Disc brake swap problem

[ForceFed70]

OK.. not really a problem, but a bit of a snag.

My 70 Grande came from the factory with power front disc brakes. I've always felt that with performance pads/shoes and proper maintenance the braking on this car is plenty for what I use it for. I rarely race the car and when I do it's 1/4 mile at a time.

So last year I threw a set of chrome 18" bullits on the car.. the wheels look great but now everyone can see those drums in the rear. I want to upgrade the rear drums to disc brakes... mostly for the looks but the added performance is a bonus and I don't think I would do the swap without the increase in performance.

So here's my problem: Once I upgrade the rears to disc... won't the front brakes look a little funny? Am I going to end up needing to uprade the front discs as well? And is it worth it?

 

[bnickel]

as long as the rear brakes aren't larger than the fronts i don't think it will look funny at all. better brakes are always good but i agree that the stock 69/70 discs work pretty damn good as is. you could always do the PBR caliper swap to the stock front brakes, all it takes to do it is to make one little L-shaped bracket, that way you would have newer looking front brakes to go with wahtever rear discs you decide one. if you could find a versailles rear the versailles calipers actually match the stock front calipers pretty well. lot's of options and most all of it is based on personal preference.

i would seriously consider looking into the PBR front caliper setup though, i plan on possibly doing it myself if we can't convince Degins to build a dropped spindle, of course that will be for the 69 cougar though, it's going to need a front disc brake swap anyway since it has manual drums. i'm sure going to miss the mustang but i've always liked cougars too, i just hope i can get the stang finished and sold before my buddy changes his mind and decides not to sell me the cougar.

 

[blue65coupe]

bottlefed70, just check the size. I'm with bnickel

 

[ForceFed70]

as long as the rear brakes aren't larger than the fronts i don't think it will look funny at all. better brakes are always good but i agree that the stock 69/70 discs work pretty damn good as is. you could always do the PBR caliper swap to the stock front brakes, all it takes to do it is to make one little L-shaped bracket, that way you would have newer looking front brakes to go with wahtever rear discs you decide one. if you could find a versailles rear the versailles calipers actually match the stock front calipers pretty well. lot's of options and most all of it is based on personal preference.

i would seriously consider looking into the PBR front caliper setup though, i plan on possibly doing it myself if we can't convince Degins to build a dropped spindle, of course that will be for the 69 cougar though, it's going to need a front disc brake swap anyway since it has manual drums. i'm sure going to miss the mustang but i've always liked cougars too, i just hope i can get the stang finished and sold before my buddy changes his mind and decides not to sell me the cougar.

What is the "PBR caliper swap" you speak of? Sounds like it's exactly what I'm looking for.

 

[bnickel]

What is the "PBR caliper swap" you speak of? Sounds like it's exactly what I'm looking for.

this right here

http://www.woodyg.com/fairlane/finfo/discs66.html

 

[LMan]

PBR fronts + the Ultrastang rear disc option is what you need

 

[bnickel]

PBR fronts + the Ultrastang rear disc option is what you need

yeah that would work very well. if ultra still makes the mk vii caliper brackets those would match the stock 70 front calipers pretty well too.

 

[ultrastang]

yeah that would work very well. if ultra still makes the mk vii caliper brackets those would match the stock 70 front calipers pretty well too.

I have three flavors of rear disc conversion adapter brackets to choose from:

1. '84-'90 Lincoln Mk VII 11.250" ventilated rear discs (for small & large bearing 8- & 9-inch housings);
http://www.ultrastang.com/Ultrainfo.asp?Page_ID=11

2. '94-'04 SN-95 Mustang V6/GT 10.5" solid rear discs (for small bearing 8- & 9-inch housings);
http://www.ultrastang.com/Ultrainfo.asp?Page_ID=17

3. '94-'04 SN-95 Cobra 11.65" ventilated rear discs (for small bearing 8- & 9-inch housings);
http://www.ultrastang.com/Ultrainfo.asp?Page_ID=18

www.ultrastang.com

 

[ForceFed70]

Excellent info, thanks guys!

Does anyone know the diameter of the stock front rotors on my '70? I'm too lazy to pull the wheel off and measure for myself.

 

[ultrastang]

Excellent info, thanks guys!

Does anyone know the diameter of the stock front rotors on my '70? I'm too lazy to pull the wheel off and measure for myself.

Should be 11".

 

[bnickel]

Should be 11".

i think it's just a little bit bigger, like 11 1/4", like i said only slightly. it probably doesn't make much of a difference, but it might come in handy to know in case he needs to fab something.

 

[ultrastang]

i think it's just a little bit bigger, like 11 1/4", like i said only slightly. it probably doesn't make much of a difference, but it might come in handy to know in case he needs to fab something.

bnickel wins the happy meal. I forgot that I had a brand new pair of '70 model Mustang rotors in the shop that I had robbed the hubs from. They are 11¼" in diameter. Additionally, minimum rotor surface thickness is .875".

 

[bnickel]

bnickel wins the happy meal. I forgot that I had a brand new pair of '70 model Mustang rotors in the shop that I had robbed the hubs from. They are 11¼" in diameter. Additionally, minimum rotor surface thickness is .875".

good i'm hungry....LOL