demands more from our systems. 35 years ago, we didn't seem to have as many lunitics as we do now. (The Imagration flood gates weren't open then.) But that's another story
My plan is to upgrade the rear to an 8 3/4 limited slip and put rear discs on it as well. Sure the kit is expensive. But there isn't a trade off other than better braking and piece of mind. I have already payed very close attention to the safety items, I may as well finish it. . . The only things I didn't replace so far are the brake lines, but there was no need to. They were in great shape.
The Virgin (Brown Polara) will stay the way it is. 17,000 miles on it, there is no sense in messing with it