GM A Body Disc Brakes

[Bamfster]

What kits have you guys used?

What did you like about the kit you used?

What did you dislike about the kit you used?

The Chevelle needs new front brakes and I don't want to spend money on the drums. I don't really want to piece a bunch of different stuff together to make a custom hipo braking system and I can't/don't want to add power assist (maybe hydro down the road).

So, Summit? Performance Online? CPP? Pirate Jack? ..... Are all of those basically the same deal with a different sticker on the box?

And lastly, anyone have a complete kit they're wanting to get rid of?....

[SpiderGearsMan]

ECI

http://ecihotrodbrakes.com/

[squirrel]

stock brakes went on the only one I've ever converted. although it was a Nova clip in a 39 chevy, the brake parts are the same, I got the "new" brakes off a 69 chevelle.

[ls7gto]

I have wilwood superlights on the GTO, and loved them.
The one thing I've notice with alot of the cheaper kits is that they move the frt wheels out further than stock . Its really noticeable to me , and looks like ass. I look what kits i've used that don't do that and repost.

I install at least 4 to 5 disc brake conversions a year.

[SuperBuickGuy]

I did the B-body spindle conversion with the 1LE rotors - fixed handling and gave me 12" brakes that fit under 15" wheels.

best part is it cost less than $500 with spindles, tubular control arms, and new brake stuff (caliper, rotors, hoses, bearings).

[SpiderGearsMan]

yeah , ralph from eci has a zero offset kit ..ordered for the nomad ,,I will let ya know how it works

[67pete300]

I did the B-body spindle conversion with the 1LE rotors - fixed handling and gave me 12" brakes that fit under 15" wheels.

best part is it cost less than $500 with spindles, tubular control arms, and new brake stuff (caliper, rotors, hoses, bearings).

Can you elaborate on this? Is this piecing together replacment parts? Whose control arms did you use? Or is this a kit? Thanks.

[SuperBuickGuy]

The lower arms are stock - although I welded a brace around the ball joint. The upper control arms are Ebay specials, tubular specifically for using the B-body spindles.

The tubular upper control arms are narrower than the stock control arms, and they have a different ball joint (most tubulars use the B-body ball joints).

B-body spindles are used because it lowers the car AND changes the geometry of the front suspension to give you negative caster - thus the car goes from "watch out for the cliiiiffffff" in the twisties to "routinely spanks bmws"

The spindles themselves, you want the cop car spindles because they have 12" disk brakes - cheapest option is, you wait until dark, drive over to Bruab's house, and remove the spindles off his 9C1 car. You use Caprice spindles with Camaro 1LE (89-91) rotors so you have 4 3/4 x 5 bolt pattern (as opposed to the Caprice bolt pattern which is 5 on 5). Because the spindles are physically taller, it lowers the car 1 1/2", and widens the track 1/2"

Thus when you're all done, you have a car that handles lots better and uses commonly available (and very cheaply available) parts - Chevrolet Caprice.

After I was done - I also boxed the lower, rear control arms - I stopped considering rack and pinion conversions for the car. It really does handle as well as my rack and pinion 2006 GTO.

[Thumpin455]

I used the Summit disc conversion on the 65, its not done so I dont have any info on it. They are decent pieces, they dont look like junk and it fit ok so far. I have been thinking about doing the B body spindles on the LeMans, or maybe the T37, havent decided as yet.

[Bamfster]

And today I found a guy local that has a complete take off from a '71 Elco .... m,aster, booster, prop valve and spindles to dust cap. His asking price is $250.

Thoughts?

[William Wilson]

The lower arms are stock - although I welded a brace around the ball joint. The upper control arms are Ebay specials, tubular specifically for using the B-body spindles.

The tubular upper control arms are narrower than the stock control arms, and they have a different ball joint (most tubulars use the B-body ball joints).

B-body spindles are used because it lowers the car AND changes the geometry of the front suspension to give you negative caster - thus the car goes from "watch out for the cliiiiffffff" in the twisties to "routinely spanks bmws"

The spindles themselves, you want the cop car spindles because they have 12" disk brakes - cheapest option is, you wait until dark, drive over to Bruab's house, and remove the spindles off his 9C1 car. You use Caprice spindles with Camaro 1LE (89-91) rotors so you have 4 3/4 x 5 bolt pattern (as opposed to the Caprice bolt pattern which is 5 on 5). Because the spindles are physically taller, it lowers the car 1 1/2", and widens the track 1/2"

Thus when you're all done, you have a car that handles lots better and uses commonly available (and very cheaply available) parts - Chevrolet Caprice.

After I was done - I also boxed the lower, rear control arms - I stopped considering rack and pinion conversions for the car. It really does handle as well as my rack and pinion 2006 GTO.

I've read this all before, but never did it make so much sense.

I know what's happening to my 70 Buick soon.

And I have a BMW to test that cornering theory with.

[65longroof]

And today I found a guy local that has a complete take off from a '71 Elco .... m,aster, booster, prop valve and spindles to dust cap. His asking price is $250.

Thoughts?

You can modify your drum brake spindles to accept the caliper bracket, dust shields, etc. Do a search on chevelles.com, there is a list with all the parts and steps needed to do this. I want to say it was less than $400 using brand new parts. If you buy the ElCo parts, you'll still likely want to replace some of them pushing the price up near the spindle mod'd suggestion.

I have used two kits in the past, one from SSBC and one from MBM (Hot Rods USA sold it but it's like Pirate Jack and others). The SSBC kit was much more expensive but a quality kit and complete from what I remember (15+ yrs ago). The MBM kit was inexpensive but includes metric calipers/rotors (smaller from a g-body), the piston between the booster and master cyl was too long and had to be cut and I had the prop valve start leaking on me within a year or so. Happy with both situations 'cause I realize you get what you pay for. If I have to do another one though, I would really like to try the spindle mod trick and see how that goes.

[SuperBuickGuy]

And today I found a guy local that has a complete take off from a '71 Elco .... m,aster, booster, prop valve and spindles to dust cap. His asking price is $250.

Thoughts?

10.5" rotors, and you still have the positive camber issue. Though you did remind me that (although I gave it to my dad) my old stuff is still around, were it closer it'd be yours.... how soon you going to do the swap?

[Mr4Speed]

And today I found a guy local that has a complete take off from a '71 Elco .... m,aster, booster, prop valve and spindles to dust cap. His asking price is $250.

Thoughts?

That stuff works real good and all the parts are common and cheap. You don't have to run a booster but you may need to change to a smaller bore master cylinder if the pedal is too hard. Stock one for an early 70's Camaro with manual discs is a bolt on.

[Schtauffer]

For the 67, I went to a junkyard and got brakes off a 71 Vista Cruiser; new pads, turned the rotors, rebuilt the calipers. For my buddy's 67 we ordered a kit from CPP. The kit worked a whole lot better and was only a few hundred dollars more than the junkyard method.

The Monte has the tall spindle swap. It totally changes the car. At an SCCA event at Hershey, it was two seconds faster through the course than the stock 93-02 Camaros and Firebirds. It is money well spent if you are doing a disc swap anyway.