Rear Brakes

[REDROCKER652002]

OK, Now that we have the front brakes for my son's 69 done, I am looking ahead and seeing what is out there for rear disc conversions. Brothers has a setup for about 750 that seems to be everything. He has a power brake setup and a proportioning valve, but again, not sure where they came from. Any place else you guys know of other than brothers? Do I need to be concerned about the power unit, master cylinder and proportioning valve?

Any input is welcome. And yes, I will do a search after I finish this.

RR

[truckster]

I know board member CaptainFab sells a kit that uses stock GM parts. It might be less expensive, and he has a really good reputation on the board.

[REDROCKER652002]

Awesome, thanks. I will look him up. Do you know if there is any advantage or disadvantage to switching? I was thinking the discs have better stopping power and are easier to work on, but I am not sure.

[truckster]

The advantage is a little better stopping power, but the front brakes do most of the work there.

The disadvantage is that your rear disc brakes may not be set up for a parking brake.

[Mbeef61]

Not sure if rear disc have better stopping power or not. My guess is they don’t. If your rear brakes lockup you can’t get any harder braking than that. They may lockup faster but won’t increase your stopping performance. Locked is locked.

I believe it’s mostly done for looks and ease of maintenance in the future

[stsalvage]

I hear the old timers talk a lot about this. If it's not broke don't fix it. Now I hear that when you tow with a 5Th wheel they do wonders if you're Hauling a load down the rocky mountains your towing 2-3 tons of weight Ya I like that. The problem I'm seen with disc brakes you hit a deep puddle of water your disc brakes are useless. If you live on a high hill and you use the E brake a lot you don't have it do always rely on the park in your transmission. Them thing seem to have a mind of there own with a lot of weight on the parking Tab in your Transmission. They tend to pop out of Gear then your truck leaves on it own. It happens to me on my th350 and the Power Glide. But your Kid needs to learn how to do rear brakes that is the point of having an old truck. If you wanted it to be a Brand new truck buy him a New truck.

[truckster]

Originally Posted by Mbeef61

Not sure if rear disc have better stopping power or not. My guess is they don’t. If your rear brakes lockup you can’t get any harder braking than that. They may lockup faster but won’t increase your stopping performance. Locked is locked.

I believe it’s mostly done for looks and ease of maintenance in the future

I should clarify my comment - disc brakes dissipate heat better than drum brakes, so you have more consistent braking. It's not about locking up; it's about brakes working even under extreme conditions.

Having said that, I personally can't see a case where I would install rear disc brakes on a truck that came with drums. I just don't see it as being necessary, as most of the braking is done by the front brakes due to weight transfer. Maybe if I were driving my Blazer the way I drive my Z28 it would make sense, or if I were constantly towing heavy loads in mountainous terrain, but the rear drums work just fine on my Blazer and my 1 ton van.

[rockyrivermark]

I installed rear discs last year and it made a huge difference in the braking on my c10.
Drums suck and it’s completly worth doing this conversion. Way better braking and no more adjusting.
The kit was only $389 and I did it in one evening
Purchased from
Little shop manufacturing in tenn.
great customer service
Easy to install and didn’t have to pull axles.
Highly recommend
https://www.littleshopmfg.com/disc-brake-conversions/

[palallin]

Originally Posted by rockyrivermark

I installed rear discs last year and it made a huge difference in the braking on my c10.
Drums suck and it’s completly worth doing this conversion. Way better braking and no more adjusting.
The kit was only $389 and I did it in one evening
Purchased from
Little shop manufacturing in tenn.
great customer service
Easy to install and didn’t have to pull axles.
Highly recommend
https://www.littleshopmfg.com/disc-brake-conversions/

If you are seeing a "huge difference" in the braking after installing discs on the rear of an empty C10, I'll lay odds there's something wrong with your front brakes. With no weight in the bed, the rears do so little of the work that you might not notice whether they are working at all.

Drums do not "suck."

[MySons68C20]

ECE disc brake kit on the front and E-Bay kit on the back (I forget who)
I did it for the looks but they work awesome and will lock all 4 if you push hard.
Drums will fade earlier under severe braking and are a bit tougher to service imho.
I agree with palallin above....properly working drums stop very well!

[rockyrivermark]

Originally Posted by palallin

If you are seeing a "huge difference" in the braking after installing discs on the rear of an empty C10, I'll lay odds there's something wrong with your front brakes. With no weight in the bed, the rears do so little of the work that you might not notice whether they are working at all.

Drums do not "suck."

Nope. Truck sat for years before the restoration I did and I installed
All new calipers. Rotors. Master cylinder and stainless lines and hoses.
Then installed new shoes wheel cylinders, spring kit and turned drums. Wasn’t thrilled with the braking and added rear disc.
Big difference after that.
Discs brakes are far superior to drums.