3/4 ton front brake swap onto 1/2 ton?

**speedracer326** · 04-12-2009, 10:53 AM

I know they use different knuckles, different arms, different hubs/wheel bearings, etc. I know the 3/4 ton uses a thicker frame, blah blah blah. Short of dropping big bucks on some custom parts, is there any way to do this swap? I.E. do the 3/4 ton arms miraculously bolt to the 1/2 ton frams? I wanted a 3/4 ton to begin with, but quickly discovered they didn't make the OBS 3/4ton in ECSB form. Even then, a clean 3/4 ton ECLB is a pretty rare find. All the pulling I want to do is within the truck's 1/2 ton ratings, but let's face it: when you've got 5,000lb behind you, trailer brakes or not, bigger is better with regards to brakes on your truck. I read somewhere that the 'burbs and ECLB 1/2 tons got slightly larger brakes too? The truck ('98) will be getting a brake job in the next few months so I figure why not seize the opportunity to upgrade. Anyone ever pursued this avenue before?

S/C Z71 · 04-12-2009, 11:27 AM

Nope.

**glowpowered** · 04-12-2009, 12:39 PM

drilled and slotted rotors and good pads is an excellent upgrade.

**Hotwheelz** · 04-12-2009, 01:06 PM

i agree. you would be better off going with a quality aftermarket rotor and brake pad and keep all your factory suspension/steering components. and i think you are really underestimating how well trailer brakes work.

**speedracer326** · 04-12-2009, 02:58 PM

Originally Posted by glowpowered

drilled and slotted rotors and good pads is an excellent upgrade.

No way will I throw that garbage on my truck. Slotted rotors can't be turned and drilled rotors crack.

Originally Posted by Hotwheelz

i agree. you would be better off going with a quality aftermarket rotor and brake pad and keep all your factory suspension/steering components. and i think you are really underestimating how well trailer brakes work.

That could very well be, I don't have the trailer or brake controller yet so I've never felt them in action. I'm just thinking about heat dissipation and the fact that the larger brakes are probably better for it. There's a lot of big ass hills here in western SD and I'll be pissed if I waste a set of factory rotors because I'm dragging a trailer around.

**TigerEyz3** · 04-13-2009, 07:31 AM

Originally Posted by speedracer326

I read somewhere that the 'burbs and ECLB 1/2 tons got slightly larger brakes too? The truck ('98) will be getting a brake job in the next few months so I figure why not seize the opportunity to upgrade. Anyone ever pursued this avenue before?

Can't speak to "swapability", but I know my Tahoe has larger spindles/rotors than the SCSB 1/2 ton truck. IIRC, my spindles have a 1.25" shaft compared to the 1" on the 1/2 tons...I think that's the same diameter as the 3/4 ton and 1 ton trucks. As far as rotors, I think they are thicker too.

**speedracer326** · 04-13-2009, 05:26 PM

Spindle shafts, something I don't have. You're 2WD. I think I need to see what the parts store has on the shelf for the burb vs. my truck to see if they're bigger. Then I'd have to figure out if there's any way to fit them. I'm suprised nobody has tried this before, seems to me big off road tires tax the hell out of the brakes and there's plenty of people here with them.

**SierraDan** · 04-14-2009, 12:32 PM

Originally Posted by speedracer326

I'm suprised nobody has tried this before, seems to me big off road tires tax the hell out of the brakes and there's plenty of people here with them.

You might want to try the offroad or maybe the maintenance forum then if you haven't already, and don't forget about rear brakes as well, i'd rebuild the drum assembly and get some new shoes and possibly new drums if they're needed if not then turned.

**speedracer326** · 04-14-2009, 05:17 PM

The idea for the back is simply a 14 bolt SF which would have 3/4 ton drum brakes. I went to the junkyard today and looked at 2 OBS's side by side: one an 8 lug 4WD and the other a 6 lug 4WD. The frames looked IDENTICAL. I talked to the guy inside and he said if I swapped the pig and all it'd bolt right up, so now I just need to find some random guy with a wrecked truck because I'd probably pay $1000 from them for everything. I did find a 2001 2500HD down the road that'd been rolled, $150 for those GL torsion bars. So it looks like this brake job will be stock rotors with aftermarket pads, but I still need to verify the suburban brakes.