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Old 01-16-2021, 11:39 AM   #10
hemi43
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Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Ontario Canada
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Re: Brake conversion

Quote:
Originally Posted by Blazerowner View Post
I hear you on that, but I don’t like the Drums. Not a fan of working on them and I figure why not switch to disc.
Here's something to consider;

Disc brakes are OK if the truck came with them, but converting an older rear diff to disc brakes could be a costly mistake. I realize this mod had been done thousands of times, but I guarantee you a high percentage of these swaps are causing the owner headaches.

Here's the main issue! Our 12 bolt diffs use a "C" clip to hold the axle in place, but unfortunately these still allow the axle to float side to side a bit. This is fine for drum brakes, but not for discs. As you're driving down a winding road, that axle will move side to side and push your caliper pistons further into their bores. When you apply the brakes, the first press of the pedal will be spongy because the pistons now need to travel further. There's no fix for this unless you use a Ford 9", or use "C" clip eliminators (which cause other issues).

The other problem is the parking brake. Unless you're using an OEM caliper, you will need a separate mechanical caliper to act as a parking brake.

Rear drum brakes are simple, cheap and never give you problems. IMHO
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