When using this combo, is there any grinding that needs to be done to have the later taller bracket/caliper fit the A body 73-76 spindle?

Reading the mopar action and bigblockdart article, it does not seem so. Just says the bracket has to match the caliper and rotor. Trying to buy parts from someone, but they won't sell because they say this combo needs grinding on the spindle and its a safety issue.

Bolts together like it was born there. I used '73-'76 A-body spindles, 11.75" rotors and sliding calipers on my '66 Dart. No issues at all with it going together. That car is still being raced with those parts.

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Joshua

Awesome, thanks for the heads up.

What are the big rotors and calipers off of? And will they fit 14" wheels or do you need to go to 15" rims?

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Grandpa's 1974 Dart Custom 4 door 225 auto, Aluminum Radiator, 1920 Holley.

'78 Cordoba, '79 Newport and similar cars had the 11.75" rotors with sliding calipers. Pin type calipers rotate around the bushings which makes for a squishy brake pedal. Need 15" wheels. The caliper to spindle adapters/mounts are the hard part to find.

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Joshua

Ok, I have the whole shebang coming in the mail. Sliding 11.75 brackets, yukon axles for stock 8 3/4, A body 73-76 spindles/arms.

Next part is figuring out the wheels. Trying to do it as economically as possible. The cop car wheels seem to be a big hit - however, are they any different from the "regular" 15x7 BBP wheels with 4 1/4" backspacing? Other then looks, that is. They will still fit the bigger rotors?

I thought of cragar 15's as well. They are $40 each from summit, with only $10 shipping for all 4, thats not bad. Or should I skip 15's all together and get something else, keeping price in mind. I don't necessarily want anything huge, I'd be happy with a 225-230ish tire. Just trying to keep costs down since I'm spending more then anticipated. Boy, many choices here.

I like 225/50R15s on 15x7" wheels. It's a short tire, but if the car is lowered a little it looks pretty good and the steering response is great. The front of my old '64 Valiant is sporting 225/50R15s on some R-body aluminum wheels. The back wasn't yet converted to big bolt pattern in this photo.



A 215/60R15 is about as big as you can put on the front of a '66 and earlier car without trimming the lower front corner of the fender opening. You don't say what car you're working with.

Regular 15x7" wheels will fit over those brakes no problem.

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Joshua

It's a 71 duster.

I'm all about function over form. I really don't care what things look like as long as they work well. I just need something durable to survive daily commutes on highways that aren't always perfect. May also add a swaybar to the mix.

It sounds like these later model wheels are a good candidate, I'll have to see if there are any left in the yards. Weren't aluminum wheels a no-no over rough roads, especially at highway speeds?

Factory aluminum wheels are typically pretty tough. The only factory AL wheels I know of that have failed due to pot holes are some of the really light ones BMW used along with very low profile tires. I think they were BBS wheels. OE Chrysler wheels are pretty strong and in 15x7" are about 9lbs lighter each than a cop car wheel.

Cop car wheels on my '71 Dart. Front tires are 205/60R15. Rear are 215/60.


Wife's old '72 Duster with 14x7" slotted mags and 215/60R14.


My '66 Dart with 205/50R15 front and 235/60R15 rear.


I need to take a picture of my '67 Valiant with the 17" wheels. It has 8" wide wheels up front and 9" out back. Tires are 235/45R17 and 255/40R17.

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Joshua

And finally here is my '67 Valiant as it sits now.

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Joshua

Thanks for the pix Josh. I just remembered how much of a pain it was getting lug nuts off at a junkyard.... when you said regular were you referring to the non-copcar 15x7 mopar rims or the cragars? $40 each is tempting but I'd hate to have to return them if they didn't fit.

I mean any 15x7" disc brake wheel. I imagine it would be tough to find a 7" wide wheel that only fit drum brakes, but I suppose it's possible.

BTW, the D in Torque Thrust D denotes the disc brake model with the curved spokes to clear the brake calipers. American Racing came out with them when the Corvette and other cars became available with disc brakes.

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Joshua