The Beginning Of A Disc Brake Conversion

[BigGuy82]

I just finished up the wet bolt upgrade and am now starting the disc brake conversion on my Bighorn. If you have a Bighorn or Big Country, you might finde some of this helpful. I'll post any additional observations when I finish the job.

1. Wet bolt/bronze bushing/thick shackle conversion - pretty standard bull work - lots of hammering and jockeying with a bottle jack. Five observations - (1) if you have a Lippert Correct Track (this ONLY applies to Correct Track), DO NOT listen to Lippert when they tell you you need a 3 1/4" wet bolt for the pucks. It takes a 3 3/4" wet bolt. (2) If you do this upgrade make sure to upgrade from 1/4" shackles to 1/2" shackles - this means that those wet bolts will also be 3 3/4". (3) If your rig has a Dexter EZflex, it already has bronze bushings at all three points - the top bolt has grease fittings, the bottoms do not and so need wet bolts. (4) unless you like manual labor, use an air over hydraulic bottle jack. This upgrade requires a lot of axle jockeying. (5) Also, when you drop the axle to punch out the plastic bushings, I highly suggest that you don't drop the spring all the way out of the hanger. I suspect getting it back in there would be a chore.


2. Brake actuator installation: A suggestion from Ron Russell was to put it in the right hand propane tank compartment. This is the PERFECT spot. Out of the way, protected from the elements, easy to run wiring to the pinbox, direct and easy access to the frame and underbelly for brake lines. (Don't know why the pix is sideways but it can't be rotated). Another tip - instead of using a flexible snake to pull the wire through the pinbox, I used a 4' Flex Drill - it's straight and pushed right in from the wiring box to the top of the generator hatch.



3. Removing the old stuff: Piece of cake. Bye, bye antiquated, ineffective (and I think dangerous) technology. Also, as you can see, I used the Level Up jacks to elevate the trailer.


4. Tomorrow & Saturday: finish the install and road test.

 

[Jesstruckn/Jesstalkn]

Nice work !!! your going to love the new brakes

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[hoefler]

Just installed mine last Saturday, not a bad job, took about 6 1/2 hours. Only issue I had, my wheels wouldn;t clear the calipers. I ordered 1/4" spacers and came in yesterday. Mounted up my tires and wheels with the spacers, all is good now. Off to KC for the Races today. Looking forward to being able to stop!!

 

[cookie]

So far so good although I don't know if I would want an electrical device mounted in a propane compartment.

Peace
Dave

 

[BigGuy82]

So far so good although I don't know if I would want an electrical device mounted in a propane compartment.

Peace
Dave

I'm not concerned. Propane is heavy and the bottom of the compartment is totally open.

 

[Jesstruckn/Jesstalkn]

That's where mine is also. The unit is closed in that cover and there's a bunch of wires going through that area on both sides of the RV so not to worried about it.
There are lots of places throughout my RV that have propane and electricity in the same place.

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[BigGuy82]

So here's an update. Todays work involved mounting the discs and the calipers (hydraulics tomorrow) and I ran into a bit of a problem. Three out of four discs went on perfectly - tight fit but slipped right on. Number four is where I hit the problem - it took maybe an hour to mount three discs but number four took the remainder of the day while I worked through the problem.

The spindles have a very thin channel cut into the part of the shaft that the large bearing rides on. When I attempted to mount the disc, i could not get it past this tiny channel - it appeared the new bearing was hanging up on it. Didn't make sense because the old one slid right off. I pulled the disc and checked the inner bearing race and the spindle for burrs - none to be found. So, I greased the whole thing up again and tried installing the hub - no dice - a hangup again. So, I figured that since this was a tight fit, I'd wiggle it around and use a wood block and hammer to tap it into place. WRONG MOVE. The bearing froze on the shaft and I finally got the hub/rotor off by putting my considerable bulk behind pulling it off. Good news - it came off. Bad news the bearing and seal were stuck on the shaft. Next move - get out the trusty gear puller. Problem solved.

After getting the brearing off, I tried to fit just it onto the spindle - no dice. there was simply no way that bearing was going to fit. The small one fit just fine (see pic). Yes, I know it's reversed - I tried it both ways. The large bearing would not go past that tiny groove. I even tried working the spindle down a tiny bit using emory cloth - no dice.



Last resort - I drove to the nearest RV dealer and bought another bearing. I measured the ID on both bearings and the new one was .001 larger. Took it home, greased it up and slapped the hub/disc right on. Snug fit - no problems. So literally, 1/1000th of an inch made the difference. Someyhiong to keep in mind when changing bearings - always check the bearings on the spindle before installation to insure they fit.

Outside of this little problem, piece of cake.

 

[Jesstruckn/Jesstalkn]

Just installed mine last Saturday, not a bad job, took about 6 1/2 hours. Only issue I had, my wheels wouldn;t clear the calipers. I ordered 1/4" spacers and came in yesterday. Mounted up my tires and wheels with the spacers, all is good now. Off to KC for the Races today. Looking forward to being able to stop!!

Are you saying you did the entire job yourself in 6.5 hours ???
That's pretty impressive.
I spend an entire day just running the brake lines.

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[BigGuy82]

Are you saying you did the entire job yourself in 6.5 hours ???
That's pretty impressive.
I spend an entire day just running the brake lines.

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This is RVing, so what's the rush? It took me a day or so to do the controller and main brake line, two days to do the bushings/shackles/wet bolts, a day to do the drums/hubs/bearings and I'm guessing a day or so to finish the hydraulic lines. When I'm done, I will do as I have done at the end of every day (around 3 or so) and savor at least 2 150 proof Bacardi Pina Coladas, contemplating what a dandy job did.

The next day (before the pina coladas), I'll take the coach on a hundred mile brake shakedown test, all the while admiring the masterful job I did. Only then will the better half and I open up a nice bottle of wine to enjoy with our king crab and steak. After all, the successful conclusion of this much work deserves a reward.

 

[hoefler]

Are you saying you did the entire job yourself in 6.5 hours ???
That's pretty impressive.
I spend an entire day just running the brake lines.

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Yes. I was a line mechanic in a class 7 & 8 truck shop for years. Only hiccups I had, missing 4 caliper bolts, which were ovver nighted to me, and when mounting up the tires and wheels, my wheels hit the calipers. 1/4" spacers cured that.

 

[Gary521]

Dick, what bearings were you using?

 

[BigGuy82]

Dick, what bearings were you using?

The bearing is made in China and has the letters LYC stamped on the side. The replacement I purchased from the dealer was also made in China and had 3 different letters on it - don't recall what they were. The seals were stamped Dexter or Lippert - I don't recall which. Bottom line is that the bearings were included in the Kodiak brake kits provided by Ron Russell at Performance Trailer Braking. Kodiak packs those kits, so I guess that makes them "Kodiak bearings" by default. I think most RV bearings are made in China.

The difference between the two was only .001", but that little bit was all it took. Ron also mentioned that bearings are often a close fit but he's never had one hang up like that before.

 

[BigGuy82]

So, I've finished up the job - took me well over a week because I was basically not in a hurry. My guess is that if I worked at what one might consider a normal pace, I could have completed the wet bolt upgrade and disc brake conversion in about two or three days. Unless you are mechanically inclined, have a fair amount of hand tools (and an impact wrench and an air operated hydraulic jack help) and the inclination to get down and dirty, pay Ron Russell the $1,000 - it's worth it.

Regarding Ron Russell at Performance Trailer Braking, I can't say enough nice things about the completeness of the kit he sold me, his vaulable phone assistance and his availability in helping me get this done. I've done all the driveway tests and will be road testing next week, but I am expecting flawless performance.

What advice can I give the DIY RVer?

First the brake lines - you can get the job done using the kit Ron provides, but if you are a "neat freak" like me, buy a 25' roll of 3/16" stainless brakeline and borrrow a flaring tool from AutoZone to make custom lines that allow you to anchor them where you want without leaving a lot of slack. You can use the fittings and some of the line that comes with the kit.

Second, don't use the plastic clamps that come with the kit (I think they are provided by Kodiak). By my standards, they are flimsy and I don't trust them. Use these:



Allstar Performance ALL18300 3/16" Rubber Cushioned Aluminum Line Clamp, (Pack of 10)

Outside of these two minor things, everything else was smooth sailing. If you choose to go this route, good luck.

 

[LBR]

Thank for the write-up!

 

[Jesstruckn/Jesstalkn]

Good job and all good advice

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[JohnD]

So, I've finished up the job - took me well over a week because I was basically not in a hurry.

My guess is that if I worked at what one might consider a normal pace, I could have completed the wet bolt upgrade and disc brake conversion in about two or three days.

Unless you are mechanically inclined, have a fair amount of hand tools (and an impact wrench and an air operated hydraulic jack help) and the inclination to get down and dirty, pay Ron Russell the $1,000 - it's worth it.

Put a caulking gun in my hands . . . I get more caulk on me than the job!

 

[BigGuy82]

Put a caulking gun in my hands . . . I get more caulk on me than the job!

Neat caulking is an art - I'm no artist. For that chore, I pay the dealer.

 

[Gary521]

Maybe another piece of advice is to not use the bearings and seals that come with the kit and get Timken or some other reputable brand. Thanks for sharing.

 

[BigGuy82]

Maybe another piece of advice is to not use the bearings and seals that come with the kit and get Timken or some other reputable brand. Thanks for sharing.

My guess is that the bearings are as good as what comes from the factory. I had one problem bearing that was too tight and Ron indicated that's the first one he's seen in hundreds of kits. With all of the high tech robotic machining equipment out there, I think that these are pretty good and with proper maintenance will do the job. Like it or not, lots of quality products come out of China and work very well - like iPhones or my Sailun tires (which cost less than half of the Goodyears that are probably made in China too). I wonder if the Timkens are made there too?

Sad but true ...

 

[BigGuy82]

So Gary, your post on bearings got me thinking. Where are Timkens made? Go to Amazon and look up Timken and scroll down to "country of origin". Pay no attention to the obviously out of date picture. You won't like what you see. My guess is that Timken also manufactures a lot of their stuff in China. Who knows? Maybe my bearings were made for Kodiak or Lippert by Timken in China.