Hi all, I had to repost becauase I had this in the wrong category. My 53 Chevy has Mustang II front end and a 57 Chevy rear end . I'm trying to determine what the car has but it's difficult. The front has 9" pinto disc brake setup. The pedal and master cylinder assembly is from a 70s (72 perhaps) Ford Mustang (I can't find part numbers). The rear has the stock shoes and wheel cylinders that fit a 55-57 rear end. This is according to the previous owner. How can I select the correct master cylinder? I want to buy an 11" disc brake setup with bigger GM calipers, a proportioning valve, a 2psi residual, and a 10 psi residual. The master cylinder is the part I don't know how to get. Ideally I'd like to leave the brake pedal and bracket and just put a different m/c. I could also attempt a power setup but it would have to be under floor and I'm not sure I really need it however that car is so hard to stop on steep hills. Any suggestions how to tackle this? Accurately measuring the pedal ratio seems tough without taking stuff out. The current setup does not stop the car too well in my opinion, especially on steep hills.
Are you still planning on buying an ECI front disk kit? If so, try as hard as you can to measure the pedal arms (up arm and down arm), then call ECI and tell them what you have. They will be the best people to give the best advice on the master cylinder you should use.
Thanks so much, im going to see if i can measure that pedal ratio some how cleverly and then call them.
I measured a pedal ratio of about 5.2 to 1. The M/C cylinder is from a 70s Mustang supposedly but I forgot to measure the bore on it. The rear wheel cylinders are stock for a 57 chevy so 1 inch bore. I'm not sure if switching from a 9inch to an 11 inch disc kit on the front will be easy to make work since I have an actual Mustang II front end that was taken from a junkyard car.
search online for these= www.mustangsteve.com/granadadiscs.html & www.welderseries.com/blog/online-store/mustang-ii-brake-kit-for-granada-rotors/ also, take the time to clean the undercarriage before taking everything apart with spray on cleaner & scrape off what that does not remove - do this in driveway and put a cheap plastic trap down to collect the junk that comes off. your front wheels must be Ford, and rears Chevy because of different bolt patterns. some steel wheels will clear the larger brakes but, you may have to find replacements for front (wrecking yard, summit racing, etc). replacing the master cylinder stand alone with a M/C power booster will make a big difference in stopping power for larger brakes.
Don't you remember we determined that you have aftermarket dropped spindles on your car? Tell ECI this when you order your kit. They will have something that fits. Then tell them what your pedal ratio is, and what rearend you have. They should be able to recommend a master that works with the system.
boy, if that frontend has aftermarket dropped spindles it must have been done many years ago with a lot of miles under a big oil leaking motor to have that much oil & grease on everything. ecihotrodbrakes.com is a source for disc conversion parts - their universal brake assist sounds like it may save you the hassle of installing a power booster. but, as with most projects nothing is cheap if you do right.
Thanks. I am suprised with all the grease and oil myself. The guy must have driven this car so much before I bought it. I bought this car December 2013. The motor was rebuilt in 2009 with low miles (500 miles). I actually confirmed this because I've had to take the cylinder head out to have a valve fixed and the rest of the motor looked rebuilt and the pistons had stamps on it for sure. It leaks oil but I'm not surprised the more I think about it and based on who put this car together. I will clean up the grease, etc. The car was well driven, the mustang II is from a real mustang not the kit and I'm sure it was put on there without ever being cleaned. Most of the work to the car was done in the 90s with the exception of the paint and engine rebuild done in 2009. The front end has 2" dropped spindles. The front and rear wheels have the same exact bolt pattern so he must have gotten a kit a long time ago that goes with Chevy bolt pattern. Working on this car for me personally has been so challenging, but finding out what is really in it has been extremely difficult.
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