wjch I would like to know the best way to upgrade to disc bakes? I hear you can use newer chev pickup disc bake parts, If anyone could tell me the best year and make and what parts you need to use Thanks wjch wjch
There are companies that will sell a kit but I found it less expensive to get most of the parts from a donar truck. I have a '66 1/2 ton and used donar parts from a '79. I'm no authority but I believe you can use donar parts from '71 to '80 1/2 tons to upgrade from drum to disc on '63 to '70 1/2 ton trucks. The upgrade on my project included power stearing. The donar parts I used are master cylinder, proportioning valve, knuckle/spindle, dust shield/backing plate, hub/rotor, power steering gearbox and pump, and all stearing arms. I purchased new brake pads, pall joints, brake line and hoses, tie rod ends, wheel bearings, etc.,(any parts that wear out). The donar stearing arms have a larger diameter and are stronger. There is a fixed arm, on which the idler arm pivots, that must be bolted to the frame. The position is different than the old piece - so positioning and drilling is required. Also the stearing gearbox requires new frame holes and must be positioned with spacers. I'm told plates should be used on both sides of the frame to avoid cracks. I have not had crack problems but agree to the advice. If you reply with your fax number I will supply you with a few articles articles that might be helpful. Good luck,
Upgrading to disc brakes is a great safety feature for these trucks. Also, power steering is an upgrade that modernizes your truck and is a worthwhile project. There are serveral ways to install disc brakes on your truck. Chevy Duty and Early Classic Enterprises have kits. I used the Early Classic 2 1/2 inch drop spindles and disc brakes. There is NO modification required to your otherwise good suspension system. Its easy to do and a lot of fun. It is probably more expensive than buying parts at a junk yard but that's up to you and how much you value your time. The steering upgrading is also easy to do and also perserves the stock steering components. The kit I used was from REZ engineering and is sold through many supplyers including Chevy Duty. The only modification that requires welding is the shortening of the steering shaft. If you don't weld, take it to a muffler shop and they will set you up. If you want to see how I did these upgrades check out my web page. http://www.geocities.com/richmond2_99/64PU.html Good luck Attachments: https://talk.classicparts.com/images/attachments/3bc48de603d85d83.jpg
I too used the Early Classic kit and Rez adapter plates. The Early Classic kit has stock and 2 1/2 inch drop spindles and both six and five lug rotors too. I can't say enough good things about the kit or the staff at Early Classic. The problem with the used parts swap is that the spindles from the old truck will not work on the newer disk brake spindle. After the spindle swap the tie rod ends won't work. And so it goes. The Early Classic kit supplies new spindles that match the standard parts. Another option is to remove the entire front crossmember from the doner vehicle. It will bolt up into the old trucks' frame. This solves tie rod end and idler arm matching problems. You just need to remember that it's a 70 something when replacing tie rods etc..
