I am sick and tired of my worthless drum brakes on my 74. As I understand it I have a few options. Mini truck, disc brake kit (man-a-fre), later 40 axles that have stock disc brakes, or perhaps from a 60. I believe that my 40 has course splined birfields. Will I need to replace everything from my birfs out or would it be easier/better to try and find different axles? Any advice from people who have done this would be greatly appreciated. Keep in mind, like most of you, I do have a finite amount of resources.

Save a bunch of money and get the drums running right. They stop as well or better than the disk when maintained correctly. Replacxe it all and adj correctlyand you will be good. HTH

Originally posted by davidd113
Save a bunch of money and get the drums running right. They stop as well or better than the disk when maintained correctly. Replacxe it all and adj correctlyand you will be good. HTH
HA HA HA HA LOL Newbie:flipoff2: :D

Are you talking about DRUM front brakes? Gimme a break, front drums SUCK, they have to be constantly adjusted to work right, and the over-abundance of wheel cylinders is just more stuff to fail in the middle of nowhere.

Go with a mini-truck disk brake conversion, parts are abundant, it's not a tough conversion, and there is plenty of information available out there to do it right.

Newbie or not I know what I am talking about. Yes, disk are better, but drums will stop as well when cared for. There is a different feel between the 2. You will save a pile of cash and time if the drums work for you. Twill cost more to get running right.

First you say drums stop as well or better than discs & then you say discs are better. WTF?
Drums DO NOT stop as well as disc brakes. Just get them wet & see how good they are. Landcruiser drums are a pain in the ass to keep maintained properly. Have you priced wheel cylinders for a cruiser lately?Simply put, discs might cost more,but my life is worth every penny. I don't see too many new vehicles coming from the factory with drums on all 4 corners. Lots have 4-wheel discs factory. Brad:)

In theory a drum brake will give as much, or better, braking force on the initial application of the brakes. Problem is drum brakes do not disipate heat anywhere near as well as disc brakes.
Drum brakes constantly need adjusting, wheel cylinders shit themselves all the time, no matter how well you maintain them and drum brakes always pull to one side or another.
If you want to spend your weekends pulling apart your drum brakes, keep them, if not go to the mini truck disc set up.

Originally posted by 74cruzah
I am sick and tired of my worthless drum brakes on my 74. As I understand it I have a few options. Mini truck, disc brake kit (man-a-fre), later 40 axles that have stock disc brakes, or perhaps from a 60. I believe that my 40 has course splined birfields. Will I need to replace everything from my birfs out or would it be easier/better to try and find different axles? Any advice from people who have done this would be greatly appreciated. Keep in mind, like most of you, I do have a finite amount of resources.

Kinda depends on where you live. I have heard that you have to sell your 16 year old sister to get a disk front axle for a good price on the West Coast/Ca. Over here on the Eastern Seaboard, I could get my hands on one for under $300. So it kind of depends on price/availability etc. But I would toss the drums ASAP. The mini conversion is not hard at all. Check Woodys site www.ih8mud.com for links on how to do it.

Ross

I can hook you up.....

I have a complete Front Disc brake setup from the FJ-60 I just parted out.

It comes with vented rotors (better than non-vented mini-truck), the knuckles have been rebuilt, and they have new CV Unlimited standard Birfields.

They are boxed and ready to ship....

Email me off line for more detail wngrog@aol.com

I ran my 74 with drums, all new cylinders, new shoes, freshly turned drums, properly adjusted, for one entire summer.

I then swapped in my 77 disc front axle.

And then realized what a dumbass I was to spend money on drum axle in the first place!!

If you want fade resistance and wet stopping power, then go with disc. If no stick with drums, remind me to be WAY ahead of you on the trails. :D

:flipoff2: newbies! bwahahahahaha!

IMO, minitruck conversion is the way to go. Don't let these guys scare you, you can find a good deal if you are patient. Hell, I purchased a complete running 1984 minitruck for $250!! (and NO, parts are NOT for sale! lol)

Thanks for the info. I am definitely going with discs. I have dealt with drums too long, had them on my last jeep too. They just aren't worth the constant adjusting in my opinion. And by the way, my cruiser kicks the crap out of my last jeep.

Do the mini truck conversion. I did it on my '73 FJ55 and I used cruiser rotors and V6 IFS calipers and now I have a vented rotor setup on par with a stock cruiser setup for about $400 with new rotors, a knuckle rebuild and new wheel bearings...etc. And yes you do have to swap birfields, but they are much stronger so no reason no to do it... I would not even think about drums...DISCS ARE SIMPLY BETTER AND REQUIRE MUCH LESS MAINTAINENCE.

toyota mini truck conv. is yourr best bet

1.readily available
2.economical replacement parts
3.can easily upgrade to vented rotors
4. future rear disc full floater can be based on mini truck spindle assys making same brake and bearing parts at all 4 wheels a lot less spare parts
5. it is all toyota parts

DRUMS SUCK!! Sure you can get the working pretty good (Never as good as discs in my opinion) but they still suck when they get wet, or rolling backwards or even after you hit the brakes for just 5 or 6 really good stops. They you need to adjust, and clean......screw that!! Discs are the way to. Don't ever let anyone tell you drums are better. Drive my buddies four wheel disc cruiser and drive mine. Even when they are adjusted perfect and stopping what I think is great....he can "out stop" me anyday of the week. Just ask him why he has orange paint on the back of his cage.......:eek: :flipoff2:

mini truck baby. :flipoff:drum brakes!

i can say from experience that drums suck. i have a 74, and the drum brakes are in the process of puking. it sucks to adjust them, and it sucks to use them. Your eyes pop outta your head after the first time you try to stop when they're wet. :eek: its a scary feeling! Im serious, get disks, i know i am.

Drum brakes are way cool!

Thats why i run 4wheel disc buddy.....

:confused:

I havent had a good chuckel all day

but when I saw live wires 1st reply;) ;) ;) :)

Originally posted by 74cruzah
I am sick and tired of my worthless drum brakes on my 74. As I understand it I have a few options. Mini truck, disc brake kit (man-a-fre), later 40 axles that have stock disc brakes, or perhaps from a 60. I believe that my 40 has course splined birfields. Will I need to replace everything from my birfs out or would it be easier/better to try and find different axles? Any advice from people who have done this would be greatly appreciated. Keep in mind, like most of you, I do have a finite amount of resources.

Get a minitruck front axle, do that conversion. It's well-documented, and you can get a front axle for $150-$250 in most places, and I've heard of better deals.

For the rear, find a set of those RDB brackets or make your own. The specs for them are here (http://www.geocities.com/crusherresto/LCDBC1.pdf) . The monte carlo caliper rear disc brake swap is also well-documented. I happen to have a write-up (http://www.birfield.com/~morgan/tech/rdb/index.html) on it as well.

I think the parts for the rear disc brake swap ran to about $250 for me, but I went with fancy stainless brake line and rebuilt parts w/o cores. It did take me a little while to round up and modify the parts, and the TSM kit saves you the hassle for not too much more money.

Lots of people say the proportioning valve isn't needed for the RDB swap, but I put one in. I think fundamentally it's a safety issue. If you can make your cruiser break safely, you should. They aren't expensive. Get a good tubing bender and a good flare kit.

Morgan

I just seen a mini truck frt axle for sale in the for sale section $50,our less just know it was realy cheap.

Originally posted by morgan
Lots of people say the proportioning valve isn't needed for the RDB swap, but I put one in. I think fundamentally it's a safety issue. If you can make your cruiser break safely, you should. They aren't expensive. Get a good tubing bender and a good flare kit.

Morgan

Honestly, Morgan, I'd rather "brake" safely than "break" safely....lol

Gawd, I love phonetic typos.... :D :D

:)

Drum brakes work even better after your rig has gone thru a muddy hole............go disk or don't stop when you pull on the pavement after a day of wheelin.

Kman

i have a set up for front disc that uses the same calipers and rotors as the rear. it works great, the only con that i have come up with is the coarse spline birfs, but if your not going to run any thing bigger than a 33 it should work fine. i can get pics but i don't have the red star and don't know how to get from the snap shot program to send to someone to post.

Is there any think special about the RDB plate? Can it be made from mild 3/8 steel?

Morgan - the link to the spec on the RDB plates is not working. Does this swap work for aj FJ60 also? What master cylinder are you using in you swap for the FJ55. I see two resovoirs on your master cylinder. Do I need to change that out as well??

Thanks for any info..:confused:

anybody in the Lancaster/ Palmdale area want to teach a young buck how to put disck brakes on the front of his 74 fj40? ha ha

I would supply all of the beer! this is a one time good deal for you guys!


Donald


:beer: :beer: :usa:

Originally posted by davidd113
Save a bunch of money and get the drums running right. They stop as well or better than the disk when maintained correctly. Replacxe it all and adj correctlyand you will be good. HTH

man thats hilarious, funniest thing i've read all day!

Originally posted by trd55
Is there any think special about the RDB plate? Can it be made from mild 3/8 steel?

It's just a flat plate. I'm sure mild steel would be acceptable, and it does have to be 3/8" according to the drawing.


Morgan - the link to the spec on the RDB plates is not working.

I took the liberty of snagging the file and uploading it to my site (http://www.birfield.com/~morgan/tech/LCDBC1.pdf).


Does this swap work for aj FJ60 also?


I think I remember reading that it doesn't work on J6s. See the landcruisers@tlca.org mailing list archives (http://www.birfield.com/cgi-bin/wilma/landcruisers) for more info...

I'm not sure, but if I remember right the J6 rear drums are self-adjusting, single-cylinder and work just great. Most people I know say there's less reason to go to RDB on J6s. Consider just adjusting/fixing them.


What master cylinder are you using in you swap for the FJ55. I see two resovoirs on your master cylinder. Do I need to change that out as well??


It's the stock 1976 master that came on my FJ55. The J6 master would work fine for RDB, but again I bet the stock drums are just fine if they're adjusted right. A lot of people that do the RDB swap end up using a minitruck booster/master, I've heard that supra masters, FJ80 (non-ABS) masters and 1975 large-bore masters are also good. shrug

Morgan

The brakes are not an issue now, but when i go to 35's, just wanted a little more. The 60s have the rear setup like the mini trucks, 4 bolt flang and e-brake at the rear. I would have to upgrade to a t-case disc e-brake to do the rear disc swap. Would be nice to have the FJ 80 rear disc/e-brake though...:rolleyes: thanks for the info. I have a copy of the plate. Might do it on my taco. Front disc sometimes can not stop 33s on a dime even with rears adjusted right, and BPV turn off. Will lock up rear to easy. Can't imagine 35s .:eek:

Yeah, an 80 rear would rock. 80 axles front and would rock even harder!

I bet someone has put rear discs on a 60 with stock axles. I like 4WDB with my 35s, but the '76 rear drums weren't great.

Morgan