|
|
Post by island65cruiser on May 4, 2019 8:38:55 GMT -5
Can anyone suggest the most efficient way to convert a 65 442 to disk brakes? Aftermarket or GM parts? The car currently has stock, original style power drum brakes, single master cylinder. Also, is it worth updating control arms to tubular aftermarket with improved geometry? Thanks.
|
|
|
|
Post by joepadavano on May 4, 2019 9:59:52 GMT -5
Define "efficient".
The aftermarket A-body brake kits are clones of the 1969-72 factory parts. Used OEM parts are drying up, but they are out there. New ones are Chinesium but more readily available. Your call. You can save a bunch of money if you buy the mini kit from Right Stuff (spindles, splash shields, caliper brackets) and get the rest (calipers, rotors, hoses, bearings) locally or from RockAuto. Your call on whether or not the higher price of an all-in-one kit is worth the reduced hassle.
Simply changing the control arms does nothing for suspension geometry unless you use either tall spindles or tall ball joints. If you are going that far, there are other considerations like new steering arms to fix the bump steer problem inherent in the stock geometry. Once you cross that line, you're looking at a couple of thousand bucks for parts. The old B-body tall spindle swap is cheap but compounds the bump steer problem and is no longer a recommended approach.
|
|
|
|
Post by island65cruiser on May 4, 2019 19:32:37 GMT -5
Joe, you are a deep thinker, you must be an engineer or accountant. Efficient means best results for the money and hassle. Some of the vendors claim their aftermarket arms have better geometry, camber and caster. Some claim better header clearance. Most of the discussion on the site dates back to 2012, is there more current info to be had? I'm not an experienced GM guy, and don't know what interchanges with what. Thanks
|
|
|
|
Post by joepadavano on May 5, 2019 9:25:16 GMT -5
Joe, you are a deep thinker, you must be an engineer or accountant. Efficient means best results for the money and hassle. Some of the vendors claim their aftermarket arms have better geometry, camber and caster. Some claim better header clearance. Most of the discussion on the site dates back to 2012, is there more current info to be had? I'm not an experienced GM guy, and don't know what interchanges with what. Thanks
Aerospace engineer, actually.
"Efficiency" could be bang for the buck. It could be best stopping force. It could be lightest weight. Kind of like when people ask, "what is the best _____ I can get for my car?"
The steering arms and associated geometry are somewhat unrelated to the brake conversion. Sure, if you get an expensive aftermarket big brake conversion with custom spindles, that changes the suspension angles. The steering arms bolt on and you can fix the bump steer even if you retain drum brakes.
There are two fundamental problems with the A-body front suspension and steering. The first is the camber change curve with suspension movement. Taller spindles or taller ball joints fix this, but you need a shorter upper control arm to enable you to properly align the suspension. The second is the bump steer problem, and new steering arms fix this problem. Again, neither of these affects the brakes or vice versa.
|
|
|
|
Post by island65cruiser on May 6, 2019 13:53:45 GMT -5
Thanks for all the detail. I guess you know about the pilot who got lost in a storm on a trip to Iowa, and crashed his sport plane in a Nebraska cornfield. He was thrown from the wreckage and knocked out. When a passerby stopped to help, and awakened the pilot, the pilot asked "where am I". The Good Samaritan, an engineer, replied "in a cornfield". The pilot responded by saying "you must be an engineer". The other man said "yes, I am, but how did you know". The pilot said "because everything you said was absolutely accurate, but totally obvious".
|
|
|
|
Post by ronniev1959 on May 7, 2019 10:01:03 GMT -5
Good one. Lol
|
|
