This thread will document swapping out my drum brakes and actuator for new Kodiak disc brakes and a Tiedown 70E actuator with built in reversing solenoid. *The weather is forecast to be cold and I'm really busy at work, so this is going to take a few days. *I'll be adding pics and dialogue as I progress through the project. *Last night was the first step, receipt of the goods.
On the first side, I had already started disassembly as part of diagnosing my original problem. *I had the boat jacked up and the wheel tire removed already. *Any fasteners to be removed were “pre-soaked” in PB Blaster. *Step one started like this:
There aren’t many parts in disk brakes. *The hub / rotor are one piece, then there is the caliper and caliper mounting bracket. *That’s about it. *These brakes come with new bearings and the races are already pressed in. *The hammer and block of wood shown were used to press in the rear seals.
The entire drum brake assembly is removed by removing the 4 bolts that go through the brake mounting flange on the axle. *After the flange was cleaned up with a wire brush, the new caliper mounting bracket is bolted on.
The next step is to install the hub / rotor assembly and the outer bearing.
Now I installed the provided dust cover. *Kodiak supplies a nice piece that can be used with grease or oil bath.
Nearing the end of side one, the caliper is mounted with two bolts, which are the “caliper slides.” *I gave these a light coating of high temp grease.
The next two photos show the brake line modifications. *The drum brakes had hard lines running to them. *Because the calipers slide, they had to use flex hoses. *Thanks go to Gibbons Auto Parts in Pocomoke, MD. * When I went to the counter and told them what I was trying do, they got me setup with what I needed. *Try that at your big box store...
Side one is complete now.
Side two is much of a duplicate process. *I used “never-seize” on all hardware possible and grease most everywhere else.
Drum brakes have a lot of parts compared to the three components of the disks.
This pic shows a dust cover preloaded with grease and ready to be installed.
The next pic is of the hub / rotor installed and packed with grease. *When I pack my hubs there is no air void left. *I don’t use “bearing buddies.” *I feel that as long as my grease doesn’t get out, no water is getting in.
The TieDown Engineering Model 70 actuator is a nice piece. *Most agree that their brakes suck, but they make a nice coupler. *Note the safety pin right behind the ball. *When the pin is inserted the coupler can’t come off the ball, even if it comes unlatched up top. *This model also has s built in reverse solenoid.
And this project is complete. *It was a gray and rainy morning, but we got the job done. *I’m home from a 40 mile test ride in one piece, and I managed to fill the boat up with gas while I was out, so add another $75 to the project total.
Airslot, out