rear drum to disc conversion

Rago wrote:

billy-ray wrote:what is an adjustable proportioning valve gonna do different. if the drum brakes are adjusted properly the rear should lock up first, and then the front end is supposed to lock up, to keep the weight off the front end as much as possible. plus you dont have to worry about warping drums

Drum & disc brakes need different pressures. To maintain the pressures correctly, you need to set up a P-valve. I always thought you would want the front to lock up first forcing more weight onto the main braking tires & stopping you quicker. Maybe I'm wrong on that one though.

Roadcaptain S3 wrote:

Rago wrote:Should be a bolt on ordeal since the Caprice shares much of the same parts. Rockford would be the guy to ask though.

The WHOLE rear end is pretty much a bolt on deal, 91-96 Caprice and 94-96 Impala SS.
The 90s B-body is just an updated 70s A-body.

I meant the ABS stuff, not sure why I responded that way though. Guess I'm confusing myself.

who needs the coffee this morning to get his brain working again LOL

I do!

Rago wrote:

billy-ray wrote:ive heard that disk brakes on the rear on mostly for asthetics purposes aand that drums do the same job since the proportionong valve is gonna adjust them to work the same regardless. the only difference ive really noticed is that the disk brakes lock up quicker than drum but both do equal job of stopping

Gotta buy an adjustable proportioning valve & adjust it out. The stock one is set up for disc front/drum rear so it isn't gonna work right with four wheel discs.

This link explains the operation of the proportioning valve and other related valves/meters as well as I could.

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/auto-parts/brakes/brake-types/master-brake2.htm

The benefits of disc brakes vs drum on the rear are the same as for the front, though to a lesser degree.

They are not affected as much by water, dissipate heat faster, have simpler operation, and drums must have the same diameter on both sides or your car will pull to one side or the other or lock up one side.

I don't mind having drums, but I do want to have discs simply for the ease of maintenance. Seems like I always have to look at the opposite side for reference when putting things back together on the first side.

There is a kit on Ebay for under 500.