Dynatrack Big Brake Upgrade

JoeH · 07-27-2020, 03:44 PM

This is meant to be a supplemental thread with a build sheet for those interested in upgrading the older brakes (pre-2008) that came spe'd on a 4x4 Sportsmobile conversion with a dynatrac Prorock60 axle. I also did a complete front end rebuild. Thus, I'm adding part #'s for new u joints, axles, tie-rod, ball joints, and draglinks. You’ll also need 17” or 18” wheels to fit the bigger calipers. I went with 18” as there were more 18” tire options in the sizes I preferred.

I relied heavily on these threads:
-upgrading to bigger brakes with the 14" rotors that came on all E series vans2008+: https://www.sportsmobileforum.com/fo...rade-5933.html
-Bigger brakes on a 2wd van but the rotors and calipers are the same: https://www.sportsmobileforum.com/fo...tos-11255.html
-Dynatrac ProSteer ball joint install: https://www.sportsmobileforum.com/fo...tall-7352.html
-Tie rods: https://www.sportsmobileforum.com/fo...ends-1995.html
-hub bearings: BadgerTrek: Repacking Dana 60 Wheel Bearings
-Axle upgrades and other tips: https://ck5.com/forums/resources/35-spline-upgrade.31/
http://www.billavista.com/Tech/Articles/Dana_60_Front_Axle_35-Spline_Upgrade/index.html

The crux of the Big Brake Upgrade is swapping steering knuckles as the brake earsare different to accommodate the bigger calipers. That also requires new hubs and is what really drives the cost up. With thismuch of a tear-down it made sense to just do a complete rebuild. I upgraded to the Dynatrac ball joints which are 3x the cost of Moogs. Sportsmobile also spec'd 30 spline outer axles from Dynatrac on the ProRock which is arguably a bit of a weak link so I upgraded to 35 spline but that also meant new locking hubs. Min cost of this upgrade is ~2k and I ended up spending about 3k. You can source the brake calipers from Dynatrac but I found OEM from AutoNation Ford for $100 less. Other vendors were RockAuto and DrivetrainAmerica and I got the rotors from the Sportsmobile store during a Christmas sale. Hawk pads were purchased from Frozenrotors.com.

Build Sheet:

JoeH · 07-27-2020, 03:52 PM

Most of the time required is in disassembly and stubborn bolts. Many were corroded and I ended up sourcing new grade 8 bolts from Fastenal with a corrosion resistant coating. Having air tools was key but not necessary.

JoeH · 07-27-2020, 04:06 PM

Assembly is in the reverse order. I had the steering knuckles powder coated. I'll add that the threads were dirty and I had to run a tap through all of them. If one ends up going with the Dynatrac ball joints there's three spacers that are pretty handy on the install.

I put new ujoints in the axles and painted everything. The dust shield slingers on the outboard axles are re-usable if you carefully tap them off but I ended up sourcing new ones. The spindle bearings were fine but I got new seals. jwinterstellar was right in that there is a ton of sand and grit in the axle tubes. I spent a lot of time cleaning the tubes out and also hitting the differential hard with brake cleaner to get everything out from that made it past the inner axle seal.

JoeH · 07-27-2020, 04:23 PM

I checked in with Oldbonesclimber who was a lot of help and confirmed that you have to drill and tap a hole in the steering knuckle for the clamp that holds the ABS line. Other issues encountered were the steering arm bolts were ever so slightly bent. These are 9/16-18 x 2.5 so I ordered 4 of those as well as the spindle bolts and jam nuts from Fastenal. Spindle bolts are:
10 1/2-20 x 2
2 1/2-20 x 1.5

Make sure you put the spindle bolts in and torqued to 140 ft-lb BEFORE putting the steering knuckle on and torqueing the ball joints. Ask me how I know. I used red locktite 271 on the bolts and a little anti-sieze on the jam nuts. Torque on the jam nuts is 90 ft-lb and on the steering arm bolts 80-90 ft-lb.

JoeH · 07-27-2020, 04:39 PM

My ARB rear diff cover is red so I added some more bling and painted the Dynatrac diff cover and brakes. The diff cover bolts were corroded so I sourced new ones from Dynatrac as well. The bottom bolts are low profile and deep-seated so a 1/4 drive 5/16 12pt socket is required. Torque these to 20 ft-lb.

The brake lines do mount lower so be mindful of that if the lines are already on the short side at full droop. I did a complete flush with Motul 400 Dot 4 fluid and boom bigger brakes. I went ahead and got an alignment which was a good thing. Even though I was careful to count thread and rotations everything was still presumably off because the knuckles are different. Toe was 0.3 deg on the left and 0.41 deg on the right and after getting the alignment checked the spec's are 0.02 and 0.03, respectively.

I hope this helps those considering this upgrade. It was a lot of work but isn't really that complicated. Just time consuming. And if your a perfectionist like me you'll spend a lot of time cleaing and painting. And thanks to those who made the effort to post DIY threads. There is no paint-by-numbers Chilton manual for this job. Good luck!

vandiesel · 07-27-2020, 05:06 PM

Thank you so much for this Joe. Nice big DIY job. You managed to leave out all the messy parts and foul language. Did anything happen to alignment or tracking after this? Also, did you upgrade or replace your steering gear?

vandiesel · 07-27-2020, 05:09 PM

Missed that alignment part as it loaded after I replied. Again, thanks for putting this together. Now time for hydro!

Twoxentrix · 07-27-2020, 05:11 PM

Excellent work - certainly will simplify the process for many going forward.

***This should become a sticky simply from a safety perspective...anyone that owns a pre 2008 Sportsmobile 4x4 with big tires understands the desire (and necessity) to upgrade the brakes!

JoeH · 07-27-2020, 07:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vandiesel

Thank you so much for this Joe. Nice big DIY job. You managed to leave out all the messy parts and foul language. Did anything happen to alignment or tracking after this? Also, did you upgrade or replace your steering gear?

Cool, thanks. I've been amassing the parts for 5 years so eventually had to do it. And yes, "Profanity Grease" was liberally applied!

To be honest, the van tracked straight on the way to the alignment shop. And no, I didn't do the steering gear. Mine is fine but I'd probably do a Redhead when the time comes. It's not easy to get to and I think much easier on a rack.

I'm still breaking in the pads but stopping power is noticeably better. I did have to bleed it twice and pedal feel is a bit different. I'm not sure if it's because of the bigger calipers but the stock master cylinder is supposed to be up to the task. According to another knowledgeable frequent forum contributor carringb the master cylinder doesn't need changing because the 08+ vans still have the same MC piston size and booster diameter. However, pedal feel still feels inconsistent to me despite the larger rotors and calipers so maybe 3x is the lucky charm on bleeding.

vandiesel · 03-24-2021, 11:36 AM

I have seen ujoint using the SSBC calipers on several builds. I have a 2006 with the pro rock 60 and am currently upgrading to the 2008+ steering knuckles to do bigger brakes, 35 spline axles, ball joints and hubs. Does anyone know about these or have run them on a dynatrac axle? I called SSBC and they said they only run F250/F350 calipers 2013 and up and could not confirm fitment. Chris at Ujoint seems to swear by them. Since I haven't bought the calipers yet and am down to these and brake lines seems worth checking into about one last bit of brake goodness.