I have a 97 f150 4x4 long bed extended cab 4.6. I have had the truck 10 years and have always hated the brakes. It doesnt matter if i buy good pads and rotors or **** ones. The truck wont stop. With a trailer its a joke. Ive had more than enough time going thru the motions diagnosing what could be wrong. One thing that is weird it that when i buy brakes they always ask if my truck is under or over 5800 lbs. I thought that there was a beefier option to swap to but ive had no luck findind it. I am going to swap the rear drums to disk but what can be done about the fronts? Is there a swap available for my truck? I have googled and found an expedition swap but i have yet to verify if it will work on a 4x4. Also if i swap to rear disk brakes do i have to change anything with the master cylinder or the prop valve? Id like to gain better brakes... not kill myself. Any help or advice will be greatly appreciated. Thanks

 

You will need the calipers, mounting brackets, pads, and rotors. You will use the 7700 brakes or Expedition 99 up (same).

https://www.f150forum.com/f6/expedit...p-pics-116889/

 

Yea, I offed the bad hardware in my 98 almost a decade ago. I pulled a car hauler for awhile and needed stopping power. I did it a little different, went with Brembo rotors, nothing fancy, they are just thick and heavy, none of that slotted BS. Twin piston Ford calipers are a great design BUT, they need steel pistons with good lifetime pads. Brake lines are another BIG problem. With all that heavy duty hardware you need good lines that will maintain composer if you have to get on the brakes (weak lines will blow up like a balloon). Thankfully now, there's a few company's that make braided lines or make them up for you on request.

Put all that together and she'll stop on a dime..loaded. That's if your properly set up on the trailer as well if your heavy.

The rears just assist, - drums or disc, doesn't matter to me in the rear. Also, if you use good stuff, brake dust will be so minimal you won't notice it on the rims.

This is just one way to do it. The post above has excellent options as well.

 

What are you using for pads Brewster? I've not used ceramic pads on anything that needs to stop significant weight, so I'm not too sure how well they'd do.

 

I upgraded to rotors / calipers that go to the Expeditions (not stock Ford parts). It's a direct bolt on and the stopping power is night and day. I'm on a 5" lift with 35's and with the new brakes it stops as if it had 33's.

 

I've always used Carquest Blues. Never paid a penny for pads for this truck, -transferred my lifetime warranty over from my previous 150. I think their called Carquest Golds now and they stopped making Blues. If I recall right Raybestos make their brakes. They aren't quite as hard as the others, - something to do with the ceramic/copper mix, that's why I went for them way back when. Their Blues were the most comfortable but you couldn't get a Lifetime on them, just a 2 year. Went with the next best thing.

 

I use calipers with mounting brackets form a 2000 f-150 7700, 2003 expedition rotors and a good semi metallic pad. When you buy the calipers, they are 2 piston instead of one. Also you should ask for the ones with metal Pistons instead of the phenolic. Also make sure they come with the mounting brackets. Another thing, since your truck is an earlier year, I would look at 97-98 expedition rotors with a 12mm lug pattern instead of 14mm on the newer trucks. Just make sure they are the same diameter as the 03 rotors. The reason for using rotors from an expedition and not the 7700 truck is because the 7700s have a 7 lug pattern. The expedition rotors are also quite a bit larger and thicker than the standard f150 rotors. They are the only ones that will fit the bigger calipers. Finally, make sure you use a semi metallic pad, I started with ceramics thinking they were better and they cracked and started chattering in no time. They have been flawless since I switched to semi metallic.

Sorry for the long run on paragraph, but if I can save someone some time with this swap it'll be worth it. I spent almost a week at all the different parts stores having them pull parts to see what really works. I first pieced it together from a few different stores, but found out I can order everything I need all in one place from Napa.

Stopping power is definitely not lacking now. Eventually I will do what Jbrew suggested and get the braided stainless lines instead of the crap factory rubber hoses that swell and end up acting like a check valve causing the calipers to stick.

Hope this helps you, if you have any questions fell free to ask, I'd be happy to help.

 

Upgrade to 7" Brake Booster and install a Brake Drag Reduction Spring.

The brake booster multiply the force that your foot applies to the master cylinder.

4 piston caliper is the best upgrade but 14" rotor requires 18"+ wheels

 

are the rears on the expedition larger as well or are they the same size? im running 35's and have been thinking about this myself on and off.

 

Thank you all for the advice. What is a 7 inch booster swap? What vehicle does it come out of?