Which disc brake kit?

[Andy W]

Good morning gurus!

The choice is between ESM kits (DMG & JLH are too expensive for my budget).
The question is whether or not the Ford (steel) kit is worth the £65 more than the Marina kit.
I've heard it is a larger braking area on the Ford kit but that it is heavier also.
Has anyone got experience of both to give me a comparison?
My Traveller is used on road only, but has the 1275 engine, bigger carb & exhaust etc. & I do quite a lot of motorway miles sitting at 70mph.

Thanks,
Andy.

[greendefender123]

Iv got some ford calipers with disc and pads and hoses. They're about 12 months old but the cars was sat for most of this year. If you wanted to have a go at making your own kit. Theyre early ka ones which are the same as some fiestas. The calipers are reconditioned replacements. I don't know whats involved in making a brake kit or whether you can buy the parts separately.

[Andy W]

Iv got some ford calipers with disc and pads and hoses. They're about 12 months old but the cars was sat for most of this year. If you wanted to have a go at making your own kit. Theyre early ka ones which are the same as some fiestas. The calipers are reconditioned replacements. I don't know whats involved in making a brake kit or whether you can buy the parts separately.

Nice one....I'll look into the parts situation!

[Fingolfin]

What I did was take the Marina hubs, rotors, and caliper brackets from ESM, paired with locally-sourced MGB calipers, hoses, and pads (I'm in the States, so shipping on the complete Marina kit would have been outrageous - and Marinas were never/rarely sold here, so no local parts). It all fits together perfectly and has worked quite well for a year and a half now (but you'll need a 1/4" wheel spacer and eight rear lug studs for standard Minor rims to clear the larger MGB caliper).

I don't know the parts situation for MGBs in Britain, but it might be worth looking into.

[Andy W]

Looking like the Ford kits are based on Sierra parts, so Ka/Fiesta are probably different...

Anyone got any comments on real world performance differences between Ford & Marina kits?

[greendefender123]

Oh are they. Probably easier for you get the kit anyway. Probably easier to get ford pads and discs than marina ones. Especially in years to come.

[greendefender123]

Blimey theyre nearly £500. Think il be sticking with drums. Someone said they marina ones are £300 for the kit. But cant remember where that was and cant find them for that price online.

[Andy W]

Blimey theyre nearly £500. Think il be sticking with drums. Someone said they marina ones are £300 for the kit. But cant remember where that was and cant find them for that price online.

Indeed Steve, crazy money but I use my car a lot, often loaded in the back, have the larger engine etc. & have not managed to get the knack of sedate & gentlemanly classic car driving - I just have too much fun driving it & the (lack of) braking power is getting to be an issue now!

I loathe the thought of spending my limited car funds on a brake conversion but..............

[Corn22]

I fitted the Marina one form ESM last year and I am really happy with it, would not go back to drums

[philthehill]

http://www.morrisminorspares.com/brakes ... ed-p829453

When I fitted the disc brake conversion to my Minor I did weighed both the Ford and Marina conversion kits and the total weight of the Ford kit was slightly in excess of the Marina kit even with the alloy hubs and because I am particular about un-sprung weight I fitted the Marina set up from Grumpy's.
The Grumpy's Marina disc brake kit is more than sufficient for the Minor even with a tuned engine.

[kevin s]

Take a look at my restoration thread (vae 306h) I used Corsa parts and a bracket made from a steel plate.