looking for suspension, steering, and braking upgrades

[mudgutsandglory]

Im gonna be junkyarding and parts hunting, and was wondering if there are any parts i should look for to help my '82 ride, steer, or stop faster or better?
items like larger rotors, better calipers, better master cylinders, better front sway bars, factory rear sway bars, quicker ratio steering boxes, and such.
if anyone knows of any good upgrade parts for our trucks lemme know!
thanks
Dan

[Slonaker]

You can get a bigger swaybar off a 3/4 or 1 ton truck. I would get all the mounting hardware, too.

If you have the one inch brakes, you could upgrade to the 1 1/4 inch brakes. A good rule of thumb is that the holes in the edge of the 1 1/4 inch brakes rotors are big enough to poke your finger into. If you can't poke a finger in, they are 1 inch. I don't know what would be required to do the upgrade.

That is all I am aware of.

Slonaker

[454HO]

Originally Posted by Slonaker

If you have the one inch brakes, you could upgrade to the 1 1/4 inch brakes. A good rule of thumb is that the holes in the edge of the 1 1/4 inch brakes rotors are big enough to poke your finger into. If you can't poke a finger in, they are 1 inch. I don't know what would be required to do the upgrade.
Slonaker

The spindles and calipers would have to be changed along with the rotors.

I have been scratching my head on this brake 'upgrade' for a couple weeks now. I would really like to see some hard evidence that the 1-1/4" rotors make a difference. I can understand how they may reduce brake fade since they are thicker and have larger vents cast into them. And they may also be less prone to warping, if that is even a problem. But if they are the same diameter as the 1" rotors, I don't see how they can improve the stopping power. And just because GM called them 'heavy duty' does not mean shorter stopping distances. Am I missing something here?? Are the 1-1/4" rotors also larger diameter maybe??

[jermasaurus]

Originally Posted by 454HO

I have been scratching my head on this brake 'upgrade' for a couple weeks now. I would really like to see some hard evidence that the 1-1/4" rotors make a difference. I can understand how they may reduce brake fade since they are thicker and have larger vents cast into them. And they may also be less prone to warping, if that is even a problem. But if they are the same diameter as the 1" rotors, I don't see how they can improve the stopping power. And just because GM called them 'heavy duty' does not mean shorter stopping distances. Am I missing something here?? Are the 1-1/4" rotors also larger diameter maybe??

I am pretty sure the diameter is the same for either rotor.
What makes them better is the the reduced brake fade like you said. But with the heavy duty brake option you also get the 2 3/4" rear shoes. That is all that I am aware of so far.
-Jeremy

[longhorn71]

lots of camper editions and suburbans have better parts(heavy duty)the big block trucks are another place to look.