Wilwood brakes.... is it worth $1500+?

[classicchev]

I would not buy the setup from CPP, compare them to the Baer gt plus stuff. To me something sounds fishy that the fronts are 2300 and the rears are 900 from AJUSA, and CPP stuff is the same for just the fronts. I it were me I, and you were thinkin of the 2399 CPP settup, I think you would be further ahead buying the best slotted drilled rotor, new calipers and the best pads you can buy, and for the rears buy the upgrade drums from ECE.
You will probably get better braking at !/2 the cost.

JMO, Darren

[abadsvt]

Hey Classic, the only set that i have found for our trucks is Baer Gt plus setup. I called Baer and they told me the only thing they make for our trucks is a GT plus setup up front and a track series for the rear. The GT is a 13" 2 piston caliper and the rear is 13" single pistion caliper. I think that ends up being a little less than $3000. I would like to put discs on the back because i think it would look funny with disc only on the front. The wheels i am going with have a fair amount of spacing open. I have been thinking about this all day. Is it worth the $2500-3000 for upgraded big brake set? I wonder if someone here has some first hand experience with a stock setup and then upgrading to a bigger brake if it made a difference.

The reason i am so undecided is that this is going to be my prize possesion. I would like it to handle great, stop even better, tow great, drive like dream, and not to mention looking great while doing it all. I guess it comes down to if the bigger brakes perform better and is a noticable difference then i will gladly spend the money for the upgrade but if it is barely noticable then i will save my money and upgrade something else on the truck. Sorry for going back and forth asking alot of the same questions. I have a hard time making my mind up and some things. Thanks again for your help. Josh

[classicchev]

If this is going to be a keeper, I would spend the extra money and go with the Revolution brake setup. Im sure you dont have to spend what I did on the 14" 4 pot stuff, and Im positive that they could set you up with somethiong a little less money. My brother in law is the one who bought the front Baer setup from me for his Burb, and he has not really tested the performance of the brakes yet. If anyone would be able to give first hand knowledge on the Baer setup it would be him.. He is also the one who "convinced " me to upgrade the brakes for my project; Installed 13" Cobra brakes on his 1984 LTD LX, and who also has a Porsche with decent brakes on it. I will talk to him and get his opinion on the Baer setup and will let you kno.

Also if you call Revolution brake, as for Victor, and mention that you are from this board and I the crazy guy from Calgary with a 502 Ramjet in his 2wd blazer) had recommended you to talk to him.

Just to let you know i had pondered the brakes for about 3 months before I finally decided.

Darren

[abadsvt]

Well i called Revolution Brakes. I forgot to ask for victor but someone else helped me out. Really good people. Anyways he gave me prices on a few different setups. Also he was telling me that they guarantee an improvement in "one stop length" over there competors and stock brakes. They sounded like they not there stuff. I just don't know if it is worth the money. I am curious on how much of a difference it actually makes. Here is what they quoted me
The front setup
14" 1.25 rotor with a 4 piston caliper $2390
13" 1.25 rotor with a 4 piston caliper $2060
13" 1.10 rotor with a 4 piston caliper $1650

The rear setup
12.81" rotor with a smaller 4 piston caliper $2290 with the e-brake

They also recommended me to go with
Performance Hydro Booster $500 (estimate)
E-brake linkage $130 (estimate)
Modified drop spindal 2" $280 (estimate)

They also told me that i don't need the 1.25 thick front rotors because what causes the rotors to heat up is the braking in racing applications but since i am only drivin street and occasionaly racing around town i will not ever need the extra thick rotors. So if i went with the 13" 1.10 4 piston front and the rear set with e-brake it will cost me $4000 plus drop spindels, hydrobooster, e-brake cables for an additional $910. WOW i think i need another job just to pay for the brakes . What kind of performance upgrade do you think i would gain to justify a $5000 setup for brakes. I believe in doing things once and correct but not sure yet about this. I know brakes are EXTREMELY important but for my needs do i need this extreme? I asking a hard question but please express your opinion. Thanks Josh

[JustLiveIt]

Is the revolution stuff made by Wilwood or does revolution sell Wilwood and their own proprietary design?

Their website says they are an online distributor of brake products. The only thing I saw with their name on it was the parking brake caliper.

[70rs/ss]

Well, big brakes work, the rotational mass of big tires and wheels dwarf the stock stuff, the bigger diameter rotors give you a mechanical advantage with the bigger diameter offering more surface area on the rotor face. BAER is good, Wilwood is good, SSB (stainless steel brakes) is good, what you need and want are two different things and you need to compare apples to apples. Do not look at a 4-6 piston caliper and try to compare it to a 1-2 piston. Smaller diameter and more of them increases the clamp load, so 1 is stock, 2 is an upgrade, 4 is alot and 6 will throw you through the windshield. Vettes, Porches and the like come with 4-6 stock, so if you want performance, move up to a 4 piston caliper at least and 6 if you can, but now the performance comes at a price and quite frankly skimping here is not a good idea. 5K loads are going to require a lot of braking power, do not cheap out cause if you cream somebody because you couldn't whoa down fast enough, it'll cost you more than the $2-3K you are looking at in brakes. Most important of all, do not take any one person's word on this, not even me, do the research by looking at what kits are available for your application and compare them. Make sure the BAER kit is similar to the SSB, CPP, etc before you look at the $$$ amount. BAER is made here in AZ and they make good stuff, wilwood is not all light weight racing stuff, they make heavy duty brakes for everyday abuse, again this is where you need to do your homework. Once you have found a kit from each of the manufacturers and ensured you are comparing like components, then and only then can you look at price. Good luck, BTW summit and or Jegs are the best places to buy this stuff, as their prices are the lowest and free shipping with no taxes!!

[smbrouss70]

Originally Posted by abadsvt

They also told me that i don't need the 1.25 thick front rotors because what causes the rotors to heat up is the braking in racing applications but since i am only drivin street and occasionaly racing around town i will not ever need the extra thick rotors.

Chevy put 1.25" thick rotors on trucks from the factory because trucks were meant to haul/tow stuff. When you are dragging around an extra 5,000 pounds, having that thicker, stonger rotor on there will set your mind at ease, not to mention help dissapate the extra heat generated by the extra weight. I'm not trying to say that they don't know what they are talking about, nor am I saying that I know it all, I just think that they didn't take into account that you are planning on using this as a "Truck" every once in a while.

By the way, a link on there page is pretty informative about brake systems in general. http://www.revolutionbrake.com/why-big-brakes.html

[classicchev]

2, 4,6 pistons are all fine and dandy but the limit is still going to be your front tires. I think for daily driving a 2 piston set-up is fine. I would get the 1.25 rotors, though. It isn't needed to get rear discs, as I said, the fronts do most of the work and you can upgrade the rear drums. Also the trucks came factory with disc/drums so it doesn't look bad. I went with the Revolutions for a couple of reasons. One, they are less common, two, they are available sooner than Baer (hopefully),three, I liked the look of the rear caliper because it matched the front caliper better. Also, my truck is already waaaay over-budget, so I decided to continue the trend.

[msgross]

If you are towing then worry about your trailer brakes! bad or no trailer breaking can be dangerous no matter what your truck has. If you are pulling 5K then be sure that your trailer has electric or inertia brakes!
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[grayw0lf]

[QUOTE=msgross;1808876]If you are towing then worry about your trailer brakes! bad or no trailer breaking can be dangerous no matter what your truck has. If you are pulling 5K then be sure that your trailer has electric or inertia brakes!
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Yeah, I probably need to think more about trailer brakes before I go tearing into my truck. My 3,500lb boat trailer helps out as much as the friction from 2tires can provide.