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By Doug T - 14 Years Ago
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Back in the late '60's, when Hot Rod mag. was a slightly more reliable source of info, they had a short article about putting '65-67 Full size Ford disc brakes on T birds. These brakes are Kelsey-Hayes 4 piston calipers with 11" 1.25" vented rotors, they are big, heavy and will really stop the car. They require special wheels to clear the big calipers. The calipers bolt to the spindle forging that is integral with the steering arm. The forging puts the ball joints at exactly distance to match the original 2 piece spindle and steering arm and may also lower the car a little. A shim is needed in the lower hole for the tapered ball joint bolt. It was pretty much a bolt in swap with the usual hose issues etc.
But what the article didn't mention was that the '67 steering arm is longer than the stock T bird arm whichwould havethe effect of slowing the already slow steering down even more. So I made a jig that held the spindles and cut about 2" (from memory now) out of the steering arms effectively shortening them to less than the length of the stock arms. I had the pieces professionally welded in a certified welding shop. Since the '67 arm is about twice as thick as the '55 arm I didn't get concerned about welding although it is not a good idea to weld on steering parts if it can be avoided.I did not change the pitman, idler arm, tie rods or any other chassis parts. This change would work with either power or manual steering, mine is manual. I wouldn't do it this way again but I built this all in the early '70s and there were no Granadas then.The brakes are more than sufficient for the car but they are heavy. The Granada/Monarch setup is a better match for the T bird and pass car and even though they are pretty rare these days they are more common the the earlier stuff. But I don't know anything about their steering arms so I don't know if it is necessary toshorten it to speed up the steeringor if the steering is OK with the Granada spindles. There are quite a few cars with Granada spindles and brakes on them these days so someone knows how they steer. BTW there was some discussion recently of what front endpieces the T birds have. It issure that the spindles, upper and lower A arms ball joints etc are the same for 55 to '57 T-birds and '54 -' 56 Fords and Merc pass cars.It istrue that '57 T birds have different front suspension pieces than '57 Fords.
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By paul2748 - 14 Years Ago
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From what I have read (including how-to's) the same suspension was used in all Fords (including TBirds) from 1954 to at least up to and including 1957. I specifically remember reading a Granada/Monarch how to on a 57 Ford sedan which was the same as my 54.
After 57 I don't know.
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By MarkMontereyBay - 14 Years Ago
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I will add some info I took from Concours Tbird Parts online catalog. They list a lower ball joint for 55-56-57 Tbirds. For "regular" Fords there is a parts change. They list lower ball joints for 5 4-56 and different set for 57-64 Fords. Dennis Carpenter's catalog lists a B5A-3050 for 54-56 and C1AZ-3050 for 57-64 Fords, no Thunderbirds in his stuff. Mac's Auto Parts also breaks it out the same way for 54-56 and 57-up Fords. There are no specs on pin size or taper but the photos suggests a different mounting bolt configuration.
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By slumlord444 - 14 Years Ago
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'55, '56,'57 T-Bird and '54 thru '56 Ford passenger car front end parts interchange. '57 and up Ford passenger car front end parts are different.
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By DANIEL TINDER - 14 Years Ago
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Successful "interchange" doesn't always mean parts are identical. I was under the impression T-Bird ball joints were "heavy duty"?
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By Jimz Bird - 14 Years Ago
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I have also been doing a lot of research on this as two of my top projects when I get back to the States are to put disc brakes and dual master cylinder systems on both the Tbird and the Mainline.
All of the Tbird parts houses and others have kits but they are a bit high.
The Granada/Versailles spindle swap is a consideration as lots have done it. My concern there is the change in steering geometry and the lowering which I don’t care to have and perhaps alignment differences. Also the parts are getting rare.
I have read of good success with the Scarebird brackets and OEM parts. Some have compared Scarebird brackets with other similar ones and they seem better made.
Here is a link to ePay for the Tbird brackets:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ford-1955-56-57-Thunderbird-T-Bird-front-disc-brake-/390265027242?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item5add9bbaaa#ht_500wt_926
This is the Scarebird site and shows the 57 up Ford brackets:
http://www.scarebird.com/index.php?id=35
Some have said that if you contact him from his site you may get a better deal than ePay since he doesn’t have to pay their fees. Don’t know for sure on that.
I have not seen much on here about those brackets except for “dbird” last Christmas eve. I sent him a note to see how it went with those.
Anybody else use the Scarebird brackets?
Thanks to all for your input,
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By MarkMontereyBay - 14 Years Ago
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On the FordMuscleCar forums Galaxie Pages, the Scarebird adapters have been used by many mid 60's Galaxie owners. I have a 65 2dr hdtp that I converted using 77-79 Tbird/LTD/Cougar spindles, etc. I like using OEM stuff if possible and like to stick to Ford parts. The Scarebird kits use a combination of GM parts but still popular with the Galaxie people.
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By Doug T - 14 Years Ago
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If you have access to a '57 shop manual look at page 4-5 and you will see side by side pictures of the '57 conventional car suspension (left) and what is called the Thunderbird Front suspension. However, look closely and you will see that the picture on the right is actually a pass car frame, T birds have a tubular front cross member.
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By dbird - 14 Years Ago
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The Scarebird brakes are on and seem to be working fine, but I haven't quite finished the car and haven't done any street driving. If I had to do it again I might think about another route, probably Lincoln Versailles as they show up at the local Pick and Pull occasionally.
The good about Scarebird, fairly inexpensive and easy to install. The idea of Chebby calipers doesn't bother me much, all aftermarket anyway.
The bad, I originally received the wrong brackets and bought the corresponding wrong calipers (anybody want a great deal on 1990 Celebrity calipers). The exchange went well, but I am out the shipping, plus another set of calipers (Chebby pickup). The bearing spacers were nicely machined, but I would have been happier with a tighter fit on the spindle rather than rely on Loctite. I'm thinking now that I should have used green Loctite rather than the recommended red. Finally, I had to use a second washer to get the nut out far enough to be locked by the cotter pin.
I hope this helps, let me know if you have any other questions.
Don
55 Thunderbird in California's Central Valley just waiting for the chrome shop
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By GREENBIRD56 - 14 Years Ago
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One thing I have heard about the "add-on" bracket style of brakes - is to avoid the type where the caliper ends up in the leading position - ahead of the upright. Interference with the anti-roll bar mounting being the reason cited. My measurements have shown that the position and leverage of the steering lever on the back of the Granada upright is basically identical to the 1954 Ford / little Thunderbird two piece drum brake version. The Granada - and the 1971-73 Mustang parts are virtually identical except for the taper in the tie rod ends. The Mustang / Granada rotors vary in diameter - but they are skinny, .88 thick. The Mustang track guys are always complaining about their tendency to warp. The lower ball joint mounting in the Granada upright can be altered by re-reaming - there is probably a limit to how deep it can be safely set - but most accept the slight lowering and like the idea of gettting down a bit from the height of a '54 sedan. The upward placement of the spindle center moves the caliper away from the rim and gains some clearance for the brakes.
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