Spindle Modification
To minimize car down-time I purchased a used set of spindles so I could prepair all parts and take my time without having
my car sitting useless in the garage. You can get a set of used spindles for about $40.
- Rotor Shield Modification
On the majority of swaps I have seen they do not use the rotor shield. I decided to use the part of the shield that in my opinion
is the most important, the "ring" that goes around the hub (you can see in the pictures below what I am referring to). The ring
prevents any grease that escapes from the rear seal of the hub from spraying onto the rotor. This is very important because if
grease gets on the rotor not only will it severely hurt your stopping power, it will be absorbed by your brake pads and they will
have to be replaced.
1) Here is what the stock brake shield looks like after it is removed from the spindle and lightly sand blasted.
2) I used tin snips to cut the center "ring" out. This ring protects the rotor from grease that leaks out of the rear bearing
hub seal.
3) Lastly I put a coat of Por-15 rust preventative paint on it.
- Spindle Modification
1) Here is what the spindle looked like when I first received them (only one pictured).
2) I did a quick sandblasting on the spindle to clean it up and make it more workable. I wrapped the spindle shaft in a
piece of sheet metal to keep the surface smooth.
3) Mark off the area where to cut on the spindle like I have done below. On a C4, C4 HD, and LS1 brake upgrade you will
need to remove the steering stop because the spindle bracket will go in it's place. If you are doing a C5 brake upgrade with
the C5 bracket provided on the bracket page of this tutorial then make sure to leave the factory steering stop intact.
I believe the picture below is from Baer Brakes upgrade manual, I am not sure though. Ignore the information about drilling and
taping the holes, I will explain this below.
Here is the picture of the spindle after chopping off the spindle ears and the steering stop off the spindle.
4) Now two of the three holes where the dust shield was mounted must be drilled out and taped for a larger bolt. The stock
bolt size in the spindle used to hold the dust shield on is far too small and would be too weak to hold a spindle bracket. The
holes need to be drilled with a 27/32 drill bit. Make sure you use a brand new drill bit for this, you want the holes to be a
straight and clean cut as possible. I highly recommend using a drill press, an angle (tilting) vice, and a small bubble level
to make a perpendicular hole. The hole must be almost exactly perpendicular to the mounting surface, if it is not the bolt will
be at an angle against the spindle bracket and could cause fastener failure. You should also drill both holes all the way through
the spindle.
5) Tap the newly drilled holes with a 12mm x 1.75 mm tap. Make sure you use thread cutting oil to insure clean cut threads.
Another tip when taping the holes is after every full turn back the tap out one half turn to help clear the metal filings. I also
coated the spindle with Por-15 to prevent rust.
- Assembly
1) Mount the modified rotor grease shields (really only a hub shield now) with the original bolt or you use can use a stainless
steel bolt with a lock washer like I did. The size of the bolt is a 8mm x 1.25 pitch x 15mm long.
2) Mount the spindle bracket to the spindle. The top bolt is a 12mm x 1.75 pitch x 45mm long, 12.9 grade allen bolt.
The bottom is a GM bolt part # 11508133, this bolt is a 12mm x 1.75 pitch x 30mm long. I also used two 12mm stainless steel washers.
Before you mount these bolts drill through them so they can be safety wired. These bolts should be tightened to 89 ft.lbs without
loctite, or 83 ft.lbs with loctite. The lower foot-pounds rating with loctite is due to the fact that loctite acts as a lubricant
and can cause fastener over tightening if not taken into account. If you are using safety wire do not use loctite.
3) Spindle Done! I safety wired the bolts in place to insure they will never come out. This step is optional but is highly
recommended.
Page created: January 2006
Page content last updated: 01-16-2006