Galaxie Forum Full-size Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury DazeCars www.galaxieforum.com


This forum is for all years of the Ford Galaxie and all other Full-size Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury cars. This is a place to share information, skills, pictures, and stories for the purpose of building friendships and furthering the enjoyment and restoration of these cars

You are not logged in. Would you like to login or register?



December 17, 2016 10:15 am  #1


63 galaxie brake upgrade options?

thinking about power disc brakes.  Right now I have 15" lincoln wheels on stock drum brakes with no booster.  May just leave the rear drums and replace master cylinder install proportioning valve and disc on front.  What has worked for you?

 

December 17, 2016 5:48 pm  #2


Re: 63 galaxie brake upgrade options?

I have yet to upgrade mine as well. Went with a Wilwood Classic Series manual 4 piston setup on my '68 Cougar, but I would really like to do factory parts on this one, so I hope we BOTH get answers. Mine is a '65.

The wilwood kit DOES work pretty well though, and you don't have to change spindles.

 

December 18, 2016 6:34 am  #3


Re: 63 galaxie brake upgrade options?

Factory parts?  Not sure if they even made a disc brake for a 63 galaxie.  for 65 they prob did but unlikely to be available from ford or at least not unless you switch out spindles.  I saw on Torinocobra forum where some guys were using 70s granada disc brakes parts still available in aftermarket form from parts stores. Not sure if they fit the drum spindle or need to get hold of disc brake spindles. I would like a double piston caliper if possible but not really worried about pretty looks like wilwood as my wheels are not see thru.

Last edited by g-man (December 18, 2016 10:46 am)

     Thread Starter
 

December 18, 2016 10:43 am  #4


Re: 63 galaxie brake upgrade options?

The 74 - 75' Granada brakes were being used to replace mid sized fords ie mustangs and torinos..  I really would like to keep my Galaxie drum spindles.  some of the aftermarket kits adapt to this heavy spindle. They have a hub built into the disc but many have a weak looking caliper mounting bracket.  

     Thread Starter
 

December 18, 2016 11:21 am  #5


Re: 63 galaxie brake upgrade options?

A lot of guys on the Cougar forum are using Granada parts for disc swaps. I just went with the Wilwood set so I didn't have to swap spindles. At right around $600 it was kind of a no brainer, and it hauls my Cougar down like my wife's Fiesta. If I am gonna have to canaballize, I'll just go with another Wilwood set,and save myself some time.

I do know that if you're going manual disc, the Granada m/c will net you the proper bore size for manual disc/drum setup.

 

December 19, 2016 9:42 am  #6


Re: 63 galaxie brake upgrade options?

I just completed a four wheel disc conversion on my 61. I wanted to avoid after market stuff as much as possible simply because of budget. Wildwood stuff is nice, but comes with a heavy price tag. I went with discs all around because of the visibility thru the rims and lastly I was going restomod.

I considered Granada fronts originally because using those will also lower your front end. I backed away simply because I was a little concerned I would have no control over the amount of lowering I would end up with. I discovered you will see between two to two and a half inches of lowering with a Granada spindle and brake swap. There is a supplier on line that supplies complete kits and are priced fairly reasonably.

I ended up going with a 78 Cougar spindle and disc swap. They were sourced from a local salvage yard and were fairly inexpensive. Parts are readily available and cheap. They look good thru the rims. However, this swap does create a camber issue. The best camber achieved is 1 degree of positive camber. That is at the top of factory spec by the way, but too much for my liking. If this is an issue for you, then avoid this swap. Your other option is to keep your spindles and go with an aftermarket disc brake kit that uses a caliper bracket to work with your factory spindle. I didn't go that route because I didn't like the calliper that was included with the kit I had sourced. I like the clean factory look of the Cougar caliper.

As far as rear discs, again, budget was the deciding factory. I went with 84 Lincoln discs and an aftermarket adapter kit. The kit was around $150.00 and works well. Brakes were sourced at a local wrecking yard.

I went with an Astrovan M/C and hydroboost system. The M/C does the job but it could be better. I don't really care for the long brake peddle travel required to engage the brakes. That M/C is for a disc/drum system and the bore size is a little too small, so not correct. I have a larger bore M/C for disc/disc, but am hesitant to install, only because the fluid reservoir is fairly large and unsightly. I am using an adjustable proportioning valve.

As mentioned before, my budget was a big factor in deciding which way to go once I decided to go disc all around. My total investment was around $550.00 all said and done. As with many of the modifications I did, I discovered that when you change something, sometimes you end up with a result you didn't see coming. Those unexpected things can always be corrected, it just takes a little more time and work😀

 

December 19, 2016 1:48 pm  #7


Re: 63 galaxie brake upgrade options?

I think it's cool that you've sourced those parts and done all four corners for that price. The problem I have around here with junk yards is that I am lucky if they go beyond the past ten years. I felt lucky when I found a timing cover for my Dad's small block Mopar project I helped him with.

So with that in mind, I have to weigh what my time is worth vs. the cost of a kit.

 

Board footera

 

Powered by Boardhost. Create a Free Forum