Earlier in our restoration, we removed the drum brake assembly so, at this point, we only have the original lower bolts retaining our original spindle and steering knuckle. Our new front disc brake kit from Stainless Steel Brakes Corporation bolts right onto the original spindle, so we have everything we need to begin installation.  In the steps that follow, all the parts we describe are supplied in the kit.

Our spindle and steering knuckle had already been prepped and painted. All we needed to do was clean up the spindle bearing surfaces using brake cleaner.

Here, we remove the original lower bolts that secure the spindle to the steering knuckle. We need to use the new bolts supplied since they are slightly longer.

The kit provides a caliper mounting bracket that can be used in two positions.  In our application, it has to be placed with the two caliper mounting holes towards the front of the car. 

We attach the caliper mounting bracket to the spindle. The top two bolts and lock washers pass through the inside of the spindle and thread into the bracket. We don’t tighten these yet so we can move the bracket to accept the bottom bolts. 

The two large bolts are pressed through both the bracket and the spindle from the outside and secured with a lock nut and washer.

Once everything is threaded, we torque the top bolts to 55 ft/lbs. 

The bottom bolts are torqued to 150 ft/lbs.

Next, we slip on the special spacer, making sure the rounded side of the spacer faces inward. This spacer allows the original spindle to be used.

Next, we get the new inner and outer Timken bearings ready for installation by packing them with high temperature bearing grease. This can be done either by hand or using a packing tool.

Here you can see the grease being squeezed through each of the rollers of the bearings. Make sure that every surface of the bearing is coated with grease before installation.

It's a good idea to pack all the bearings at once and have them ready for installation.

The SSBC rotors come complete with the inner rotor bearing cup already installed. We just place the inner bearing in the cup.

We pack some grease lightly between the lips of the grease seal and place it over the bearing housing.

The seal has to be pressed into place. We use a rubber mallet and a small piece of wood to ensure the seal is evenly seated and not distorted.

Next, we use brake cleaner to clean the rotor and remove the protective coating. Be careful with brake cleaner -- it is very volatile and can easily damage paint.

We carefully position the rotor onto the spindle and and apply a gentle inward force so that the inner bearing is against the spacer.

Next we pack the inside of the rotor around the spindle with more high temperature bearing grease and then install the outer bearing over the spindle and into the outer cup of the rotor.

Then the washer is installed over the spindle. The washer has a tang which fits into the groove of the spindle.

Next, the adjusting nut is threaded onto the spindle. 

The sequence for tightening this nut is important. While rotating the rotor, torque the adjusting nut to 17-25 ft/lbs.  Then, loosen the adjusting nut 1/2 turn.  While rotating the rotor, retighten the adjusting nut to 10-15 ft/lbs.  Make sure the rotor spins freely without any binding.

Lock the adjusting nut with a cotter pin.  We wait until we are finished with the installation of the caliper to install the grease cap.

We insert two brake pads into the caliper from the top so that the brake pad linings face each other and install the pad retaining clips. The loops on the retaining clips should be on top and the bolts should be torqued to 15 ft/lbs.

We place the copper washer over the fitting of the flex line and attach it to the caliper in the threaded opening.

The flex line is tightened to 25-30 ft/lbs.

Here, we insert the two caliper mounting bolts and lock washes through the caliper and slide on the special tubular spacers.

Next, we line up the mounting bolts and thread them into caliper bracket.  The spacers should be installed between the caliper casting and the mounting bracket. 

We torque the mounting bolts to 55 ft/lbs. Make sure the rotor is centered between the pads and can rotate freely.

Your original grease cap may have been damaged in previous installations and look like ours shown here.. We want to protect the surface of the brand new cap.

A piece of 2" diameter pvc pipe with an inside thread has an ID just under 1 7/8" which, with a little sanding, fits perfectly over the cap.  This makes an excellent installation tool. A hose clamp eliminates potential tube splitting.

Using a piece of wood and a mallet, we tap the cap into place.  The impact of the mallet is equally distributed around the lip of the cap, protecting the cap surface.

Once the cap is in place, make sure the rotor still spins freely.

Attach the flex lines to the rigid brake lines at the frame rail and secure it in the braket using the horseshoe clip.  Steer the rotor through a full left to right turn to make sure the hose doesn't kink or double bend.

Here's a view of the final disc assembly from the other side.

Now, not only will our ride have a quick launch, SSBC has provided us high performance stopping power!

To our repeat visitors:  Thanks for all the wonderful comments and encouragement!!  We really appreciate it! :-)

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