I know there are a lot of threads on this site on disc brake conversion, but cannot seem to get my questions answered. I am converting from front drum to disc on my 71 Comet GT. I am using spindles from a 76 Maverick. I have a new master cylinder for disc brakes. 1) I have not looked yet, but assume the larger bowl on the master cylinder is for the front? 2) I read where I do not need a new proportioning valve? 3) The two brake lines going from the master cylinder to the proporting valve has different sized nuts that screw into the master cylinder. The holes on my new master cylinder are opposite from the old master cylinder, so it appears I will have to install new lines or install new screw-in heads and re-flare the brake lines, if I can? Suggestions from you who have already done this? Thanks!
See this thread http://mmb.maverick.to/showthread.php?t=76951 to see the questions a novice (me) ran into in doing the disk brake swap, the good answers I got, and a link to a very helpful set of instrucitons. I used a maverick disk/drum brake master cyl and proportioning valve and ran into the same tube nut issues you're hitting. I bought pre-bent lines for the Maverick disk brakes with the correct fittings, incl the short ones that go between the master cyl and prop valve. I also found the line going to the rear from the prop valve had the wrong tube nut. I spliced a short piece with the correct tube nut onto that line with a steel coupling with compression fittings I got from a shop that makes hydraulic lines.
im just doing mine now and i used adaptors the smaller one i got from my local auto parts store and the bigger one i had to order in from fastenal which was a 9/16 male to a 3/16 female flare
Disk brake conversion Uh oh, I hear you say you bought pre bent lines. Does this include brake lines up to the disc brakes, too? Are they larger lines? Any differences? I was thinking all I had to do was change the nuts (possibly lines) going from the valve to the master cylinder.
I bought the whole set of pre-bent FRONT brake lines. I also got the brackets from the donor car to mount the hard lines to the subframe at the wheels. The disk brake brackets are mounted farther forward, IIRC, than the brackets for the drum brakes. Also drilled a new hole in the DS shock tower to bring the line thru at a different spot. Also used new disk brake rubber lines. Others have used the drum brake lines and brackets successfully in the disk brake conversion. I used the OE disk/drum proportioning valve, which is oriented differently than the drum/drum valve (and has different nut sizes) and needs different shaped curly-queue lines. Not knowing what would work well, I used all disk brake parts. You'll find examples of many different mixes of disk/drum - drum/drum parts in the disk brake swaps. Just to be sure everything would be compatible, I stayed with all disk/drum parts. I didn't know adapters were available for different size tube nuts. That would be a better solution than the line splice for the rear brake line connection to the proportioning valve.
I went to the local auto parts store and bought one brake line with the right nuts on each end. I already had an adapter that came with the master cylinder. I hooked them all up and hope they will work when I install the brakes????
I just did my son's 69.5 maverick. I used a 74 master cyl. Had to cut the ends off the lines and re flare witht the right fittings. Did not change the porportioning valve. Works great. Good luck.
when i put new line on my drum/drum i had to buy adapters to go on the line the parts house sells them big nut on one end little nut on the other and the where only like 3 or 4 buck
When I changed mine over to disc brakes.............I did it on both front and rear.................I bought a master cylinder that had the proportioning valve built in, so I bypassed the old valve. I also used braided lines from the hard fittings to the calipers. If you ever need adapter fittings for any hydraulic lines visit your local store that builds hydrualic lines. They have adapters for anything you could dream up, and I hooked the new braided lines up to my stock lines with one simple adapter...................................works for me.
