Hot Rods Chevy 6 lug discs and original wheels

I've adapted GM 70's style calipers to several conversions I've done. I buy the Speedway weld on caliper brackets they sell for the rear axle and modify them to bolt on front spindles of various cars. Then make whatever spacers are needed to center the calipers to the rotors. For rotors I buy whatever pattern rotors fit the old hubs and after replacing the studs with longer studs to accommodate the rotor thickness I reuse the stock hubs with new rotors. I'd look and any modern rotors that are 6 bolt Chevy and fit your stock hubs.
Last few I did this conversion on cost about $150 in parts. Of course you'll also need to convert to a modern dual reservoir master and that's a separate cost.

 

So here is where we are now. The caliper bracket won't clear the spindle - it was pushed out. So @Fomocokid stopped by and centered up the backing plate/caliper bracket and figured out where the spindle mounting bolts had to be. To me this was a difficult process. I struggled with seeing this. He didn't. Then he cut out the backing plate to clear the spindle and measured the back side for the spacers to bolt up to the spindle. It looks like they are cut at an angle to match backing plate and to me it looks like the top ones and bottom ones are different lengths. I don't know exactly how long they are - hopefully he will chime in here soon. He put the calipers on the plates to figure out exactly how far the backing plates had to be away from the spindle to center the rotor in the caliper. Anyhow here is what the modified backing plates look like

 

that looks just like what I did. those are the best looking caliper brackets/backing plates and rugged .

 

Then he mounted it all together - caliper mount, caliper, rotor and hub and bolted the wheel to the hub. He took the spindle off so he could do it on the bench. It wouldn't clear but he was able to grind the caliper a little and the wheel rivets a little and then it all fit and cleared. Here is it all mounted



the caliper had to just barely be ground down top one is the caliper ground down bottom one is non modified caliper

 

I have a cool 4 second video but cant post it. If someone else can I'll send it to them

 

I put it all together and everything works. As near as I can tell it brought the wheels in 7/8" per side. maybe just a little more. It looks like the wheels are in the stock position and measures that way too. So here is my take on ABS Power Brakes Inc 6 lug disc for early chevy straight axles. They do have a 6 lug kit that the stock OEM wheel will go over but they dont tell the truth when they say it doesnt push the wheel out. Their customer service*****s. Their directions are poor. Once they got my money I was on my own. Its probably an OK kit if you use different wheels. Thanks to @tb33anda3rd for posting up what he did all those years ago and encouraging me to do this. And to @Fomocokid for all the fabrication.

 

a thin spacer [I don't use one with my 15" wheels] may have avoided the grinding and set the wheels out perfect.

 

It looks like the difference is the wheel. The stock wheels have a deep drop on the center (where yours looks like it's touching) and the 15" @tb33anda3rd is using looks pretty flat on the inside by the pics he posted. Also maybe a little bit of offset difference between your 16" and his 15".

My modified 16" still run a stock center, so it has the deep drop but mine is tapered.....so the caliper might fit ok.

Stock artillery:




Mine:

 

Again, GREAT thread.

 

The spacers on the backing plate are all the same length from the flat surface in the center but because the bottom 2 are further onto the tapered surface of the backing plate they appear to be shorter than the top ones. I believe they are 5/8” long from that flat center surface. I made them longer and then put the backing plate in the mill to get them all cut at an even distance.

 

when I was setting mine up, I stacked washers till the rotor was centered to the caliper. then I measured the washers and cut a pieces of tube to length. I can't remember what the measurement was for the 39 truck spindles. it may have been the same.

 

Well I finished up a few days ago. Everything works, I took it for a test drive and all is good. Ill get some photos this weekend and post them up.

 

Just got caught up, good work and thread!

Always like hearing that part.

 

So here is a comparison of how this turned out
Here are the ABS brakes that "dont push the wheel out"


Here are the brakes from @Fomocokid and @tb33anda3rd


and lastly, I could not get my fingers between the fender and the tire. Here is how it is now - thumb doesnt touch the tire or the fender

nice white walls huh? Well they get changed on Tuesday to new radials from diamondback by the recommendation of @Bandit Billy