kdml Posted May 11, 2011 Share Posted May 11, 2011 I am going to swap out the front drums on my '65 Riviera for disc brakes. I am looking at the Jamco and Scarebird options. Looks like the Scarebird option might be cheaper after purchasing all of the other components. Anyone want to provide an opinion as to why one kit would be better then the other?Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted May 11, 2011 Share Posted May 11, 2011 I went the Scarebird way. BUT, there was a catch. A local guy here was selling a brand new set on Craigslist for half the retail price. I then got a complete setup from a '76 Riviera for the hardware. For $100 I got a good set of rotors, calipers with good pads, a disk/drum master cylinder and booster and all of the lines and distribution blocks. That's a summer project so I can't elaborate on anything more than that. V8TV used to have a video covering the installation but I don't know if it's still around.Ed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mt65riv Posted May 11, 2011 Share Posted May 11, 2011 Was this a popular upgrade in the '70s? My deluxe parts car that sat in a field since the latre '70s has discs and a dual master cyl. I assume it came from a newer full size Buick. Someone wanted it to stop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted May 11, 2011 Share Posted May 11, 2011 Starting in '67 you could get front disk brakes as an option. Chances are your '70 was ordered that way from the factory.I didn't think about it until you posted "70 with disk brakes" but somewhere in my files I have an article that explains how to use the '70 era spindles etc. and retrofit them on a 1st generation Riviera. Anyone interested? Please, be serious, no tire kickers. It will take quite a bit of time to go through all of my files.Ed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CTX-SLPR Posted May 12, 2011 Share Posted May 12, 2011 It was about Steve Strope doing it because you responded to me about interchange between my '64 and a set of '68 Riviera spindles I have and plan on using for my huge disc brake swap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Th79 Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 I'd like to know which is better too, Scarebird or Jamco. I'm about to embark on the same adventure with my 65 rivi.- T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 What are you looking for exactly? It's going to take a really rare situation for one person to be able to compare both products. Chances are, if you've made the swap, you have either the Scarebird swap and have no experience with the Jamco setup or you have the Jamco setup and have no experience with the Scarebird setup. You're asking something that's going to be really hard to answer. If I were you, I'd ask a lot of questions of each supplier and make up your mind from there. I picked the Scarebird swap for the cost and ease of acquiring parts. I know (knew) nothing of the Jamco swap. The original post ask "why" would you choose one over the other. That's probably the only question that can be answered unless someone has two cars, one with each set up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Th79 Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 Maybe I should have been more specific. I was just bumping the original posters question but thanks for your input on the Scarebird. I take it the installation went pretty smoothly? Did you go with a new brake booster/master cylinder? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 I have yet to get to work on my Scarebird conversion so I can't say how smoothly it went. I chose the Scarebird system because of the price and availability. I have the OE master cylinder, power booster, lines, and distribution block from the donor car that gave up its rotors, calipers, and pads. The only thing I'll need to get new is brake hoses. I really like the idea of using everything that came together from the factory. To me that means that all of the engineering has already been done and I'm not mixing and matching a hodge podge of parts just so they'll fit.To add to the stopping power of the disks up front, I'm moving the 12" finned aluminum drums to the rear axle. That will give me another 1/4" of braking surface plus the cooling effect of the aluminum drums.I would imagine that this project will get under way toward the end of the summer after I've returned from the ROA event and have sold my "Type_R"I'll take pictures and post a play by play account of the entire swap.Ed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Th79 Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 Pictures would be great. Keep us posted and good luck with the project.- T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 PS - I might add that one other important consideration I gave to the Scarebird swap was that, other than the bracket, ALL of the other parts should be just as close as the nearest jobber. Whether you'd be at home or on the road, brakes should never be a problem. When you purchase "kits" you're sometimes bound by them to get replacement parts from them - which could take some time. This could be a real problem on a Sunday in Timbucktoo, TX.Ed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdml Posted May 31, 2011 Author Share Posted May 31, 2011 To clarify my original postI am really looking for any real world experience with either kit. Any pros or cons for each option based on experiences from those who may have purchased either.Ed, how did you find the quality of the scarebird brackets? Weld quality, etc? Also, I am interested in what modifications you are making (if any) to move the front drums to the back, as I had contemplated the same thing, but never thought through what it would take.Also, I am leaning towards the Scarebird setup for the same reason you described; parts are readily available. In fact, I actually sent a message to the Jamco folks to see if they would disclose what they source their parts from, but have not heard back yet.Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 Doug,The mid 50's Big Series Buicks - Super, Roadmaster, etc. had 12 x 2.25" rear drums on them. I've acquired a set of '56 rear backing plates that will allow me to fit the wider front shoes and the aluminum drums on the rear. There's a little bit of machining necessary to the drums, but I don't know what it is. The guy who told me about the conversion said "it will be very obvious what you'll need to do." I think there's a small lip that will need to be machined off. You'll have to pull the axles to get the new backing plates on, but I need to do that anyway so I can install the 3.91 rear end and put longer wheel studs in the axles. It will also be a good time to rebuild the wheel cylinders and install new brake hardware.You'll just have to be patient with me. After I've returned from Branson, I need to sell my '85 coupe for restoration funds. Then there's a couple of family vacations planned. Gotta keep the wife happy. I probably won't be starting too much on the '64 project until after she returns to her teaching job in the fall, and I have the days to myself again. I'm still in the process of collecting parts for some of the modifications. And I won't start until I've got everything I need. Then I'll figure out what comes first and get busy. You know, the old "plan your work and work your plan" ploy. I'm semi-retired so I don't get too fired up to get things done yesterday. That also has me on a fixed income budget. :eek: Lots of days I live by the old adage "When I feel the urge to work, I lie down until the urge passes." The best thing for you to do in the mean time is to spend time searching the internet for these tasks. I'm doing nothing that someone hasn't done before me. I'm not re-inventing the wheel. One of my biggest assets is being able to search the internet. Find one thing and it will lead to another. Print it out, file it, and continue until you find all of the answers.Look at images on Google for what you want, then find the article from which it came. In other words - do most of your time planning. I'd bet that there's a lot of information on disk brake swaps on the H.A.M.B. (Hokey Assed Message Board) site. "Old skool" hot rodders who like doing things the old fashioned way.Ed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest asmines Posted May 7, 2012 Share Posted May 7, 2012 I just started the same project on my 67. Here is why I went with scarebird. The Jamco kit is about $700+. For the less money I was able to build my own kit using cooler parts which are readily available from other resources. I got dimpled and slotted bigger rotors, powder coated calipers, and stainless braided hoses , bearings etc for less than the Jamco kit. The Instructions that came with the scarebird adapters has a detailed application list that comes with it. Making it easy and giving me lots of options to choose from. I could have gone all out with wilwood if I could afford it or you can go with oem parts and save a ton. Good Luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 I finally found this video, which I saw a few years ago. Hopefully it will give you an idea what's involved in doing a Scarbird disk brake swap. The car in the video is a '62 Buick Electra, but the same kit works on early Rivieras.www.V8TVshow.com - Stopping the Sled - Cheap Disc BrakesEd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rob J Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 Starting in '67 you could get front disk brakes as an option. Chances are your '70 was ordered that way from the factory.I didn't think about it until you posted "70 with disk brakes" but somewhere in my files I have an article that explains how to use the '70 era spindles etc. and retrofit them on a 1st generation Riviera. Anyone interested? Please, be serious, no tire kickers. It will take quite a bit of time to go through all of my files.EdEd, he was referring to was disc brakes an upgrade folks were performing on their first gen Riv's in the 1970's, not on a 1970 model year Riv. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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