HR drum to disc conversion

[DN2168]

Hey Guys,
             I have just gotten my hands on a HR drum brake front end & was wondering if it is possible to convert it to disc brakes. I also have a pair of disc brake stub axles to go on if they fit. I got it for free so if it is do-able then thats another win.
Thanks, Dean.

[FC427]

Should be no problems just change the stub axles to the disc ones the engine mount locations and the out rigger and your in business .......FC427.......

[DN2168]

Thanks for that FC427, you have made my afternoon.... ,  Dean.

[smithy]

hey dean, hang onto the drum stub axles mate.
if you ever want to change the brakes over to commodore for example castlemain rod shop and others require these stub axles on a change over basis. may save you some dollars down the track.
if you dont want them then im sure someone on here may be needing them eventually and from memory when i changed my front to commodore the stubs were pretty hard to find.

cheers
dean

[DN2168]

Will do Dean, the commodore set-up sounds interesting.

Dean

[smithy]

it has its drawbacks
but eventually i'll get it.

[DN2168]

you have me intrigued oh purple FC'ed one. What drawbacks have you come up against?

[smithy]

the biggest one would have to wheel size and choice.
unfortunately i didnt do my homework before hand and later found out the hard way that your standard 15 inch commy rim with 195 tyres comes within about 5 mm from the upper ball joint at the wall of the tyre. just a bit close for my liking. so after spending money on a set of moon discs i also have to have the offset of the rim pushed in to increase the distance from the ball joint.

i am also running a commy disc brake rear end aswell and after having the diff cut down to HR specs the standard rims came way to close to the inside guards this was with just 205 tyres so by also changing the offset by 8mm i can now run 235's on the rear.
and with 50 series rubber the rolling height comes within a couple of mm of the standard Fc specs. much better for the rego boffins

there are other ways around this either have blank discs redrilled to suit HQ or similar stud pattern but you still need to be careful of the front clearance or fit 16 or 17's and up ( havent tried but i hope they will clear the ball joint)  this will be my next step once car is running and i get bored with the current look would love to try with a set of 17 in rims just to see  but becuase of budget i will stick to changing offset, and i love moon discs

 because of the 120mm pcd ( commodore and some BMW stud pattern) the choice of suitable looking wheels is quite limited, as a lot of rims from the states wont come in 120mm pcd but the more common 120.65 (chev & HQ) you can get some great bargins on U.S evil bay.
im sure there are other ways around this problem probably the best person to get the correct info from would be Ken ( mcl1959 )

cheers
dean

[FC427]

I also went through the wheel fit dilemma I use 297 mm Commodore disc rotors and 4 piston calipers. I  had to run 17'' wheels  for caliper clearance  and with out paying a fortune for wheels the range was very limited but managed to get a set to fit  ''SPEEDY Wheels'' are imported blank and can be drilled to suit any application problem solved  and they did clear the top balljoint I think 110 mm back space .....FC427......

[smithy]

thats what i was thinking FC427. i have been looking at some of the speedy / roh range but there arent many out there which compliment the fine lines of this classic car, without paying a fortune.
do you have any guard clearance issues with the 17,s ? or fouling on steering arms?

also do you know what size offset are the rims, i have been told by one shop that a + 40 should get me out of trouble but they wont let me have a rim to test 
i would like to know which is the best offset so if im lucky i can find a second hand set on ebay.

as i am only running standard calipers they fit inside the 15's without rubbing but i am worried about overheating issues, am even contimplating running some sort of air ducting onto them but wont know for sure till i run the car.
cheers
dean

[FC427]

Hi Smithy no guard clearance issues and Ute is lowered a little over 2'' I run a rear mounted rack and again no clearance issues.there should be a picture of my Ute in members cars so you can compair the height of mine against yours  Where do you live I have a spare you could try and I know the guy who owns a tyre shop that buys all the speedy warrantee claims and old stock he also may be able to help. ''Most'' Commodore wheels have 125mm back space and won't fit  ..........FC427......... 

[smithy]

PM sent.

[mcl1959]

I no longer work at Hoppers Stoppers so this is no longer an add for my work.  The H/S kit does not use modified drum stub axles (if you read the RTA specs, modifying the stub axle is not allowed)
Also the H/S kit is available in any stud pattern you wish including early Holden, HQ, Commodore and Ford.
There is no extra charge for stud pattern change.
Kit uses better calipers than Commodore as well.
I designed this kit so I know everything there is to know about it. And since I no longer work at Hoppers Stoppers I can tell you any drawbacks about kits as well.

Ken

[FC427]

Ken while your talking tell us about the draw backs and give us an education Please .....FC427....

[mcl1959]

Well the biggest drawback is the offset, specifying HQ pattern is OK, but stock HQ or Chev rims are deep dished so generally foul the guards.  HQ stud pattern rims with a shallow dish fit pretty well as do early Holden stud pattern rims in 15 inch. Commodore rims have the best offset but you must run 16's on a HR front end because the 15 inch rim fouls on the grease nipple on top of the upper ball joint and the tie rod end. Generally the bigger the diameter the wheel the better. We fitted 18 x 8 Commodore rims and tyres onto an EJ with HR front end with no clearance issues. 16 inch Ford EL rims fit very well on HR front ends in early Holdens.
There is another kit called "deep inset" to suit HR which uses Corvette rotors. This allows the use of deep dish style rims. This kit was developed for an EH with HR front end and pretty much retains the original track width of the HR front end. It is not widely sold but it is available.

Ken

[DN2168]

Thanks for your input Ken, it has helped heaps. Now..... next question, the CRS stub axles to suit HQ style rotors, has or is anyone using these stubs?

[FC427]

I have a set of these in 2'' drop I ordered them to suit Commodore Calipers a few years back but have never fitted them was going to go real low .....FC427........

[DN2168]

FC427..... you know the next question don't you....

[FC427]

How Much ......FC427........

[DN2168]

Ok still pondering this mod, but first an apology to FC427 for not getting back to you, went off on another tangent.
Now is it true that you can use LH/LX torana stubs on an HR front end & if so are there any disadvantages eg wheel alignment ect.

Thanks,  Dean