FJ60 brake drums – OEM vs aftermarket/sources?

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CruiserZen

CruiserZen

10 Year
Joined
May 27, 2014
Threads
10
Messages
40
So our '85 FJ60 project is coming nicely, but a rear brake job reveals that the PO may have taken some . . . er . . . shortcuts when maintaining them. We're going to need to replace the drums. I've found OEM and aftermarket drums at Cool Cruisers of Texas, but not many other places. Anyone have an opinion on which is better? Or any other good sources of supply?
 
Some cruiserheads regard the Napa premium brake parts as pretty good. Any discussion about which DRUM is better is probably splitting hairs. That being said, in my little mind, its probably safe to use aftermarket, but I would buy the OE if the price was not too far off.

That confusing enough? :)
 
Thanks dbleon. Since the rears only do about 30% of the braking, and I'm probably not going to put another 200k mikes on it, my inclination was to save a few bucks and use aftermarket. Napa has a good product. Will probably go that route.
 
mep1811 said:
You might want to consider an rear disk brake conversion .
https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=fj60 rear brake upgrade
Click to expand...
I REALLY beg to differ on this. Sure, disk brakes are great. But once you take off your drums, you lose your emergency brake. The stock drum E-Brake will hold a 60 on hill. Without it, you put more stress on your transmission, and really hurt your ability to regulate tough starts when wheeling.
If you go with a rear brake conversion, and still want an e-brake, you need to either swap in an entire FZJ80 rear end, or put on a T-case brake. (Ask Trencha about his and see how he likes it.... )

Frankly, theres no cost-effective way to beat the stock rear drum brake performance in MY OPINION. All youll end up with is a truck with no e-brake that has marginal brake performance increase, or a truck with a mediocre e-brake, and marginally improved brake performance.

Another note. If you rupture a brake line on trail, and dump your entire MC reservoir in the dirt, your going to wish you kept those drums.

Just my 2 cents.

From what Iv learned from Gary at Mudrak, we really dont recommend disk conversions in the rear unless you swap in a whole FZJ80 rear axle.
 
I bought new Napa Premium rear drums because I couldn't find an Aisin replacement option and the Toyota drums were so much more (one of the only things I haven't insisted on OEM). I didn't turn them and when they were installed, one of them was not true and I was getting pulsing when stopping. I took them to Napa and had them turned, but still no improvement, so they were going to swap them out for me. I ended up having my old drums turned just for the heck of it- they were no where near being worn, and am running those again.

When I was looking for drums, I called Kurt at Cruiseroutfitters, and he said they usually use the Napa drums, FWIW.
 
Rock auto

Or

Fzj rear conversion :)
 
KeepCruzin said:
I REALLY beg to differ on this. Sure, disk brakes are great. But once you take off your drums, you lose your emergency brake. The stock drum E-Brake will hold a 60 on hill. Without it, you put more stress on your transmission, and really hurt your ability to regulate tough starts when wheeling.
If you go with a rear brake conversion, and still want an e-brake, you need to either swap in an entire FZJ80 rear end, or put on a T-case brake. (Ask Trencha about his and see how he likes it.... )

Frankly, theres no cost-effective way to beat the stock rear drum brake performance in MY OPINION. All youll end up with is a truck with no e-brake that has marginal brake performance increase, or a truck with a mediocre e-brake, and marginally improved brake performance.

Another note. If you rupture a brake line on trail, and dump your entire MC reservoir in the dirt, your going to wish you kept those drums.

Just my 2 cents.

From what Iv learned from Gary at Mudrak, we really dont recommend disk conversions in the rear unless you swap in a whole FZJ80 rear axle.
Click to expand...

I'm in full agreement with this. My 60 is more modified than most, and I still run the stock rear axle primarily because of the excellent parking brake.

cruisermatt said:
Fzj rear conversion :)
Click to expand...

The problem with this is it is about as far from a bolt in conversion as you can get. Additionally, it involves addressing the front axle as well.
 
These are supposed to be good. Ikuta.

But what I miss from the AFT drums vs the OEM is that nice 2nd ridge around the outer circumference that gives you a good place to grip with your fingers to pull off the drums by hand when they inevitably get stuck over the years. With most AFT drums, that ridge is gone, and you have to use 2 very long 8mm bolts to slowly press off the drum all the way until you can grip the inside edge of the drum. Definitely slower and lame compared to the OEM when it's time to pull a drum.
 
I've always taken this guy's Cruiser views as gospel and he sells a heavier drum.

http://www.marksoffroad.net/FAQ.html

Quoted from Mark's website:

"c. DRUM vs. DISC. IMHO, drum brakes have superior stopping power. The power drum brakes on my HJ45 are so strong, they will throw you forward if you hit the pedal hard! The real issue with the drums is THE DRUMS! 90% of my calls on disc brake conversions are from guys with the 71-75 power drum system that have radical pulling to one side and/or cannot get hard pedal on the first pump. This is because the factory drum is weak. You can have the drum turned perfectly round, but the simple act of bolting a rim over it will warp it into an elliptical, with high and low spots that cause the brakes to skip, drag and pull.

SOLUTION A: I have imported heavy duty replacement drums whose flanges are literally twice as thick as the stock drum, isolating the wheel pressure. The drum weighs 6 pounds more than stock, and satisfies the majority of my customers.

SOLUTION B: Disc Brakes. there are two things that I will grant about disc brakes. One is that they are definitely lower maintainance. Nothing I have said above detracts from the fact that drum brakes require more attention. The second is that discs will work better after getting wet than drums will. I have scored my brake shoes to help them dry easier; if water crossings are a regular part of your off road adventures, then discs make sense.

d. DISC PARKING BRAKE. Other than the bling factor, I don't recommend this unless your cruiser is not going to leave the pavement OR you have a skidplate that is impregnable. While the theory of the disc is interesting, as a practical matter you cannot get a disc big enough to reach into a caliper of any worth without it being big enough to hang lower than the transfer case. That being the case, it becomes the weak link, because as soon as you hit it, you WILL dent it, and it will not travel thru the caliper any more. At that point, something will have to give, and I don't want to be there to find out what it is."
 
I used Ikuta, about $118 a few years ago...

(Brakes are one of those places I don't like to compromise).

brakes0004_2-jpg.369329
 
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You probably say that to all the "Full Floaters" you see...
 
mep1811 said:
My 60 stops much better with the rear disk brakes and I have an E-brake.
Click to expand...
What kind of disks and what kind of e-brake? How well does it hold?
How much did it cost?
 
OGBeno said:
Toyota drums are not cheap.
Click to expand...
1986 stock fj60 rear drums.

I know this thread is 10 years old but several knowledgeable folks have responded & are still around, so I’m looking for some thoughts. Any recommendations for solid rear drums for my 60 that I wheel a lot…front/rear lockers etc.

I usually go OEM and may still do so with the drums…BUT OEM’s are pushing $200 each vs aftermarket @ $40-75 each. Please give me your thoughts.

Thanks
@OGBeno
@Spike Strip
@mep1811 @Mace
@doug720
@cruisermatt
ETC ETC
@hank14
 
I know I wasn’t called to arms, but I’ll give my 2 cents based on the aftermarket drums I used.

The original Toyota drums have that big lip on the outside that you can grab to pull the drum off.
My aftermarket drums did not have that lip. They were smooth with absolutely nothing to grab on too.
They did have the threaded hole so the drum could be screwed out with a separate bolt- but there’s nothing to grab.
I thought that was extremely lame.

I was told that all aftermarket drums are now made in China- so that figures.
My aftermarket drums worked fine - and were a lot cheaper, but I would MUCH rather have the Toyota drum with the big outside lip.

“All of the major brake guys Bendix, Centric, Wagner, Raybestos etc use Chinese made product. So do many of the low end guys.”
 
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