Brake convert or no for my 57

[Big D]

NCRS is way against them (disks) and if they are not going to stop me better than bran new drum setups in normal driving, then why bother? Need your advice.



Also, where can I find an affrdable relacement radiator? They want a lot of money for one of these things, and for me, I just want it to run cool, not be 100% original.

 

[IH2LOSE]

I have heard the story before about the drums having equal stopping power as compared to disk's and I dont agree.My 67 deville has drums all the way around a freind has a cady of simular weight and he switched over to disks and his car seems like it has a more secure braking feels to it.On the caddy you realley have to push on the pedal to stop and its just not such a secure feeling.Every thing is mecaniclly good it just doesnt feel the same as disk breaks.I dont know where to send you for a radiator.

 

[IH2LOSE]

NCRS is way against them (disks)

There only aginst them when you pull in on a judging feild with a car that did not have them from the factory.

 

[Classicvette63]

Big D, I had discs put on my '63. If I had to do it over, I'm not sure that I would. I guess it does stop a little better and the pedal is more to what I have been use to. But, I don't know if I will drive the car hard enough to see a difference, it was expensive and the wheels didn't fit the same. Probably a case of six of one and a half dozen of another. Classic

 

[IH2LOSE]

Hey spencer I guess the way I can exspain the differenc was as if my cars brakes were glazed over.It just doesnt feel secure and the other cars with disk's did.Is that difference you felt or not even that noticable?

 

[Classicvette63]

IH2LOSE, I think the biggest difference was in pedal feel. I have driven other disc barked cars where if you even looked at the pedal, the car nose dived, they were that touchy. Obviously, it didn't stop any better than other disc cars, it was just the feel. The drum brakes had a firmer feel starting closer to the top of the pedal travel. With the disc's, the pedal moves further before anything seems to happen and feels like it would be easier to lock up the brakes, although I did lock up the brakes with the drums before.

Honestly, I was expecting a bigger improvement switching to discs. Maybe these new slotted special rotors make an improvement over the stock ones to make it worthwhile. Classic

 

[JohnZ]

Under max-effort braking, it's the tires that stop the car, not the brakes - either drums or discs can lock the wheels, then it's all up to the car's weight, size of the contact patch, the tire compound, and the road surface. Discs have two advantages - more linear pedal feel vs. braking force, and reduced fade under repetitive high-speed stops (like road-racing). Discs FEEL better, as they feel more like what we're used to on our power-disc daily drivers, but they won't stop the car any quicker - they just FEEL like they will - a very subjective thing that enhances confidence.

 

[SebringBill]

I put front disks on my 57 in 1998 and haven't looked back since.
Got a kit from JMT engineering in Clearwater FL. (Of course, most folks think I'm crazy to drive my 57 like I do - FL to CA and back last year and FL to MI in three days.)

I'm the second owner, knew the original owner and he would've approved. He did his share of modifications long before I got the car. Nearly all of my mods are bolt-on and most are safely related.

Just my $0.02