Hi everyone, It has been awhile since I have posted in the group, but I am looking into disc brake conversions, and I'm very interested in the Wilwood Dynalite kits. Has anyone installed them? Are they as direct of a bolt on kit as they claim? I know they are pricy but Wilwood has a good reputation, and all the sprint car teams I work with run Wilwood and they are great to work with, so I think it's a good way to go. Also, I was looking at purchasing their master cylinder, but I'm not sure which bore size to get. Everything on my 53 right now is stock, as far as brakes, all the lines are the original size, which I know ill need to make some adjusted, but I think its a good idea. If anyone has any input on these Wilwood kits I'd greatly appreciate it. Thanks!
Haven't done one on any of our fords, but have done one on my boss man's Bel Air, and yes it was super simple and is quite nice. Stops it like a brand new sports car. Don't think I'd spend that much on it, but I'm a cheap ***.
I'd call Wilwood regarding the m/cyl. It will be somewhere in the 7/8" range but they aren't cheap if you pick the wrong one the first time.
Yeah I saw that they offered a 7/8' and a 1" bore. All pretty close. Jamco only sells them as a 1", and the little bit of research only pointed me to a 1" bore. Also, stock replacement ones sold online on various websites are 1". So thats what I think I am going to try.
Well the bore size is directly going to affect the effort needed to push the pedal. I would be surprised if 1" is correct. I have found it is typically less (like 7/8). It makes a huge difference for a small change. One inch and above are typically used in power brakes systems where you have extra ***ist.
If you want to learn more... https://www.joesracing.com/master-cylinder-math/ https://www.markwilliams.com/braketech.html
I just completed the Wilwood system on my 56. It's listed for a 54-56. I discussed everything with their tech before buying which I did thru Summit. It all went very smooth and fit as bought. The MC was 7/8" and I did not use a booster. I bought the parts kit for a Mustang as the stock pedal uses an "eye" type attachment, it came adjustable. I bought the MC with their adjustable prop valve and added a 10# residual valve for the rear drum brakes. It's all made in the USA including the wheel bearings. They are located in Camarillo Ca. My Ford had 2 tee's in the stock system so I only needed 2 short 3/16" lines to them and one line plug. Their calipers are 4 piston where most are single piston and floater design which is used on 99% of all cars. I believe the 4 piston makes it stop so easy. Mine stops great now and is almost as good as a power ***isted unit to the foot feel. Yes it's expensive to what selling on e-bay but just the same as RB Brakes in So. Carolina who also know what they are doing. Good Luck
I looked at this kit but they just don't make them very big and they use the small calipers. Great for factory wheels though.
It isn't that are small calipers they a 4 piston not a single and a floater. When u step on brake 4 pistons squeeze the rotor not 1. Takes a lot less pressure especially with a 7/8" mc and a mechanical advantage of pedal.
When you run 17 or 18" wheels they are small calipers and rotors because they are designed for 15" wheels. I'm not knocking them they just don't fit my build.
Thank you for the info! Did you out some sort of gasket or bracket between the new 2 bolt master cylinder connecting the old 4 bolts just for looks? Did you have to do any adjustments or cuts?
I had to make no adjustments or cuts on anything. The plate you see above the new mastercylinder is for decoration only. Using the old MC and thin card board I made a template to cover the old holes and meet down on the new master. I made it out of !/8" s**** piece of aluminum and painted it gloss black. The top two holes needed to have cap screws into them as they sandwich the brake pedal ***embly into he car originally. I've seen others who were installing new MC's during painting and the witness marks from the old MC was sanded off. and cleaned before painting the firewall. I did not have that luxury. I purchased the MC from Summit after talking to the Wilwood tech. He advised me to purchase the Mustang bolt on kit which is currently on the Summit reviews. I believe ALL the MC's are the same and its the kit which includes the prop valve and brake rad the makes the difference. The 56 Ford has an "eye" type device at the pedal which is identical to the Mustang. There are 4 different ID's for the MC's so the pedal ratio, rear brakes style and wheel cylinder size needs to be known when you call them for which one. Mine is the smallest. which mean more pedal movement but less pressure like power brakes. I have a lot of brake now with out much pedal movement. When I move the pedal no more than 1/4" I feel braking. No matter which disc brake system you choose or brand I feel the Wilwood MC and adjustable Prop valve is a good fit for our Fords. Maybe it's just luck but the 56 has 2 tees and one short 3/16" tube to each one and the removal of the intertie between them was all I had to do. I removed 3 capscrews from the inner panel of the wheel and bent it back to do the work. The 3 bolts went right back it. Good Luck.
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