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Rear Disc Brakes on a Valk Triwing Trike(LONG)
I know there was a thread on here a long time back about converting drum to disc brakes. I tried a search, but no joy.
I was never satisfied with the brakes on my trike. Stopping distances were way too long & I had to adjust them every 2-3 thousand miles to keep even that. I got a lot of help from some folks on here, but my computer crashed & I lost all my saved e-mails. So thanks to those who helped. You know who you are, even if I can't remember. Anyhow, I finally got mine to work right.
So thought I would share some of what I learned in the process. First, the TriWing uses a 7.5" Ford rear end. So most of this should at least be helpful to any kit that uses the same or similar. This is common to a lot of Mustangs & Rangers, and they were unable to tell me where mine came from. None of the aftermarket "big brake companies" were able to provide a kit without knowing what year, make & model of the rear end. So I got the rear brake set up off a 1994 Mustang GT because the bolt pattern on the axle flange was the same. Took everything except the parking brake cables. These calipers have an internal parking brake (not used yet) which also has the effect of ratcheting the piston outward when applied, thereby adjusting the parking brake. I had to mount the brackets on the inside of the axle flange to get the caliper to align with the rotor. This required cutting a piece out of the bracket. Envision turning an "O" into a "C" . After that all the pieces bolted up no problem. (new calipers, rotors & pads) At this point I have about $300 in this project which I felt was reasonable. BUT. Brakes were no better, maybe worse than before. Next I put in stainless brake lines. $89. Some improvement. Next was a 2 psi in line pressure valve. $40. No help. In looking for a kit, I had talked to a number of companies that seemed to have knowledge they were willing to share. Determined the OEM Master Cylinder was too small to provide enough volume. So I bought a M/C from JEGs, made by Wilwood. $70. This required making a bracket in order to mount the M/C. Folks at Wilwood recommended a 7/8" dia cylinder. At this point, I had maybe 15% better brakes than the original drums, but was only able to lock up the wheels if I literally stood up on the pedal. I bought a set of Hawk HPS pads. $72. Some improvement. Finally talked to the folks @ Wilwood again. They said I could try a smaller M/C, but that the pedal travel might be excessive. Well since I had tried everything else I could think of or pick from someone else's brain I decided to bite the bullet & get a 5/8" dia M/C. Another $70.
NOT!! JEGs has a One Year return policy! Called them up, no problem, just send it back. Gotta love that kind of customer service!
What a difference! I can now stop in what I consider a reasonable distance with moderate pedal pressure & the wheels will lock up if I overdo the pressure, without having to stand up on the pedal. I hope this is useful to someone. If I can be of more help, e-mail me at stanpamNOSPAM431@msn.com
