69 Coronet Brake Conversion - Looking for Guidance

[Dubjitsu]

I'm looking to swap out my drum brakes and install a 4 wheel disc brake system. Looking for simple as far a installation, maintenance, tuning, etc as I'm new to all this and plan to do the work myself. We're building a 600hp 440 for the car with the intention of it being a fun street car capable of road trips and will upgrade the rear end (has 8 1/4 currently) to handle the power. Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on a "plug-n-play" type kit for this. I do plan to keep my 15" wheels as well so no big rotors. Appreciate any help. Thx!

 

[Bill Monk]

Can't give you any help on this, I'd like to do it myself so I'll be watching this thread

 

[threewood]

I'm looking to swap out my drum brakes and install a 4 wheel disc brake system. Looking for simple as far a installation, maintenance, tuning, etc as I'm new to all this and plan to do the work myself. We're building a 600hp 440 for the car with the intention of it being a fun street car capable of road trips and will upgrade the rear end (has 8 1/4 currently) to handle the power. Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on a "plug-n-play" type kit for this. I do plan to keep my 15" wheels as well so no big rotors. Appreciate any help. Thx!

Call Dr. Diff, he sells conversion kits. I am getting ready (after my next cup of coffee) to install the front disc brake kit from him. His is based on a 1978 Dodge Aspen so it is technically using factory parts lol. But it looks pretty easy.

 

[Dubjitsu]

Call Dr. Diff, he sells conversion kits. I am getting ready (after my next cup of coffee) to install the front disc brake kit from him. His is based on a 1978 Dodge Aspen so it is technically using factory parts lol. But it looks pretty easy.

Nice! Let us know how it goes. I was thinking of going disc/drum to minimize work and cost but I was recommended to just go with all 4 discs by a friend

 

[threewood]

Nice! Let us know how it goes. I was thinking of going disc/drum to minimize work and cost but I was recommended to just go with all 4 discs by a friend

Unless you are road racing or autocrossing I think the 4 wheel disc is overkill imho. Stopping force is primarily on the fronts. Here is the complete kit and I want to say it was a little over $700 complete.

 

[Dubjitsu]

Unless you are road racing or autocrossing I think the 4 wheel disc is overkill imho. Stopping force is primarily on the fronts. Here is the complete kit and I want to say it was a little over $700 complete.
View attachment 590154 View attachment 590155 View attachment 590156 View attachment 590157 View attachment 590158

You're replacing the master cylinder and knuckles? I haven't looked much into it but was under the impression those things could remain stock and you could just do the rotors, hubs, calipers and brackets pretty much

 

[NJRR]

You're replacing the master cylinder and knuckles? I haven't looked much into it but was under the impression those things could remain stock and you could just do the rotors, hubs, calipers and brackets pretty much

SSBC makes a kit that uses the drum knuckles. Summit sells them. I would do the fronts first if you are not replacing the 8 1/4 rear till a later date ( which I would do ASAP with a 600 HP 440). The master cylinder is different for drum/drum, disc/drum and disc/disc setups if I'm not mistaken.

 

[Dubjitsu]

SSBC makes a kit that uses the drum knuckles. Summit sells them. I would do the fronts first if you are not replacing the 8 1/4 rear till a later date ( which I would do ASAP with a 600 HP 440). The master cylinder is different for drum/drum, disc/drum and disc/disc setups if I'm not mistaken.

I'm gonna do the rear end and brakes at the same time I think. No sense in waiting because we're building the motor soon. Not sure if the 727 is up to the task or if I need to swap that out too but that's the plan right now

 

[Yatzee]

I'm looking to swap out my drum brakes and install a 4 wheel disc brake system. Looking for simple as far a installation, maintenance, tuning, etc as I'm new to all this and plan to do the work myself. We're building a 600hp 440 for the car with the intention of it being a fun street car capable of road trips and will upgrade the rear end (has 8 1/4 currently) to handle the power. Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on a "plug-n-play" type kit for this. I do plan to keep my 15" wheels as well so no big rotors. Appreciate any help. Thx!

There's a lot of kits out there but the only people I can honestly say "get it right the first time" is Wilwood. And they're not as expensive as most people think considering the engineering they put into their systems. They don't use terms, looks like, something like, something style etc, rather their systems are engineered from the ground up. Choosing between this system and someone elses, I go this way

http://www.wilwood.com/BrakeKits/Br...Dodge&model=Coronet&option=Drum+Brake+Spindle

 

[Mjcre]

I wanted a simple kit as well that fit 15”. I knew several mustang people that used masterpower for brake conversions and theirs seemed like an all in one kit even with bearings greased and installed in the hub. I got their rally series and it all looks like good quality. Maybe a little pricey over some others but I did choose the made in USA billet aluminum caliper kit. I haven’t installed yet but am hoping to this spring so I can’t say one way or the other on how they are. Anyway just another option to check out.




https://www.mpbrakes.com/front-brak...nt.asp?catid=A13D4A4FA57B4B5ABA6056F85CA78C5B

 

[threewood]

Yes, you need to swap the master cylinder and distribution block. Driver side took me 2 hours, no issues and fits like a glove.

 

[NJRR]

I wanted a simple kit as well that fit 15”. I knew several mustang people that used masterpower for brake conversions and theirs seemed like an all in one kit even with bearings greased and installed in the hub. I got their rally series and it all looks like good quality. Maybe a little pricey over some others but I did choose the made in USA billet aluminum caliper kit. I haven’t installed yet but am hoping to this spring so I can’t say one way or the other on how they are. Anyway just another option to check out.




https://www.mpbrakes.com/front-brak...nt.asp?catid=A13D4A4FA57B4B5ABA6056F85CA78C5B

View attachment 590188 View attachment 590189

The Masterpower looks exactly like the SSBC kit. Prob made by the same manufacturer. Compare prices.

 

[Mopars & Missiles]

...The master cylinder is different for drum/drum, disc/drum and disc/disc setups if I'm not mistaken.....

Mistaken, you're not!

 

[wyrmrider]

master cylinder reservoirs may be different- no big deal just check your fluid
now the piston bore is another matter
I'd suggest using your existing master cylinder to get a baseline then change if you feel you need larger (easier pedal) or smaller ( harder pedal)

 

[Mopars & Missiles]

Its just a little more complicated than "different reservoirs". Drum/drum MC's have a built in residual valve in the ports of the MC. For disc's you don't want that valve in there, the disc's will hang up and drag after taking your foot off the pedal, but you need it for the drums. So a disc/drum MC will have the residual valve only in the port for the rear drums. A disc/disc MC will not have the valve in either port.

Now on to the BIG difference in drums versus disc. Drums will operate perfectly fine at about 700-800 psi line pressure. You switch to discs, and that same 700-800 psi that worked just fine before is gonna scare the hell out of you when you hit the brake pedal and are expecting the car to stop. It isn't going to stop worth ****. Disc's will require much HIGHER line pressure to operate correctly than drums do. Somewhere around 1200-1400 psi at a minimum for good braking power. This is where the proper MC is really important. A smaller bore MC provides HIGHER line pressures, but LOWER volume of fluid per stroke of the MC piston. And of course the opposite is true of a larger bore MC, line pressure is LOWER but volume of fluid is HIGHER per stroke of the piston.

You have to find that "sweet spot" in MC bore size where you have enough psi and volume to operate the discs for adequate stopping power. This in turn usually then requires a proportioning valve to be installed in the rear drum brake line to lower the psi to the drums to prevent them from locking up before the front disc's lock. Otherwise your car WILL go into a spin, and you'll be looking back at where you've already been.

 

[Dennis H]

If you already have 11" Hemi Drums, I recommend. www.musclecarbrakes.com

 

[PST]

We have a variety of disc brake conversions for both the front and rear of your vehicle. We also have kits that work with your stock drum brake spindles or kits with spindles to upgrade to the later model disc spindles. All the kits that we offer are back by our lifetime limited warranty for as long as you own your car and shipping within the US 48 states is free on all orders.

But as a member of this forum you are also entitled to 10% off all orders of $200 or more.

Here is a link to our offerings: https://p-s-t.com/c-1176128-brakes-...tml#!year=1969||make=DODGE||model=CORONET 440

Thanks
James

 

[wyrmrider]

correct mopar
you have to install/ remove the residual check valve
a little more foot pressure required with discs with a drum brake master cyl
would not recommend for little girls
and I had to change wheel cylinders instead of the proportioning valve
and it would be a good idea
coming down a steep hill with snow and ice with the larger wheel cylinders the rears would lock up first- that actually worked as you could still tear (this was like a toboggan )
after the smaller wheel cylinders the fronts would lock up first- which was more difficult- lots of brake pumping
I ended up using the parking brake (holding onto the release) to modulate the rears while enabling steering
after a couple of times of this I took a 2 mile detour avoiding the "cutoff"= but much flatter

 

[rlem1977]

There's a lot of kits out there but the only people I can honestly say "get it right the first time" is Wilwood. And they're not as expensive as most people think considering the engineering they put into their systems. They don't use terms, looks like, something like, something style etc, rather their systems are engineered from the ground up. Choosing between this system and someone elses, I go this way

http://www.wilwood.com/BrakeKits/Br...Dodge&model=Coronet&option=Drum+Brake+Spindle

Call Wilwood and discuss what you want and expect. You should do that for all manufacturers you are considering. Don't try to "catalog" it. If you do, then you'll be asking how to make the stuff work that you bought. Especially if you are thinking about just doing disc up front and maybe doing disc in the rear later. Pick the tech support brains so you can pick the right option for you.

I have used Wilwood and The Right Stuff. Both make excellent products. For my Dodge I went with Wilwood. For my Chevy I used Right Stuff. If I could do it over, Wilwood for both. Also, spend the money and replace the hard brake lines. In Line Tube or Right Stuff.

4-wheel dics brakes aren't just for autocross and road racing. You will notice an enjoyable improvement in stopping. Is it necessary, no. Neither is power steering, or power brakes. But advancements in technology make the driving experience more enjoyable, and safer.