Hey Falcon folks. I finished up the Scarebird bracketed disk brakes over the weekend. So far everything is good. My only remaining issue is whether to take out the Summit proportioning valve. I've got it biased towards the rear as much as it will let me, but I still can't get the rears to lock. I'll update the thread if I make a change. For now they work so much better than drums that I'll probably just leave it as it is. I could feel the heat on the rears when I broke them in.
PLEASE: Do not use this thread to bash the Scarebird brackets, or to criticize the welds, etc ... Just go start your own thread or use any number of existing threads for that. I intend to keep this thread for the basic discussion of why, how, how much, etc.
The original drums were very old, and the last time I put shoes and a hardware kit in it was about 18 years ago or so. Earlier this summer I took it for a spin and the front left would lock and not release. I priced out new parts and was shocked to see what new drums cost. I made the decision to go with front disks. And as most projects go, I eventually expanded the scope to include the rears as well.
Before I go to the meat & potatoes pics I want to share with you all the braking discovery of a lifetime... Crush washers baby. Conical crush washers. I had some leaks when I installed the new brake lines in the front and the local hydraulic shop guy showed me these. You put them in the joint and they distort to account for anything that would cause the joint to leak. They work like a dream. There is a pull tab for an aluminum can there for scale.
Here's the front bracket installed.
Ranger Rotor and sshhhhhh s10 Calipers! Opposite side shown.
View from the inside.
Finally took the plunge and got rid of those old braces and installed a 74 Maverick M.C. The bar that the proportioning valve is mounted to is my *custom* firewall brace made years ago to keep the wall from flexing so much under clutch usage. The only brake line retained in the entire project is the main line from front to back. All four wheels got new lines and hoses.
The rear bracket was received un-coated, but for the price you can't really argue. I put one more bead on the hose hanger tab, spent some time de-burring (Not necessary, but I work in a machine shop and I can make a part look pretty good pretty quick.)
Got them nickel plated. I want them to last forever since they are custom items.
You have to machine down the outside diameter of the axle flanges to fit down into the rotors. You also press longer wheel studs in to make up for the added width of the rotor hat surface. Each side is going to be 1/4" wider than your old drum brake setup. If I had a real gripe, it would be that this was not stated in the ebay ad. As it turned out I was fine and had the room.
The other custom item is the Parking Brake cable arrangement. Here's a shot showing the old drum connection and the new caliper connection.
For the front I didn't want to try and get a custom cable made that has the integrated front cable attaching point, and I didn't want to cut up a perfectly good used one. I decided to have Control Cable in Sante Fe Springs make one for each side. I then made the equalizing piece from scrap metal.
Here's a shot of the rear with the rotor, brake hose and line, and parking brake cable installed.
View from the rear.
And one last pic showing the parking brake connection.
My total outlay for everything including optional items like the nickel plating, new front parking brake cable, and new master cylinder came out to about $1600. Maybe my local Napa guy is just more expensive than most. Anyway I think it is worth it to have great brakes and a functional parking brake for the first time in the 20+ years I've been driving it. I took the time to install a new front parking brake cable, which had failed before I got the car when I was 12...
Today
Sassy Grass My Ass
