Packard Forum Index » Modification Discussion

I received the Fall 2010 Kanter mail catalog and noticed that they claim to have a "Front Disc Brake Conversion Kit" for lots of different cars including 1935-56 Packards! This is a "wheel only" kit (no MC/booster) in 12in size for $749 retail.

Anyone know anything more about this?

Craig

Craig - I'm sure Dan Kanter would be pleased to talk to you about it if you gave him a call. If you do, please share what you can with us.

I don't need this conversion because I already have disc brakes on my 55 Pat. Because of the previously stated interest in same on other threads, I was thinking that maybe someone had already purchased or at least inquired about it.

Craig

For $749 it had better come with a reach around!

That's totally outrageous for an incomplete kit that doesn't come with a master cylinder and booster. And, I sure as hell wouldn't try to use a BTV on a disc brake system, they're setting themselves up for a lawsuit by selling that kit for those cars so equipped, the BTV is grossly insufficient for a disc brake application.

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That's their "standard price" for wheel-only kits for off brands. Only their Chevy kits are "less", but of course there are many other choices for those.

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Pressure-wise, the BTV is not inadequate (I know because I tried it), but using it with front disc brakes is about as smart as using a cheap "saturday night special" hand gun with extra-load .44 magnum bullets. I.e., it'll blow up in your face pretty quickly.

Craig

Yeah, I'm more concerned about the inadequacies of the unit itself than trying to add disc brakes to the problem.

No question this is a 90/10 decision factor. 90% important is replacing the BTV with dualMC/booster and 10% is disc brakes.

Craig

ABS Power Brake's wheel only kits for Packard are $699 retail, $600 jobber. Maybe Kanter has become a distributor and is tacking on 150 extra-- although ABS kits only go back to 48.

I have a sneaking suspicion that they will go back to '35, but they just don't list them that way.

To Craig, Turbopackman adn others

Dan and I have built a 51 year reputation for honesty, and unless there is an unintentional error in our catalogs we can supply what is listed therein. You state that we "claim" to have DBK's for '35-'56 Packards ( and we list the exceptions). To say we "claim" so puts doubts about our truthfulness in reader's minds. Would you say that General Motors "claims" to make and sell Corvettes?? Would you say the the US government "claims" to have 50 states. Would you say that Packard "claimed" to make 1956 Caribbean Convertibles?? So please explain why yoiu state that we "claim" to sell DBK's?

We can supply them, if you have inofrmation to the contrary please provide same. If not, I request you apologize as appropriate.

On the Bendix Treadle Vac (BTV) issue. We have sold over 15,000 BTV rebuild kits for about 8 makes of cars, I would guess that Bendix provided over 5 million units as original equipment between 1952 and 1960. If they were as dangerous as is claimed in this forum then there would have been a huge number of very bad accidents over the years and the weakness of the of the unit would be well documented while those vehicles were used as regular transportation.
A well rebuilt unit is as good as when it was new

Yes, there cannot be an argument that a dual master cylinder is not superior to a single, but shouting "fire" in a crowded theater where their is no fire is not responsible. BTV's are not like a roadside bomb in Iraq just waiting to injure or kill the unsuspecting

We get few requests for front end sheet metal or bumpers at all, never have. If BTV's were so dangerous I'd think we'd get many. Of course one might say that all those drivers were killed, but....

Fred Kanter
Kanter Auto Products
Boonton NJ