[agent orange]

There's been a lot of discussion about this swap recently so i thought id throw together some pics and stuff i ran into during my install. Pretty much, if you can turn a wrench and use a cutoff wheel, you can do this swap.

Heres what i was working with:
'93 4runner calipers- remanufactured from NAPA- 90.00 dollars per
1 1/16 inch T-100 Master cylinder- ebay (sellers name was auctionfrontier)- 35.00 dollars with shipping
SS brake lines from Man-a-fre (not necessary, but my stockers were too short)- 70.00 bucks for the frame to axle lines

I got '93 calipers for my rig, from what i can tell, 90-91 calipers are slightly smaller than the 92-96 calipers, but either will work for the swap. Like most people know, the calipers are a direct bolt in as far as the mounting goes, the only thing that needs attention before they bolt up is the dust shield. It contacts the calipers at the top and bottom edges of the dust shield. Just slide the caliper onto the mounts, and see where its hitting and trim accordingly. Heres a couple pics of how mine turned out.





The master cylinder is a completely direct bolt in. It is my understanding that any master cylinder from a toyota light truck (4runner, LC, T-100) will bolt right up (correct me if im wrong). I found mine real cheap on ebay, look for one on there if you need one, really great pricing and it was shipped to me in a matter of days. Anyways, i only needed to bend one of the brakelines (the one more towards the front) in order for it to connect to the MC. I just bent it outwards a little bit at the bottom where it bends up towards the MC (pic of the bend along with some MC pics below). **NOTE** If you run the T-100 mc on a 62 (not sure how the brakes differ on a 60) youre gonna need to budget for an inline residual valve to keep pressure on the rear brakes to counteract the return springs. Without a residual valve, itll take a couple pumps to get the drums working. I got a 10 lb wilwood valve from summit for 20 bucks. Youll need a pair of 1/8 inch NPT male to 3/16 compression/flare fittings to mate the valve up to the brake lines on the truck. People will flame me for saying you can use a compression fitting as double flaring the line is definitely the safer way to go. I couldnt find the a flare fitting in the size i needed in the short time frame i was working in to get the valve installed and so far the compression fittings i used are tight and leak free. If my brakes give out and i crash ill be sure to tell you guys so you wont do what i did (and you probably shouldnt anyways).





You can see where i bent the brakeline in this one. I just had to draw it towards the firewall about half an inch to bolt up.



I had to do some grinding on my calipers to get my wheels to fit, even with the 1/4 inch spacers i have on the truck. I think this is more a wheel issue than a caliper thing, i had to do a little grinding on the stockers too. My rockcrawler wheels have those damn punched holes that have a nice fat lip on the back that hits the caliper. I used a grinder and worked the inside edge of the caliper until it cleared. I put a peice of sandpaper folded over behind the highest spot on the wheel and turned the wheel across the caliper, so that anywhere that needed more clearance the paper would bind. Heres a pic of how it turned out (its a little hard to see, i painted it up before i took these pics). Oh, and i read on someone elses post that you have to grind the wear bar on the caliper for it to work, but i didnt trim anything but what i needed to clear the wheel and ive put about 500 miles on it without issue. It brakes just fine, i dont really know what the deal is about that, maybe someone can fill me in.




Overall, this whole thing went together really well. I didnt run into any problems other than the fact that one of the first set of calipers i got from napa poured fluid out of the parting line of the caliper when i bled it . One little tip i have for bleeding the rear brakes, have someone hold their finger over the tip of the bleeder while you pump it, it acts like on of those one man bleeding things and makes it a lot quicker to get the air out. My impressions of the braking performance after the upgrade have been great. The truck stops way better than before, i mean its not night and day but it definitly stops a lot harder, hard enough that i have to hold onto the wheel when i brake hard as it wants to pull the truck to one side or another. I still would like to upgrade the back to discs, but i feel a lot more safe driving around now. I bet most of the performance gain is from the larger pads, but the larger pistons have to help too. Hope someone appreciates this, its so easy i think the swap might take less time than it took me to write this. Heres a pic of the finished product (much more sexy now).



Ok this is kinda gratuitous, but i had to include a pic of the shop i was working in. It belongs to my fiances dad and is full of more mopar stuff than you can believe (think 2 440s, a 400, and 360 in various states of repair in the shop). Heres a little pic with my rig, the '67 GTX, and the '98 harley springer softail.

[TheGr8Doughboy]

Nice write up. Is that shop in blacksburg?

[agent orange]

Nope, its back home in amelia (south of richmond). I wish it were in blacksburg, would sure beat lying on my back in a cold ass parking lot when im at school.

[euclid]

Thanks for the writeup. I'll add it to the FAQ for future reference.

[ballardcruiser]

Great photos.. As you said, there are about two dozen discussion threads about how great 4runner brake swaps are, but none are quite as clear (or have as many photos) as yours.

I'll be doing this next month and this will be a huge help!

Jason

[jgordon]

I'd be a little nervous about the pulling to one side or the other when you hit the brakes. In a panic stop that force might catch you by surprise. Probably an alignment issue? Just trying to help.

Thanks for the good writeup about the process.

[agent orange]

To be more accurate, sometimes i feel the wheels pull when i break but not very often at all. I meant it more to illustrate the additional braking power more than anything. The alignment might need to be checked, i noticed the tires were worn to where they lean a little bit inwards when sitting up while not on the vehicle. I rotated them but im wondering if i need to look into it some more. Its really not that much of an issue though, i think it might just be bumpsteer from my stiff suspension/stock steering amplified by the braking. I got it aligned like a year ago, maybe its time to haul her in again. I think it was just time to rotate though, the rears were worn the same way as i recall, and they better be in alignment.

[Dynosoar]

Hi Orange,

When you put your new master on what did you do with the little break fluid diverter/ distributor block that was mounted on the OEM booster? I am going to do the same upgrade in a few weeks and just want to get all my duck lined up. Are You still running rear drums? I think that you need a risidual pressure valve in there somewhere.

Dynosoar

[agent orange]

Hmm, i dont remember anything but brakelines on my old MC. Part of that might have to do with that a few years before i inherited the truck the MC got replaced might have to do with that. Im not sure if the stock setup was changed when that work was done. There were just the 2 brake lines running to the master cylinder.

Im still running the rear drum brakes. I think that sometime in their life they have been turned and re-shod and are in good shape. I havent noticed any kind of rear brake bias problems at all with this setup. The pedal is nice and hard and doesnt need to much travel to get some squeeze goin. Where/how do you see the need for the risidual pressure valve?

[Poser]

The vehicle pulling to one side or another during braking is not an indicator of poor alignment....



What is the condition of your rear brakes? When was the last time you adjusted them? Does your parking brake work? Using the parking brake is what keeps the rear shoes adjusted properly.


If one side is working more than the other or not at all, the truck will pull to one side or the other during braking....

[agent orange]

I use the ebrake religiously, its kinda second nature to me now. It gets me in trouble sometimes though, i ran some deep water holes on a cold day and set it when i got home like a tard. When i came out to drive it later that day, friggen ebrake frozen solid. I had to knock all the ice off of the return springs to get it to move. How exactly do you go about checking/adjusting the ebrake?

Oh and btw, in case anybody hasnt checked my edits, if you use a T-100 mc on a 62 (i dont know exactly how the brake system differs on a 60) you need to plumb in a residual valve inline to the rear brakes. Ill put up some pics of it whenever i get access to a digital camera. Before it took a couple pumps to get the drums working, now its immediate (although i still need to rebleed to get optimal pressure).

Matt

[Poser]

The e-brake cable is the only piece adjustable in the parking brake system, and that is adjusted with the small nut on the end of the cable in the cab, right on the lever...but that will only change the length of the cable....


The rear brakes are adjusted by the use of the parking brake in normal operation. When you set the parking brake, there is a little lever that pivots and catches the adjuster wheel, and when the parking brake is released, the springs in the rear brakes release the shoes from the drum, and at the same time rotate the adjuster one click if the adjuster is free, and if the shoes have room to expand towards the drum.

You can also manually adjust the brakes with a brake adjusting tool, sometimes called a spoon, by removing the rectangular plug on the bottom of the backing plate on the rear axle, and levering the adjuster wheel, by inserting the adjuster tool, and catching the tangs on the adjuster wheel, and levering the adjuster tool away from the axle housing, or down towards the ground.


I usually find with the 60 and 62 series that come through the shop that the parking brake is non-functional/rusted solid, and that the rear brakes are very far out of adjustment, resulting in increased pedal travel, and the pedal climbing, or getting higher when pumped.



Good luck!

-Steve

[agent orange]

Thanks for the info, so just to make it clear, if my ebrake is working (which im sure it is) then it should be tensioning itself properly? If thats right then i guess its time to do a little work on the drums. I had thought about just doing discs in the back instead of spending money on the drums, but with all the issues that come with getting an ebrake to work with them i figure im better off just getting the setup i have now working right. Any ideas on how to fix the uneven braking (new shoes, brake cylinders, etc...)?

Thanks as always.

Matt

[VanillaGorilla]

>It is my understanding that any master cylinder from a toyota light truck(4runner, LC, T-100) will bolt right up (correct me if im wrong).


Any approximation of model years?
Thanks,
Matt

[agent orange]

Id say early 80s to mid to late 90s, im not totally sure though, thats just a ballpark. Id say if you can find it in the junk yard, it will probably work. Maybe take measurements.

[VanillaGorilla]

Oh my, no! I work in auto parts, so no junkyard parts for me. I'd just like to know what I need before I make any phone calls.
Thanks for narrowing it down though.

-Matt

[Cruzerman]

I put on the 4runnner calipers on my '85FJ60. I did not change out my master cylinder and it works just fine. I don't feel it has excessive pedal travel.

However, when I do rear discs, then a larger master cylinder is in the plans.

______________________
Cruzerman
'85 FJ60
'78 FJ40

[Klunky Chris]

this is an old thread, but since it's in the FAQ I thought I'd add a little info.

I'm sure the main reason for your increased braking performance was due to the new MC you put on. Being a 1 1/16" MC from a non/ABS T100 this was a large improvement over your 7/8" factory MC

for those trying to figure out which master to get this chart shows the differences.
CruiserFAQ
Keep in mind that all 80 series MC are 1" bore (a common upgrade used)

[TexasAgFJ60]

Ok, I know this is a really old thread but maybe I might catch a hint. My 60 had a T100 upgrade by the PO. The brake light stays on inside on the dash. Any thoughts on how to make it turn off and be "normal" again? Maybe wire in a resistor somewhere?

[GulfShoresFJ60]

You might check to see if the brake fluid is low. If not, make sure the plug is plugged into the brake fluid reservoir cap. If it is not plugged in, it could be reading that you have no brake fluid hence the light being on.

[Cruiser Jimmy]

Just completed this upgrade. Can't believe the difference it made. I can now lock the fronts up with no pulling to one side.

With the rims I have on the rig I don't have to grind down the calipers.

The only problem I did have was separating the old rotors from the hubs. The '83 is still pretty rusty down there. But a press and some sand blasting took care of that issue.

Thanks for the info.

[FJ60_cruiser]

Cool thread! very helpful! I've been looking for some info about it and i think with this I might be done!

[89GASHOG]

Originally Posted by Cruzerman

I put on the 4runnner calipers on my '85FJ60. I did not change out my master cylinder and it works just fine. I don't feel it has excessive pedal travel...

______________________
Cruzerman
'85 FJ60
'78 FJ40

Perhaps the "excessive pedal travel" issue should be addressed in this FAQ linked thread. I seem to have read in other posts that this can occasionally be an issue with this swap. What is the cause, and how is it addressed?

[GLTHFJ60]

Originally Posted by 89GASHOG

Perhaps the "excessive pedal travel" issue should be addressed in this FAQ linked thread. I seem to have read in other posts that this can occasionally be an issue with this swap. What is the cause, and how is it addressed?

This is a controversial topic. My take is that there is more volume in the calipers to fill and without changing the volume of the master cylinder, it's going to take more pedal travel to fill them up. Remedy? Swap to a T100 MC.

[ntsqd]

But if you swap to a larger bore m/c then at least part of the gain in braking force from the larger caliper pistons is lost. http://forum.ih8mud.com/60-series-wa...ml#post3957244

As Jan has said, this isn't a cure for poor condition existing components.

It is a small gain in braking power at the expense of more pedal travel.

[Dynosoar]

Stock FJ60 master is 7/8"
Stock 4runner is 15/16"
Stock FJ80/Tundra (non ABS) is 1"

I used the 4Runner master and my pedal travel stayed just about the same as stock. I had to install a residual pressure valve for the rear brakes as the new master did not have one built in like on the stock FJ60 unit.I did notice a difference in stopping power. However, I keep my drums adjusted and my rotors are in good condition. I know some people have notice no difference and some say it was a huge difference.


Dynosoar

[GLTHFJ60]

Originally Posted by ntsqd

But if you swap to a larger bore m/c then at least part of the gain in braking force from the larger caliper pistons is lost. http://forum.ih8mud.com/60-series-wa...ml#post3957244

As Jan has said, this isn't a cure for poor condition existing components.

It is a small gain in braking power at the expense of more pedal travel.

I remember that thread. Having driven one of these setups however, I will still swap it into my truck.

Originally Posted by Dynosoar

Stock FJ60 master is 7/8"
Stock 4runner is 15/16"
Stock FJ80/Tundra (non ABS) is 1"

I used the 4Runner master and my pedal travel stayed just about the same as stock. I had to install a residual pressure valve for the rear brakes as the new master did not have one built in like on the stock FJ60 unit.I did notice a difference in stopping power. However, I keep my drums adjusted and my rotors are in good condition. I know some people have notice no difference and some say it was a huge difference.


Dynosoar

Thanks for the numbers.

I laugh every time I see the

[ntsqd]

Originally Posted by GLTHFJ60

I remember that thread. Having driven one of these setups however, I will still swap it into my truck.



Thanks for the numbers.

I laugh every time I see the

No worries. It truly does not matter how good or bad the truck actually stops, if you aren't confident in the brakes (as a result of the pedal feel) then it will be nerve-racking to drive and you won't want to.

[GLTHFJ60]

Originally Posted by ntsqd

No worries. It truly does not matter how good or bad the truck actually stops, if you aren't confident in the brakes (as a result of the pedal feel) then it will be nerve-racking to drive and you won't want to.

Absolutely. I could not agree more. Brakes are pretty much one of those personal preference things. After all, we are talking about the effective difference of 1/16" in a MC when stopping a 2.5 ton truck,

[lehiguy]

So did the T-100 have rear disks on it?