Yamaha Grizzly ATV Forum banner

Disc Brake Conversion on older Big Bear/Kodiak

42K views 31 replies 8 participants last post by  RedRocket 
#1 ·
Thanks to YellodKodi, I was able to change out my front drum brakes to a disc brake setup with no hassle. My bike is a 1991 Big Bear 350 which was in horrible shape. I picked up up for practically free because the PO neglected it bad. The front brakes were gone, the pistons siezed and rusted and the drum brake surface was rusted and pitted bad. In short- nothing was salvageable in the entire system. Pricing replacement parts put me above $250 easy.

After some words of wisdom by YellowKodi, it seems the disc brake systems from Wolverines (1995 thru 2005 I believe) will fit the Big Bear and Kodiak bikes up to 1998. I was lucky to find a complete front end off a 2001 Wolverine which I picked up for $130 after some dealing. The bearings were going bad, the calipers were dirty and stuck, but everything was there.

Just FYI, the top A-arm is the same but the lower A-arm is different, so I just used my old suspension.

I installed the spindles this weekend and they fit great. I ended up removing the bearings from my old spindles since I replaced them not long ago and put them in the new spindles. Everything went together smoothly and we took it out for a spin with no problems at all. I'll post some pics and more info as I get to the brake system.
 
See less See more
#2 ·
Please do - I have a 1997 Big Bear and was going to do something about the brakes as well.
 
#3 ·
Glad to see it all worked out for you Greg. Actually the wolvy upper arms are longer but have the bushings in the same spot. You are correct with the lowers though, they are longer also but the bushings are spaced out further. I have one question for you. Stand in front of your quad and tell me if it looks like the top of your front tires kinda point out and the bottom points in, like this \_\ /_/
 
#4 ·
Hey bud. Yeah, they do tilt out a little, but when someone sits on it, they pretty much go straight again. I did notice the wolverine spindles are slightly different which would cause this tilt, but it is hardly enough to worry about.

I do have an issue - how can I get the pistons out of the calipers? One was dry so I know the seals are shot. The other had fluid, so it may be okay but I'll do a rebuild anyway. The outside of the pistons are dirty and slightly rusty and seem to be stuck. So I either have to hook them up to the brake system and use fluid to push them out, or I thought about using the grease gun trick to push them out. Any other ideas??
 
#8 ·
will this conversion work on my 1994 kodiak, i found two front hub for 30 dollars each from 2000 yamaha wolverine.
Hubs, spindles, calipers, and rotors are all you need. Your existing brake lines will work just fine as well as master cylinder.
 
#10 ·
#15 ·
They are knuckles - the part that goes between the a-arms and the axle end goes through them.

I got my calipers apart and am waiting on rebuild kits now. Then I'll be ready to bolt them on and bleed the system.
 
#19 ·
Got my parts in today and rebuilt both calipers and installed new brake pads. Now I'm ready to go once I get my quad back from the mechanics next weekend. Should be ready to bolt back together and have disc brakes in front finally.
 
#20 ·
So I got all the parts in and bolted everything on, but now it seems the right from cv shaft is to long and i have play in the wheel. I thought the hub nut was loose at first but after taking it apart I saw the splines on the shaft stick through the hub about a 1/8 inch or so. Any ideas?
 
#24 ·
I don't want to sound like an ass but the hubs are supposed to be different between drum and disc. Otherwise the splines and bearings are the same size between drum and disc hubs. Could you maybe take a picture to show us the problem?
 
#25 ·
I know the hubs are different between the two. The hubs I bought came from ebay and one I found local. Both fit the splines, same bolt pattern and the rotors bolted right up. The only difference is the actual hub part that goes on the splines is narrower and doesn't completely cover the splines.I would take pictures but I put it back together and put it in the shed, once I get the other hub and take it apart I'll post some pictures.
 
#26 ·
I might have to go take a tire off my quad now and see if I had this issue. Its been so long since I did the swap to discs. I want to say in my case the splines in the disc hub were shorter than the drum hub, but it all still worked out fine in the end for me. There is still more than enough splines in the hub to not worry about them stripping.
 
#32 · (Edited)
@kwetten as CK700 has mentioned, the older threads can typically be members who have not been on here in years, so it is unlikely they may respond. We have also had new members ask questions on older threads, no response and then the new member might think they are purposely being ignored. That is not typically what is happening, it is usually just a misunderstanding. We are happy to have you here so don't be opposed to starting your own thread, reaching out with questions specific to your issue. You may not receive an immediate response as some times that takes a little time for the right person to see it and respond. That can happen a lot with members who have older machines too... it's not personal, just the right person hasn't read it and responded yet. Another option could be if you started your own thread, you could reference/link an older thread for added context.

Anyway, welcome to the forum and feel free to start threads and jump in as well.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top