Pirate Jacks disc brake conversion kits
I have used the 73+ mopar disk brakes on a few different mopars now- my '72 Challenger, my '74 Duster, and my '71 Dart. I also did this swap on a buddy's '65 Belvedere. The picture of the disk above, with the wonky caliper placement, is from my 11.75" disk install on my Challenger with 2" drop spindles that changed the clocking on the calipers. I put FMJ spindles on it later. The 73+ disks use the same exact spindles, calipers, caliper brackets, wheel bearings, brake hoses, and ball joints (or adaptors) as the Pirate Jack kit. Because, as I've mentioned ad nauseam now, the factory 73+ disk conversion is identical to the Pirate Jack kit with the exception of 2 things - the bolt pattern and the rotor hub diameter. That's it. DoctorDiff was selling tapered ball joint adaptors for years before Pirate Jack. They're the same rotors as factory with a little extra machining. Anyone that can install a 73+ mopar disk set up can install a Pirate Jack kit, the entire thing is a bolt on operation with factory parts. I didn't do a "write up" on any of them because there are literally hundreds of threads on how to do it already. '73+ disks on early A's, '67-72 SBP 9" and 10" drum cars (same as an early A for the conversion, btw), '67-72 disk cars, '73+ drum cars, you name it, it's already here.
If you'd like a write up from me on brakes, you can see my more involved installation of DoctorDiff's 13" cobra rotors on my Duster (which required machining the center bore of my wheels), as well as DoctorDiffs 11.7" rear disks. 13" install here My "new" '74 Duster- or why I need a project like a hole in the head
11.7" rear kit install here, more steps on this one...My "new" '74 Duster- or why I need a project like a hole in the head
Unlike the '73+ factory parts though which are BBP, the whole point of the Pirate Jack kit is to keep your current SBP wheels. If you can't, then why bother staying SBP? Well, there ARE wheels that do not fit the Pirate Jack rotor. Pirate Jack says so themselves, don't take my word for it.
And boy, if someone would just post the hub diameter on the Pirate Jack kit so that everyone else here could use some common sense when considering the pros/cons of doing that conversion, well, we'd all be better off. The '73+ disks are great, but if you're using them with your existing SBP wheels then you need to make sure that- 1. your wheels have enough backspace, because the 73+ kit widens the track width by almost a 1/2" per side, and- 2. your wheels have a large enough center bore to clear the increased hub diameter compared to some SBP drums. Especially if you're planning on using steel wheels that can't be bored out.
I have used the 73+ mopar disk brakes on a few different mopars now- my '72 Challenger, my '74 Duster, and my '71 Dart. I also did this swap on a buddy's '65 Belvedere. The picture of the disk above, with the wonky caliper placement, is from my 11.75" disk install on my Challenger with 2" drop spindles that changed the clocking on the calipers. I put FMJ spindles on it later. The 73+ disks use the same exact spindles, calipers, caliper brackets, wheel bearings, brake hoses, and ball joints (or adaptors) as the Pirate Jack kit. Because, as I've mentioned ad nauseam now, the factory 73+ disk conversion is identical to the Pirate Jack kit with the exception of 2 things - the bolt pattern and the rotor hub diameter. That's it. DoctorDiff was selling tapered ball joint adaptors for years before Pirate Jack. They're the same rotors as factory with a little extra machining. Anyone that can install a 73+ mopar disk set up can install a Pirate Jack kit, the entire thing is a bolt on operation with factory parts. I didn't do a "write up" on any of them because there are literally hundreds of threads on how to do it already. '73+ disks on early A's, '67-72 SBP 9" and 10" drum cars (same as an early A for the conversion, btw), '67-72 disk cars, '73+ drum cars, you name it, it's already here.
If you'd like a write up from me on brakes, you can see my more involved installation of DoctorDiff's 13" cobra rotors on my Duster (which required machining the center bore of my wheels), as well as DoctorDiffs 11.7" rear disks. 13" install here My "new" '74 Duster- or why I need a project like a hole in the head
11.7" rear kit install here, more steps on this one...My "new" '74 Duster- or why I need a project like a hole in the head
Unlike the '73+ factory parts though which are BBP, the whole point of the Pirate Jack kit is to keep your current SBP wheels. If you can't, then why bother staying SBP? Well, there ARE wheels that do not fit the Pirate Jack rotor. Pirate Jack says so themselves, don't take my word for it.
And boy, if someone would just post the hub diameter on the Pirate Jack kit so that everyone else here could use some common sense when considering the pros/cons of doing that conversion, well, we'd all be better off. The '73+ disks are great, but if you're using them with your existing SBP wheels then you need to make sure that- 1. your wheels have enough backspace, because the 73+ kit widens the track width by almost a 1/2" per side, and- 2. your wheels have a large enough center bore to clear the increased hub diameter compared to some SBP drums. Especially if you're planning on using steel wheels that can't be bored out.
