New to me 66 c10 front disk upgrade question

[Chevy nutcase]

Finally got myself a 66 c10 and one of the first things I'd like to do is upgrade the manual brakes to power brakes and at the same time a front disk conversion and probably lower it 2/3 while I'm at it. I noticed both lmc and brothers have a 17" wheel diameter requirement on their kits. Cj pony parts grand slam kit doesn't mention this or any wheel size requirement but I sent an email to them asking if there is. I wasn't planning on new wheels and tires at the same time because one the 16" wheels I have are in really good condition as are the tires and two that's a husky chunk of change I'm not super keen on spending right now. Interested what other options you guys have used

[EricS76]

I used a CPP power dual master/disk front kit with 15” wheels.

[Accelo]

Cj pony has the worst customer service out there.
Try calling them and you will find out exactly what I mean.
I highly doubt you will ever get an email answered.

IMHO; Try anyone else but them.

[Chevy nutcase]

Originally Posted by Accelo

Cj pony has the worst customer service out there.
Try calling them and you will find out exactly what I mean.
I highly doubt you will ever get an email answered.

IMHO; Try anyone else but them.

Oh I know how awful cj customer service is a while ago I inquired about a build a bed kit they had. After sitting on hold for 10 or 15 minutes finally I got a guy who was at home who had no idea what he was doing or what I was talking about. The only allure is their all in one kit is everything I need and fairly priced but I shudder to think the frustration if I get damaged or missing parts

[cwcarpenter98]

I purchased a kit from Performance Online for my truck almost 7 years ago. I haven't had any issues with the kit since then. I am running 15x8 wheels with no clearance issues on my discs. Basically, I have the same 1.25" rotor that is used on the 71-72 and squarebody trucks (with 1.25" rotor, not 1" as many later squares were.)

I have stock height spindles, but in your case, a drop spindle would be best for what you want to do. I have heard in the past of some 15" wheels not fitting with 3" drop spindles. Since you already have 16" wheels you will probably be ok with running a 2.5" drop spindle, depending on your back spacing.

[The Rocknrod]

Here is a great reference thread - http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...ight=dash+swap

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by Chevy nutcase

Finally got myself a 66 c10 and one of the first things I'd like to do is upgrade the manual brakes to power brakes and at the same time a front disk conversion and probably lower it 2/3 while I'm at it. I noticed both lmc and brothers have a 17" wheel diameter requirement on their kits. Cj pony parts grand slam kit doesn't mention this or any wheel size requirement but I sent an email to them asking if there is. I wasn't planning on new wheels and tires at the same time because one the 16" wheels I have are in really good condition as are the tires and two that's a husky chunk of change I'm not super keen on spending right now. Interested what other options you guys have used

Wheel requirements are dependent on the parts combo. 15" wheels can be used w/drop spindles & springs but back-spacing is much more critical. If the BS is excessive, there can be complications. 16" wheels will be the same but offer a little more clearance.

[theastronaut]

I've swapped CPP's drop spindle/disc brake kit on a few 64-66 trucks and none of them needed bigger than 15" wheels. There is a clearance issue with the inner barrel of the factory drum brake wheels- the inner barrel is slanted at a 45* angle and that area will hit the caliper. You can used a bolt on wheel spacer to gain clearance, or use newer 4 nub truck steel wheels that have a stepped inner barrel made for clearing calipers.

Neither of the CPP kits I used needed a booster, they stopped really well with minimal pedal pressure with a 1" bore manual master cylinder. A booster adds complication and has worse pedal feel/feedback, and when you add a booster you have to modify the pedal linkage to take away pedal leverage from the booster/master.... that kind of defeats the purpose of adding a booster. A lot of booster/master cylinder combos are 1.25" bore, again reducing the amount of "leverage" your foot has on the brakes so that the pedal isn't too easy/soft. Try it without a booster first.

Make sure to use a master cylinder that is made for discs, the stock master cylinder has a build in residual valve that will cause discs to drag.

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by theastronaut

I've swapped CPP's drop spindle/disc brake kit on a few 64-66 trucks and none of them needed bigger than 15" wheels. There is a clearance issue with the inner barrel of the factory drum brake wheels- the inner barrel is slanted at a 45* angle and that area will hit the caliper. You can used a bolt on wheel spacer to gain clearance, or use newer 4 nub truck steel wheels that have a stepped inner barrel made for clearing calipers.

Neither of the CPP kits I used needed a booster, they stopped really well with minimal pedal pressure with a 1" bore manual master cylinder. A booster adds complication and has worse pedal feel/feedback, and when you add a booster you have to modify the pedal linkage to take away pedal leverage from the booster/master.... that kind of defeats the purpose of adding a booster. A lot of booster/master cylinder combos are 1.25" bore, again reducing the amount of "leverage" your foot has on the brakes so that the pedal isn't too easy/soft. Try it without a booster first.

Make sure to use a master cylinder that is made for discs, the stock master cylinder has a build in residual valve that will cause discs to drag.

One of the reasons I dislike these generic kit disclaimers.... The 17" wheel requirement is BS.

When swapping to discs, one needs disc brake spec wheels. When swapping to discs & drop spindles, back-spacing of a disc brake spec wheel needs to be kept in check for 15" wheels to work but they will work.

[Chevy nutcase]

Originally Posted by theastronaut

I've swapped CPP's drop spindle/disc brake kit on a few 64-66 trucks and none of them needed bigger than 15" wheels. There is a clearance issue with the inner barrel of the factory drum brake wheels- the inner barrel is slanted at a 45* angle and that area will hit the caliper. You can used a bolt on wheel spacer to gain clearance, or use newer 4 nub truck steel wheels that have a stepped inner barrel made for clearing calipers.

Neither of the CPP kits I used needed a booster, they stopped really well with minimal pedal pressure with a 1" bore manual master cylinder. A booster adds complication and has worse pedal feel/feedback, and when you add a booster you have to modify the pedal linkage to take away pedal leverage from the booster/master.... that kind of defeats the purpose of adding a booster. A lot of booster/master cylinder combos are 1.25" bore, again reducing the amount of "leverage" your foot has on the brakes so that the pedal isn't too easy/soft. Try it without a booster first.

Make sure to use a master cylinder that is made for discs, the stock master cylinder has a build in residual valve that will cause discs to drag.

My reasoning for the master cylinder upgrade wasn't because of a lack of braking with the manual stock setup, it's the single point of failure looming that if I pop a line anywhere I lose everything. I'm sure I could get a dual manual reservoir but adding a booster isnt that much of a hassle when considering I'll be replacing every hard line and hose anyway. Besides that and the combined effort of the manual steering a little less leg effort will be welcomed

[theastronaut]

If the CPP kit with manual brakes had any easier pedal effort the pedal would be too sensitive and it would be easy to brake too much. I'm guessing they use a really aggressive pad compound to get it to stop with minimal pedal pressure but it works great with a 1" manual MC.

Changing brake pad compound can make a huge difference in pedal effort; my car with boosted brakes was really hard to stop and the brakes felt inadequate when I first bought it. I let my dad drive it and he agreed that something was wrong with the brakes. Pedal effort was excessive in normal driving, and it took a ton of pedal pressure to get it to stop really quickly. I swapped to Centric PQ Pro semi-metallic pads, bedded the pads in, and the pedal effort is now normal. I could see a truck with ceramic pads needing a booster, they have a very low coefficient of friction and would need more line/pedal pressure to stop the truck.