Just wondering if anyone knows of any rear disc conversion options for an 83 1/2 ton ram van

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83 B150 /6 4spd
97 JeepWrangler Sport 4.0
2001 VW Beetle TDI 5sp
2000 Nissan Xterra
73 Dodge B300 van

What bolt pattern and rear end is on it?

Stock 8 3/8 rear 4 1/2 x 5 bolt pattern

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83 B150 /6 4spd
97 JeepWrangler Sport 4.0
2001 VW Beetle TDI 5sp
2000 Nissan Xterra
73 Dodge B300 van

Loads and loads of Jeeps and late model Dodge trucks have that axle with rear disc brakes. It mostly all just bolts on. The question is why do you want to swap? Rear drums work great.

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Casually looking for a Clifford hyperpak intake for cheap.

Agreed, they do, but whenever i'ts damp or raining the slightest touch of the pedal locks up the rear brakes. Just trying to eliminate that issue unless there is another way to do it without doing all of that

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83 B150 /6 4spd
97 JeepWrangler Sport 4.0
2001 VW Beetle TDI 5sp
2000 Nissan Xterra
73 Dodge B300 van

The other option is to install a valve on that line so it limits the pressure in the line so they can be tuned to lock up correctly. The other option is to see if there is a brake piston with a different bore that will need more pressure to actuate the brakes so they function at the correct time.

#1 will require some brake line mods, #2 requires some mopar parts research.

-D.Idiot

Food for thought thanks DI

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83 B150 /6 4spd
97 JeepWrangler Sport 4.0
2001 VW Beetle TDI 5sp
2000 Nissan Xterra
73 Dodge B300 van

I would look into why the rear brakes are locking up. I have owned many many Dodge B series vans and I have NEVER had a problem with the rear brakes locking up, no matter the driving conditions, powertrain, or load being carried. I would think you had a fault somewhere else in the braking system such as sticking front calipers or front rotors that needed to be replaced.

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Casually looking for a Clifford hyperpak intake for cheap.

Lots of things could cause rear lock up: weak shoe return springs, a seized wheel cylinder piston, incorrect wheel cylinder (wrong diameter), stuck/inop rear proportioning valve, contaminated shoe linings, incorrect shoe-to-drum fit (no "toe-heel" clearance),stuck parking brake cables, ineffective front brakes, etc etc. Sometimes I've seen wheel lockup/ skid problems that were mostly the result of old-petrified tires that had poor grip in rain.

It might take abit of work to figure it out, but I'd lean towards fixing what you have rather than converting.

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63 Valiant Wagon
225 - 4 bbl

By the mid 1990's, Mopar had a rear anti-lock brake systems (RABS) on most Vans and Trucks...
Mopar Action had a retro-fit article "How To" on RABS, a couple of issues back.
I do agree that you want to make sure that your current system is operating correctly but after that, you may want to look at RABS.
DD

The problem here is that drum brakes behave very differently in the rain than on dry surfaces. Disk brakes do not share this characteristic. This makes it impossible to balance a disk/drum set up for both conditions. All high level, or high performance cars have 4 wheel disk brakes. This is not just for status or show. The disk/drum combo definitely is an economy move with disadvantages. If you can get disk brakes on the back, you will still need to balance them with an adjustable proportioning valve. And because of the balance of our vehicle,it may still want to break loose in the rear in the rain.

Afer saying all that, you might want to look at better tires for wet pavement first. I have 4 wheel disk brakes on this car, and love them. I would not go back to drum brakes of any kind on any wheels.

Sam

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The other consideration is load. If the brakes are tuned for an empty or light van, they won't perform properly when it's loaded with either people or cargo. If your loads are consistent you may be able to tune for that. But if you haul anything with the van you want the extra rear pressure, which could cause lock up when empty.
Some vehicles have load sensing proportioning valves that work very well.
The Caravan comes to mind, I wonder if such a valve could be modded in.
Doc's suggestion may be your best choice if you don't want an axle swap and all the other mods that go with it.

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Mattelderca
78 NYB (gone now), two S series, three old Snow Cruisers and a Doo.

[quote="Reed"]I have owned many many Dodge B series vans and I have NEVER had a problem with the rear brakes locking up, no matter the driving conditions, powertrain, or load being carried.

I've owned 6 of them, ( still have 2 ) 2 sportsman's, 1 maxi-van, and 3 107''wb cargos. The two sportsmans never acted up that way, but the '79 and the two 83's all did (do) the same thing. I never thought it was an issue but rather '' the nature of the beast "

Tires are Goodyear Wrangler's with about 3000 miles tops. All of the sugesstions sound good, but I think I'll try to pinpoint the problem first. I like the proportioning valve idea too- might come in handy for towing

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83 B150 /6 4spd
97 JeepWrangler Sport 4.0
2001 VW Beetle TDI 5sp
2000 Nissan Xterra
73 Dodge B300 van

Are Wranglers a good wet weather tire?

Sam

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83 B150 /6 4spd
97 JeepWrangler Sport 4.0
2001 VW Beetle TDI 5sp
2000 Nissan Xterra
73 Dodge B300 van