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Front Bendix 4 Piston disc Brake Help

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ChargerDude

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Hello.

I have a 69 Charger with 10" drums in the back and the 4 piston calipers disc brakes on the front.

My calipers are leaking and I need to redo my front brakes. My rotors are cracked and too thin as well. Where can I get replacement rotors and all the other goodies to rebuild the front disc brakes?

Also, if I can't get them, can I buy drum spindles/knuckles (like I have on the back with my 10" drums) )and put them on the front end and just buy the SSB, Wilwoods disc brake conversion kit...that can fit onto the o.e. drum spindles.

Thanks.

I wanna drive my car...let me rephrase that. I can drive my car, but gotta get it to stop.
 
To directly answer your question, yes, you can convert to the drum brake spindles and put aftermarket brakes or you can get rebuilt exchange calipers from Right Stuff http://www.getdiscbrakes.com/RSeCommerce/ProductDetails.aspx?mName=BC18&source=List I have no experience with their calipers but nice to know they are offering them......Or you can just convert to the 70 and up single piston brakes. Check your local pick n pull.

Now for the story. That's a rare option to have but a curse at the same time. The problem with the Bendix calipers is the seal is on the piston and relies on a good bore in the caliper to seal, but when corrosion takes its toll the end result is pitting and leaks. Forget about honing and putting new seals. I went through this in 1982 with my RR and had my calipers sleeved by a Corvette shop back when no one even knew what these were. Even though the pistons on the Bendix are twice as big as the Vette they managed to do it. I still have them and after all this time I can say they did a good job. I'm pretty sure rotors are available but they will be pricey. Once the Bendix system is sleeved it will work fine - unless you want to stop from 150 MPH!
 
Meep Meep.

Once again a wealth of info you are. Thanks again.

A rare option and a curse at the same time is very true. As I'm getting impatient with my car being on a hoist for over a week with this simple problem and the summer kicking in, I'm considering going with the MP brake conversion kit as these are supposed to be fully assembled and come with spindles too ( no slotted look to keep it looking original). I'm not an expert, but these kits are supposed to have NO effect on geometry and have NO interference with the axle and any other components.

I found a relatively local guy to rebuild the calipers for $500, plus trading in my damaged ones. Then I still need the rotors, pads...Maybe Year One would have these. My problem is I'm not an expert and just learning as I go, but with the weather improving I just wanna get my new ride on the road. If this was the winter, I'd probably be more patient and get everything done old school. Regardless, I can go with the new MP conversion, keep my Bendix parts in the garage and always try to fix them in the future; however, the more people I speak with tell me that with the rate I'll be using my car (summer only and dry weather) I may never do my brakes again.

I'll shut up now. Thanks again and I'm sure we'll chat again in the future.

ChargerDude

"I'm a charger that charges through the night, Like an orange bolt of lightning passing everything in sight..."
 
I have quite a collection of Bendix parts and one day I will build a fixture for my mill and sleeve my own.

Check your local "good" parts store for the rotors, pads and hoses. My uncle recently got a set of 4" BC rotors from NAPA I think and they were $100.00 ea! He also got the Kelsey-Hayes calipers from them.

You claim to be a non expert but you seem to be paying attention to the details!! I have no experience with aftermarket brake kits but have installed several factory setups without trouble.
 
Hi Meep Meep.

I've decided to go with the Bendix 4 piston/caliper rebuilt setup as my mechanic and local Mopar restoration expert both agreed that my calipers/pistons actually looked original and the only thing ever replaced were probably the pads...so if they lasted 41 years, then they should last me that long considering my car is mainly a dry and summer weather car. PLUS, I'm keeping everything original which is getting rarer. My local Mopar expert also managed to track down all my other parts brand new, pads, hoses, and even the Bendix style rotors. (He found out who who makes them for the restoration companies too. Awesome!) And yes, I'm also sticking with the 2 piece design rotor and hub assembly instead of the 1 piece that Year One offers. (Rare and original)

By next week all parts should be ready and I can have her fixed up for the the car shows.

Thanks again and enjoy your weekend.
 
That's great news about finding the parts. Like I said, beware the rust and pitting on the caliper bores. I wouldn't mind knowing where you got the original style rotors.
 
I've been told that they are made by DuraBrake Co. I'm not sure of their p/n as I have someone who ordered everything for me and I'm still waiting for them. There is a co. here in Canada that distributes them, but I'm sure you'd rather order from the states. I know you can order from DuraBrake directly. Please note that these are the 2 piece style (i.e. rotor and hub are 2 pieces)

If you want the 1 piece (rotor and hub), Year One sells them. I'm just not sure if the one piece is good quality as the Year One website doesn't show the back side (I want to see if there is any reinforcement there for the hub. ) Regardless, those are the options I found.

As for the calipers/pistons, they have been resleeved and rebooted and have stainless steel now in them. I was told the repro's of these have zero stainless steel; therefore, I went for the rebuild.

Cheers.

ChargerDude

"I'm a charger that charges through the night, Like an orange bolt of lightning passing everything in sight..."
 
Cool, thanks!

The two piece rotors tend to not dissipate heat as well as the one piece. So from a performance stand point the one piece is better.
 
ChargerDude, I have a set of the new Dura brake rotors here. They are already in Canada. ( I'm out west in B.C. ) I can get you the seal and bearing numbers for you too. I just sold a set of the 4 piston calipers that had been sleeved. I do have the correct hoses and the small steel caliper lines for those calipers too. Drop me a note if you need any help locating parts. Thanks. Marcel
 
Meep-Meep said:
To directly answer your question, yes, you can convert to the drum brake spindles and put aftermarket brakes or you can get rebuilt exchange calipers from Right Stuff http://www.getdiscbrakes.com/RSeCommerce/ProductDetails.aspx?mName=BC18&source=List I have no experience with their calipers but nice to know they are offering them......Or you can just convert to the 70 and up single piston brakes. Check your local pick n pull.

Now for the story. That's a rare option to have but a curse at the same time. The problem with the Bendix calipers is the seal is on the piston and relies on a good bore in the caliper to seal, but when corrosion takes its toll the end result is pitting and leaks. Forget about honing and putting new seals. I went through this in 1982 with my RR and had my calipers sleeved by a Corvette shop back when no one even knew what these were. Even though the pistons on the Bendix are twice as big as the Vette they managed to do it. I still have them and after all this time I can say they did a good job. I'm pretty sure rotors are available but they will be pricey. Once the Bendix system is sleeved it will work fine - unless you want to stop from 150 MPH!
Click to expand...

I too went through this with my old 68 Hemi Charger in 2000. I have owned many old Corvettes and have used this service for many of them over the years. I heard that they were no longer offering this service for the Bendix calipers, but i hope it is not true as that is the only fix that will work for them. I belive that Stainless Steel Brake Corp. is the manufacturer that makes all of them for other companies that also sell this service.

Good luck.
 
I had the same brake set-up on my '69 Coronet, I swapped to 73'-76' A body spindles,rotors,calipers (15 years ago) you can get rotors/pads anywhere!
Volares,Aspens,Diplomats,5th Avenues (rear wheel drive only) all used the same rotors/calipers,they did use a bigger piston on the caliper 77'on up,but bolt up the same.

the 4 piston set up was a real pain to get parts for,and the rotors weren't very good, it didn't take much to heat them up and "warp" the rotors (too thin)
if your driving to the local car shows or basically not abusing them they'll work.
everybody I've known has done this swap, I've done about 40 swaps myself over the years.

over here I can get a complete set up from the junk yard,spindles,rotors,calipers, for aboout $150.00
just get some new pads and brake lines and your done,or just get spindles $30.00 pr. and get everything else new,rotors(new) bearings and seals(new)brake hoses(new) and rebuilt calipers all for $300.00!
 
Hey Everyone.

Thanks for all your help. Great to find people as passionate about their wheels as I am, if not more so.

Anyways, I have the rebuilt calipers, new bearings, new hub seals, new pads, new hoses...and lastly the rotors. What I found was the lugs/studs just popped right in the rotor holes with a bit of clearance to spare and they weren't snug at all. (unlike my old rotors) As I didn't feel 100% comfortable with this, I just ordered the Year One one piece rotor and hub with the wheel studs included and am going to give this a try. If this don't work, then I'll probably just go with the aftermarket disc conversion setup like MP, SSBC...(perhaps switch to the A-Body spindles) We'll see. I'm getting frustrated cuz the weather now rocks, but I was told having a car like this is gonna teach you patience too.

I wanna drive my car!!!!
 
696pack said:
I too went through this with my old 68 Hemi Charger in 2000. I have owned many old Corvettes and have used this service for many of them over the years. I heard that they were no longer offering this service for the Bendix calipers, but i hope it is not true as that is the only fix that will work for them. I belive that Stainless Steel Brake Corp. is the manufacturer that makes all of them for other companies that also sell this service.

Good luck.
Click to expand...


Yeah, I believe the Vette uses four 1" pistons and the Bendix has four 2". I just looked up SSBC and they do seem like a big outfit. I'm sure you're correct in that they provide wholesale caliper repairs for The Right Stuff tubing and many others I imagine. I have a good collection of these and one day if I feel like it I might make a fixture for my mill to sleeve my own.

Another thing I should mention is these same Bendix four piston calipers found on our B bodies were also used on AMC's between 67 and 69. That doesn't make them rust any less but does give another outlet in looking for cores.
 
UPDATE:...I actually went with the one piece rotor and hub from Year One and didn't use the Dura Brake Rotor with my original hub and I gotta say the car stops awesome. No regrets here sticking with the stock set up so far. This cars stops on a dime. Somebody back in the day at Bendix and Chrysler new something. Hopefully the calipers won't leak, but if they lasted 41 years and just gave problems now, I'm expecting my newly resleeved and rebooted calipers to last a while.

Cheers everyone.
 
I've read all of your guys messages about bendix brakes and how rare are bendix brakes on a 68 Roadrunner? My car has them but they seem to be seized and I can't get them off. I plan to take them off and get them rebuilt but I'm not sure where to take them. The car has been setting for about 25 years so there is a lot of corrosion around the brakes. What should I do. Get them rebuilt or should I replace them with better ones?
 
Hey...sorry for taking so long to respond...computers been down.

Remember one thing...all this is subjective and what works for one doesn't always work for the other. I went original and have no regrets. Nothing wrong with aftermarket or new style, but not for me. If I wanted new, I would have bought a new Charger, but I'm a classic guy.

Rotors...if you want 2 piece rotor and hub, order the rotors from DuraBrake and use your original hub. If you want 1 piece, YearOne. The main difference is that my lugs fit better in the one piece than in the DuraBrake rotor. (my mechanic didn't like the play in DB rotor, but in the YearOne, they were more snug.) With the YO, you'll need to get new RH lugs as your original are probably LH and RH and the Year Ones only use RH. With DuraBrake, you can use your original lugs.

CalipersOnline.com will rebuild your Bendix Calipers for you or getdiscbrakes.com. I didn't use them as I found a mechanic more closer to home that did them for me. I believe that they also sell the brake pads to go with them.

In terms of hoses, I also found a guy who got them all for me, but try YearOne. If you are still struggling, try http://www.canlinetube.ca/. This guy was very helpful in sourcing all my parts and I just bought most of my stuff from him. He also did my rebuild on the calipers (call him, don't email)

Remember, I'm no mechanic so make sure whoever works on your brakes is comfortable with the parts you give him.

I've only been driving with my new brakes for a couple of months now, but it stops awesome for me.

Hope this helps, if not, just post again and I'll get back to you. Aloha.
 
Interesting thread this, and glad I found it!

I have the same problem with my 69 Sport Satellite - the Bendix calipers need the bores machining, so from the advice on here looking into getting them bored & sleeved, rather than replacing them with a remanufactured pair.

In case the seals & pistons need replacing, does anyone know of a good source (or two) for new seals & pistons?


Thanks in advance :icon_cool:


Rob (in a very snowy England :santa:)
 
Hey Rob.

Try CalipersOnline.com or getdiscbrakes.com. Lemme know how it goes with either of these. My guy did a good job, but he is on the West Coast of Canada and the 2 places above might get your work done quicker as they are a bit closer...when u say remanufactured, I think that is the same as having them re-sleeved and re-bored, unless I'm mistaken. Even if you don't use these guys, if they are in the business and do this all the time, they might be able to point you in the right direction as they'd have way more contacts. Hope this helps.

Cheers.
 
Roadrunner_Freak said:
I've read all of your guys messages about bendix brakes and how rare are bendix brakes on a 68 Roadrunner? My car has them but they seem to be seized and I can't get them off. I plan to take them off and get them rebuilt but I'm not sure where to take them. The car has been setting for about 25 years so there is a lot of corrosion around the brakes. What should I do. Get them rebuilt or should I replace them with better ones?
Click to expand...


I have a 68 383 RR with disc brakes and according to my letter from Chrysler I believe the production number was 314. I will have to dig up the letter to get the actual number but I'm not too far off.

Sleeving the bores is the only way to save them.
 
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