johnboy89

Can you run C5 brakes on a C3 - provided you run 17" wheels I imagine - just curious.

VegasJen

i'll give you a free TTT bump.
i know there are a couple guys here on the forum doing it and i plan a similar conversion in the future as time allows. maybe someone who knows will chime in.

PatsLs1vette

check with jeff 70ls1 on the forum here hes doing it right now.

Chris O'

http://temp.corvetteforum.net/c3/70lt1/brakes.shtml

:cheers:

CorvetteSC

Is the two piston caliper on the C5 better then the 4 piston caliper on the C3. Is this in the right heading C3 or C5????? :confused:

CorvetteSC

Did the caliper mounts bolt up to the C3 mounting bracket? :confused:

Chris O'

I would say the brackets would be different.

VegasJen

o.k. yes and no, and yes, and no. really confused yet?
c5 caliper benifit: much lighter than c-3 caliper, wider selection of new tech pad materials
c3 caliper benifits: applies pressue more evenly than sliding caliper style, ala c5 caliper.
if you notice most competition brake calipers are either four or six piston design. they are, however, generally aluminum or other ultra light material.
the two single biggest disadvantages to the factory c-3 calipers is the amount of weight and heat retention. the caliper, considered unsprung weight, increases the amount of resistance to change affected by the suspension. this requires heavier suspension components such as stiffer springs and shocks to keep those components in check. imagine for a minute you are holding a barbell (just for the purpose of this example, you hold it in the middle and extend one end out in front of you. the point your holding would be equivalent to the inner suspension pick up point. the other end of the barbell doesn't exist on the suspension, it's just to allow you to hold it horizontal). now imagine the outer weight is a wheel traveling down the road and your arm is acting like both the spring and shock assembly. at this point we'll use a 50# barbell giving you ~25# at your 'wheel'. now a wheel hits a bump in the road and is instantly launched into the air. your spring/shock assembly's job is to stop the upward momentum and return it into contact with the road in a controlled manor. now imagine instead of 25# you have 40#. it will require much stiffer springs and shocks to control that movement. ideally, you want to reduce the amount of weight as much as possible including the calipers, rotors, spindles and wheels themselves. the less the overall weight the lighter the spring and shock combination can be and still yeild a compliant ride.
the other issue of heat retention applies more to brakes that will get used hard for very long periods of time such as road course driving. cast iron has a tendancy to retain the heat generated by the braking force longer than a comparable amount of aluminum.
the two piston design of the c-5 and other sliding calipers are more susceptable to caliper flex than a four piston design when the same amount of pressure is being applied. under normal street driving, it is unlikely you will ever notice a difference. this becomes more apparent at the limit. that being said, the advances in design and manufacturing have yielded calipers that are extremely rigid and still have the benifits aluminum provides, faster heat rejection and less unspring weight.
so how's that for a long-azzed answer? :)

VegasJen

on other point that should be mentioned. overall braking effeciency is more a function of leverage than pressure. meaning your braking power is increased more by the distance the caliper is located away in relation to the spindle than the amount of pressure applied. imagine a flywheel that is say 50# spinning at 100rpm. now imagine your standing directly in front of it and you want to stop it. it would be substantially harder to stop it by dragging your hands in the middle of the wheel than it would as close to the outer edge as possible, it would also require less pressure and generate less heat. brakes work in much the same way. so if you can install rotors of the same weight but larger diameter, it will increase the efficiency of the braking system.

70 LS1

Ummmm

What he said. :iagree:

Time is not something I have a lot of right now and I am working on this as fast as possible. I am going to make a set of adapter brackets then take the adapters and original brackets to the machine shop and have one made out of one piece. Whenever I get the time to get down there, I will see about having them mass produced if you all are interested.

To answer your original question. Yes they will fit . You will have to have the hubs machined, make custom mounting brackets and run at least 17" wheels.

hope this helps.

:flag


[Modified by 70 LS1, 12:11 PM 3/19/2003]

VegasJen

jeff, i would be interested if your going to have some more made. if you don't get alot of response, i'd appreciate the specs anyway. thanks.