Little Shop Disc Break Conversion

[Merritt31]

Just wanted to make a post about the https://www.littleshopmfg.com/gm-88-00-k1500-rear-disc-brakes-6-lug-for-10-drum-axles/ conversion I just finished.
My drum brake on the driver side decided to go boom and destroyed the dust cover. Rather than put drums back on I went for the conversion and I couldn't be happier! I also did the upgraded Master Cylinder https://www.littleshopmfg.com/cart.php and the brake feel is awesome! I did have to shave the outer brake pad to keep it from hitting the disc and my factory 16in rim had wheel weights on the inside and the caliper is close enough to the rim that it tore those off. Other than that I'm so glad that I did it!

 

[Schurkey]

You have my sympathies.

 

[Merritt31]

You have my sympathies.

why's that?

 

[Schurkey]

1. The typical "Little Shop of Horrors" and other bottom-feeder "cheap" disc conversion use ElDorado calipers and crappy, poorly-engineered flat adapter brackets that put undue stress on the caliper mounting pins.

2. The "downgraded" master cylinder is supposed to be used with non-Low Drag calipers, but it seems like half the folks (or more) that cram that master onto their vehicles don't change their calipers making the master cylinder a total mis-match with poor hydraulic advantage.

This has been discussed a dozen times or more on this forum, but folks only see what they want to because disc brakes are "cool" and "desirable". Folks are unable to see SOME disc brake downgrade kits as the junk they are.

 

[l1lartur0]

Meh. Brakes are for losers. Just cut a hole in the floorboard and Fred Flintstone it...

 

[Erik the Awful]

Even the makers of those type of kits admit there's no increase in braking performance with their disc conversions. The only advantage of discs is that they're low-maintenance. If you really want to upgrade to a four-wheel disc brake kit that improves performance, you're not going to get it with their $500 kit. You'd need to spend 5x that amount, and then you're going to need to upgrade the fronts and master cylinder to match.

Wilwood Disc Brakes - Search Wilwood Brake Kits

Wilwood bolt-on big brake (bbk) conversion kits are designed to provide superior braking performance and a highly detailed appearance over a wide range of domestic and import applications. Ssearch for Search Wilwood Brake Kits

www.wilwood.com

 

[Supercharged111]

Even the makers of those type of kits admit there's no increase in braking performance with their disc conversions. The only advantage of discs is that they're low-maintenance.

?? I've done front pads 5X and rotors 3X on my 1500. Still rocking whatever shoes are inside the junkyard diff I installed back in 2012. Discs ARE easier to service, absolutely, but I can't think of a brake pad that's outlasted what's in the back of my 1500.

As to why the OP loves his new setup? New stuff is better than old, out of adjustment leading/trailing garbage. But I'm in violent agreement with those who've pointed out the glaring flaws in this kit.

 

[0xDEADBEEF]

Wilwood makes a lot of kits that really aren't all that different from what LSM sells. It's a bracket that bolts to the end of the axle housing that the caliper then bolts to.

 

[Supercharged111]

Wilwood makes a lot of kits that really aren't all that different from what LSM sells. It's a bracket that bolts to the end of the axle housing that the caliper then bolts to.

I blame the roundy round crowd. It's such a a popular swap that Wildwood makes aluminum bodied calipers with various piston bores.

 

[Caman96]

?? I've done front pads 5X and rotors 3X on my 1500. Still rocking whatever shoes are inside the junkyard diff I installed back in 2012. Discs ARE easier to service, absolutely, but I can't think of a brake pad that's outlasted what's in the back of my 1500.

As to why the OP loves his new setup? New stuff is better than old, out of adjustment leading/trailing garbage. But I'm in violent agreement with those who've pointed out the glaring flaws in this kit.

I never understood the “difficult to maintain” either. As pointed out, comparing a new cool disc setup to your old drum setup isn’t a valid comparison.