Observations from My Disc Brake Conversion
One of the hardest parts of this project was replacing the distribution block with the right proportioning valve. The kits mostly come with an adjustable valve for the rear wheels. That requires modification to the rear brake lines that I was unwilling to do. So I ordered the correct proportioning valve for a disc/drum brake system from Dr. Diff. Taking this apart and putting it together was like a jigsaw puzzle. Clearly the entire car was built around the piece already being installed. I ended up having to pull my rear brake line off the car because I couldn’t get it to seal on the new proportioning valve when I started bleeding the brakes. Turns out the flare had a burr on it. A little filing fixed the problem. That valve looks like this.
Bench bleeding the master cylinder was a must. It is a bit of a struggle, particularly if you don’t have a vice, but it can be done effectively on a table top if done slowly. It took about 15 minutes to be sure this was done. I installed a MC with 1 1/32” bore size. The pedal is not stiff at all after bleeding the system and feels very smooth.
Take it from me, once you get everything together don’t panic if the front end looks way out of alignment. My key was to get my ride height satisfactory first. I measured both off the LCA and torsion bar as well as the fender lips. The first drive I had a slight rub on the front drivers side fender. Getting the wheel to basically neutral camber and raising the car half an inch cured the problem. Here are a few initial let down and after drive pictures with some home/garage alignment. I have not had it professionally aligned yet, but the car tracks like it is on rail and drives very smooth. No wander or pull.
First drive pics and settling in after that drive.
One of the hardest parts of this project was replacing the distribution block with the right proportioning valve. The kits mostly come with an adjustable valve for the rear wheels. That requires modification to the rear brake lines that I was unwilling to do. So I ordered the correct proportioning valve for a disc/drum brake system from Dr. Diff. Taking this apart and putting it together was like a jigsaw puzzle. Clearly the entire car was built around the piece already being installed. I ended up having to pull my rear brake line off the car because I couldn’t get it to seal on the new proportioning valve when I started bleeding the brakes. Turns out the flare had a burr on it. A little filing fixed the problem. That valve looks like this.
Bench bleeding the master cylinder was a must. It is a bit of a struggle, particularly if you don’t have a vice, but it can be done effectively on a table top if done slowly. It took about 15 minutes to be sure this was done. I installed a MC with 1 1/32” bore size. The pedal is not stiff at all after bleeding the system and feels very smooth.
Take it from me, once you get everything together don’t panic if the front end looks way out of alignment. My key was to get my ride height satisfactory first. I measured both off the LCA and torsion bar as well as the fender lips. The first drive I had a slight rub on the front drivers side fender. Getting the wheel to basically neutral camber and raising the car half an inch cured the problem. Here are a few initial let down and after drive pictures with some home/garage alignment. I have not had it professionally aligned yet, but the car tracks like it is on rail and drives very smooth. No wander or pull.
First drive pics and settling in after that drive.
