Why Not Customs :: Wichita, KS

Everyone out there wants disk brakes on the rear axle of their rig. The problem has always been the cost of brake brackets. I found out that there is a cheap way to put disk brakes on the rear axle of a Ford 9” axle. Now your axle will have to be the large bearing for this to work.

What you will need is a pair of disk brake brackets from a Chevy Dana 44 ¾ front axle. This bracket will not bolt directly onto your Ford axle, but don’t stop there. This is called a simple approach to help upgrade your rig and save money. You will have to remove the axle shaft and drum brake backing plate. Now that you have removed these part and you have a bare housing looking at you it is time to state.

You will now need to remove the wheel bearing from the axle shaft. This is a good time to install new bearings. Use the new bearing for this part of the build. Start by installing the bearing in the axle housing. Now install the Dana 44 brake bracket onto the Ford housing. Oh wait you still have to drill some new holes. When you look at the Dana 44 brake bracket you will see that there is an angle cut into the center hole of that brake bracket. This taper will align the brake bracket on the Ford housing as this taper will center itself on the wheel bearing sitting in the Ford housing. Clamp the brake bracket down and align it to fit you needs. Drill the 4 new holes and lets start putting this back together.

Now before you install the brake bracket and wheel bearing on the axle shaft you will have to have the wheel flange turned down to fit the brake rotor that you will be using. I used a F-150/Bronco brake rotor off of an 1978/1979 front axle. The inside measurement of that brake rotor will not fit over the wheel flange of you Ford 9” axle shaft. Once this has been turned down to fit the rotor, you can now start putting your rig back together.

Make sure you install the brake bracket on the right direction. Press the new wheel bearing onto the axle shaft. Install the axle shaft into the Ford housing with the new brake bracket installed. Slide the brake rotor onto the axle shaft. I used a Chevy front brake caliper, as they are cheap at the part store. If you want an e-brake you can use brake calipers from a 1978/1979 Cadillac El Dorado. The brake calipers used on the El Dorado are the same as the front brake calipers as the Chevy ½ ton and ¾ 4x4 trucks except they have a e-brake built into them. The cost is much higher and unless you have a core, you will be charge a core charge.

Enjoy you new disk brakes on your rig. Much better braking as well you don’t have to worry about the mud and water as you did with those drum brakes.



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