67 ford disc brake conversion

I have a 67 ford country sedan project in the planning stages. One thing I would like to do is convert the front manual drum brakes to power disc brakes. I have been doing a lot of research on the net for this and viewed some of the kits available. Another avenue I came across is using mid to late seventies disc brakes from the full size fords. According to what I could find they used the same spindles, and tie rod ends. It sounds like many people have done this on there Galaxies. It would appear I would need the spindles, calipers, proportioning valve, and master cylinder. Just wondering if anyone has any experience with this conversion? Any pros or cons of new kits versus rebuilding older calipers and master cylinder. Any help with this matter would be great. Thanks

 

Have you looked into the offerings from Scarebird? They don't sell all the parts, but they provide a list of OEM components that will work with their adapters. I'm converting my 66 Fairlane over this way. Total cost in parts has been about $200. Granted these are not high performance disc brakes by any means, but they should outperform the drums.

As far as the conversion to power brakes goes, you may want to look into adapting GM's hydraboost rather than a vacuum booster. Chevy Astros all seem to have been equipped with these.

 

When it comes to the discs, watch for the bolt pattern. If I am correct, the 65-68 used the 5X4 1/2 bolt pattern. The mid-70s full sizers used the 5X5 bolt pattern. If I am right, you will want the front brakes/spindles etc from any 72 - 79 midsize Ford/Mercury, and the brake parts for them are EASY and cheap. Also they may not be "high performance" but you do have to watch the dummy behind. With good tyres, they stop very quickly indeed. I've managed to be rear ended before this because my brakes were too good. OOPS!

I know that SSLEW on here has a 78 Thunderbird coming apart, and those spindles should be in excellent shape. Rebuilt calipers are snap, and are all of $20 a piece plus a $2 core charge. Brake pads are $40 a set for Raybestos NASCAR, and new flex lines are $18 a pop. The discs themselves are the only part a little tricky to find. I'm investigating whether I can adapt the late 80's Crown Vic/Grand Marquis discs.

 

Thanks for the help so far. I will check out scarebird. Also at a salvage yard near me there are couple of mid seventies ford wagons with the front disc brakes. I am assuming from what you are telling me that these setups should work?

 

Check the bolt patterns of the wheels. The 72 and up full sized Ford products had a 5X5 bolt pattern. The mid-sized models had a 5X4 1/2. The 70 and up full sized models also had the 5X4 1/2. You need the parts off one that uses the same bolt pattern as yours. The other thing to check is there the tie rods connect to the knuckle. On the 70s, the box is mounted behind the cross member and on the later ones, it is in front of the cross member. You'll need to do a bit of careful measurement to make sure the parts will line up with your existing front end parts.

 

Went to the salvage yard yesterday and found a 76 LTD wagon and a 73 Ranchero. Both appear to have what I need. Junk man said Approx $100 to $125 for the whole front end of the car cut off. Sounds reasonable. I also checked the scarebird kit and did some internet research. Sounds like a good kit for the price. The nice thing is you are using original spindles so no chance of geometry change. According to Ford muscle forums many people are happy with the kit realizing that they are not high performance brakes. Sounds like they outperform the front drums. Only concern I could find was the one sided weld on the bracket, noted on the forum. Easy fix to weld the other side.

 

Just my two cents used master power brakes o' my 59 ford good customer service everything new.the pushrod was too short and they sent one right away

 

The Ranchero is on the mid-size platform and has the 5X4 1/2 bolt pattern, and the 76 Country Squire uses the 5x5. Things won't interchange between those two vehicles. You need to figure out which type is under your wagon and go from there.

 

the 77/78/79 Tbird/LTD/Cougar...are a direct bolt in.!
been there....gotta dirty shirt

 

Rev, that is the LTD II that would be a direct bolt in. The LTD was the full size, and had the 5X5 bolt pattern. That means the front end from the Ranchero would be a bolt in, not the front end of the Country Squire in that yard. The front ends of the 72-79 Rancheros, 72-76 Montegos, 74-70 Cougars, 77-79 Thunderbirds, and 72-76 Torinos and Elites are all pretty much the same. All are on the same frame, too. They also share a frame with the 77-79 Lincoln Continental Mark.

 

Thanks for all of the good info so far. Sounds like I have many options. I will have to go back to the yard as he has many Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury's of that vintage. The other part would be find one in salvageable condition.

 

Great Info ! On this one

 

Drilling the rotors and best pads you can buy will help a stock setup immensely

 

If you do go with the mid-sized Ford brakes, the calipers, rebuilt, are only $20. Flex lines the same. The Raybestos pads are the ones to get, and they are only about $45 a set. The hardest part to get in a good quality piece, though, is the discs. I've only been able to find the utility grade made in China ones lately. Still looking into that. You might just as well get a new proportioning valve as well, as they are inexpensive, and by now the originals are getting a bit untrustworthy.

 

Again thanks for all of the helpful info. The next question is, do you use the old ford parts and recondition them, or do you use the scarebird kit and the new off of the self parts? Both appear to be very economical as well as outperform the original front drums. Any opinions would be great.