1959 Disc brake conversion

[reberle]

Hello All, your suggestions please-

Intend to convert orig brake system on 59 coupe deville to discs-

1. Thoughts on doing just the fronts or both fronts and rears?  I'll have to rebuild the rears completely regardless, so is it better to just use that money on the rear conversion or invest in the rebuild to stock in the back?  It's a driver so I'm concerned about long term maintenance costs as well.
2. Thoughts on brands/manufacturers to use?  I've seen kits from as low as $475 up to $1,800.
3. What parts of the braking system will/should I replace with current technology?  Can I use my original master cylinder?  do I need a brake booster? Any other hardware I should think about incorporating in regard to braking system?

Lastly, I expect to use a modern set of wheels and tires partly for looks and partly because I believe with the disc brakes I need more clearance than the factory rims will permit - nothing super crazy but probably as big as the turning radius will handle comfortably inside the wheel wells.  Is there anything I need to consider when looking at wheel sets?  will modern lug patterns fit directly on the factory setup?  Anyone have any recommendations on tire sizes and how it may affect drivability/ride comfort/etc.?

Thank you in advance for any help.  Just starting the long overdue project of pulling her out of storage and putting her back on the road where she belongs.  Engine has come to life nicely so I'm rolling, need to stop now - hence the questions above.  Once I can start and stop safely I'll look into some of the other systems and then on to beautification.  Sooooo, sure to have more questions on some of the other various systems and how to incorporate modern technology to improve her as a daily driver but still keep her as stock as possible. 

Ryan

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

G'day Ryan,

Have a look at the Modified Chapter Website, http://www.modifiedcadillac.org/forum/  and do a search on "Disc Brakes".

There you will find a lot of information regarding Disc Brake Swaps, etc.

Bruce.

[62droptop]

Ryan
i have a 62 conv that i run disc brakes on,i am still using the stock wheels and the mod is stealth unless you look under the car at the front backing plate
the car stops amazing now, and yesterday while mingling on the freeway i had to all but lock them up twice from 80 mph due to stupid drivers ahead of me not paying attention, best money i ever spent ,hands down!
i do not think you really need rear disc unless you are going to be on a race track
if you look at most modern cars, when they went to front disc brakes years ago, the size of the rear brake dropped considerably
the rear brakes 1/2 ton pick up are smaller than the caddy rear brakes
due to the reduced need because the fronts do most of the work anyway.
if you just marginal   front brakes i guess you need larger rears to help out


not sure if the 59 spindle upright is same as the 62 ,but if it is there is pretty much a easy bolt on conversion,that uses original cadillac parts!very simple to do
i can give you all the info if you want, send me a pm and i will reply

i do not want to upset anyone here as a lot of people are opposed to any modifications, even though many many of the cars here are modified,
or updated

as far as wheels ,they are 5x5 bolt pattern, and large gm product,buick,cadillac and chevy truck had that bolt pattern so options are plenty for wheels
just have to make sure the offset is correct as you need to clear the rear skirts

[TJ Hopland]

I have used this company before and they have a listing for your car.

http://www.scarebird.com/index.php?id=1

What they do is make a bracket that bolts onto your existing spindle then give you a list of commonly available parts to complete the setup.   The thing I like about this approach (especially for a driver) is replacement parts are easy to find vs. some of the kits that use custom parts.   

Keeping the original wheels is usually a problem but if you were thinking of changing them anyway most of the aftermarket or post 1970 wheels will not have clearance issues. 

As for the rear brakes I personally dont see any point in converting those.  They dont tend to wear much so having to keep finding original parts should not be a big deal.   Also the parking brake is a pain in the butt.   Many current cars with rear disc use a mini drum in the middle of the rotor for the parking brake.  I believe Corvette did this first in the 60's.   This seems to be the ideal setup but as far as I know is not made as an aftermarket kit.  Using the disc for parking adds extra complication to the caliper that usually seems to be the failure point.   Many of the people that do rear conversions just dont bother with any sort of parking brake and use a front caliper.  If they do a parking brake they use the 76-78 Eldo caliper that has the parking stuff in it.  Problem is when you get it as a part it does not come with the levers and brackets for the cable not to mention the core price is fairly high.   For smaller rear brakes what seems to be common is the 79-85 E body caliper which is apparently being reproduced with the hardware, I just got a set for my eldo fully loaded for $100 shipped.    The parking brake calipers basically have a ratcheting mechanism with a screw in it that threads into the caliper.  This adds a few seals to the assembly that can fail and let corrosion in.  You also need a special tool to return the piston when installing new pads, if they have been together for a long time or the seals have failed even with the tool the piston does not want to go back in.   Also this system requires the parking brake to be used regularly to keep it adjusted.