Junk yard goodies

[rjcruz27]

I’ve been having fun lately and hitting up a bunch of salvage yards. Found some goodies. Got me thinking. Is it worth to piece together a disk brake set up or just buy the kit. Just doesn’t seem like the price point gap is worth not just getting a whole kit

 

[Timmy390]

I found sourcing the parts myself was much cheaper than a kit. I had already bought and was running the power booster with drum brakes. I'm sure prices on parts have gone up.

I got knuckles out from a 79 Bronco.....minus rotor/hubs
Bought everything else at the local parts store (old calipers as cores) Shopped around as prices vary.
(I think it was) 79 F100 front brake lines?
Kept my stock drum/drum MC
Kept the stock 74 H block.
Reused the stock Bronco locking hubs
Ball joints from NAPA
Bushings to keep the 74 tie rods from one of the vendors

Kits are nice. They save time (and time is money) and everything is shiny new but I'm a "junker" so I like the hunt.

Tim

 

[thegreatjustino]

It has been years since I last did a GM disc brake conversion, but I've done two now for right around $200 using junkyard parts.

Here in CA where things don't corrode and rust out, the brake lines and calipers were still usable despite being 30+ years old at the time.

 

[SteveL]

Junkyard is a way better option for upgrades. If you can find what you need it saves $$$$. Also gives you ideas for out of the box upgrades

 

[sprdv1]

right place, price and condition the yards can definitely be a great option

 

[bronconut73]

There were no Chevy oriented swap kits for us eb owners when I did mine in '89.....
I went to a local junk yard and the junk yard dog (the attendent) cut off the ends of a '75 Blazer front axle....yup he torched it off at the axle yokes. So got way more than I needed, lol. Back in '89 an old '76 Blazer wasn't worth shit. It was just old junk. That's why they just cut everything off destroying the rest of that front axle....cuz that truck was headed to the crusher.
I only paid $55 bucks for everything (remember it was '89).

Fast forward to today and even old Chevy trucks have value haha.
So getting these parts is not quite as easy as it used to be but keep looking. Find a rusted out hunk of junk truck and you may still find spindles and backing plates that are still usable.
Good luck.
Junk yards are fun.