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There is a "core" existing that could be used for a rear rotor.

If you look at a GM '98 Blazer rear rotor, that would be the core.



Now I call it a core simply because it isn't a simple bolt on. It is the thicker rotor, i.e., .970" and it is 12.3"od. It uses a GM bolt pattern, not the Ford 4-1/2" center. It is vented. The center hole will clear the Pantera's center hub.

What is significant though, is that it has the necessary interior clearance to clear the o.d. of the Pantera rear hub, and the necessary set back to mount externally.



The bolt pattern can be redrilled to the Pantera pattern and the od can be turned down to what you need but the rotor thickness is probably going to be the main issue to deal with if you want to keep your calipers?

So any machining necessary would be done on the rotor and not on the Pantera.

Because it has the necessary depth to sit over the Pantera's flange it has the ability to be shimmed to center it in combination of shimming the location of the calipers.



I am still looking for that rotor in the thinner .847" thickness but it does not appear that there is one that exists but it is a start and for those of you that are sourcing hunters, it could be the beginning of a discussion with a brake rotor company.

I just haven't found a cross reference of rotor sizes yet that I can search an application for. Most cross references are for "original applications" and don't list the critical dimensions of the parts. That's the cross references that I need to find the thing, if it already exists, which is probably a 50/50 thing?

Being a common GM application helps with availability and pricing.



What I did on my brakes was already posted so I won't bore you all with repeating that but I would like to find a rotor that installs over the Pantera's rear flange, so that's why I keep looking. "You never know" and you won't find it if you stop looking? There is no doubt that something will need to be done with the rear studs but that is likely a minor change.

Last edited by panteradoug

The outside diameter of the rear axle flange on mine is 6.065".

I looked through available hats and saw most limited to a 5.750 od flange. You also need to get close on the depth of the hat as well.

With all the offsets with seperate hats and rotors, you need to get in the ball park in order to mount the calipers closely enough and preferably in order to shim them .

This is all doable but going in blindly is going to wind up with a lot of non-returnable extra parts.



Also, In this case it probably doesn't matter a lot but the GM rotors are $45 each but the commoness of a rotor for future replacement purposes would be preferred.

A friend gave me the name of a rotor company that will make anything for you. This guy restores classic race cars and this company is really the source of NASCAR components like brakes.

That is all well and good if you have a budget of $300 to $400 per rotor?



I believe that the front DT studs will work in the back when swapping the rotors to the outside but there are metric studs available in different configurations for race cars. The studs should not be the determining factors.

@LeMans850i posted:

Originally the discs are held on with the same stud, correct? I haven’t taken mine apart, but if we lose the disc in the back, the  stud protrudes more in the front therefore, the original stud should work ….

Not exactly. When moving the rotor to the outside, if you keep the stock studs or stock style studs, you need to put a spacer the width of the original rotor hat, between the head of the stud and the stub axle, so that the splines on the stud still sit in the axle in the same position as they did before. That results in a stud that’s effectively shorter by the width of the new rotor hat. Even when putting two piece Wilwood rotors in the OEM location, you need to shim the wheel studs by an amount equal to the difference between the thickness of a stock rotor hat and the Wilwood rotor hat. I wonder how many people install a Wilwood brake kit and wonder about the washers that are left over after the installation!

Last edited by davidnunn

Finally getting back on to the brakes!

I’m still trying to get some new discs made, but at this point my lovely wife would kill me if the car sits another six month just like that in the garage! So I got a set of used discs..

the bigger hold up were the highly unusual polyurethane bushings… Did a little write up about them here on this forum… Look for “

weirdest Poly bushings ??!!

” if interested..

Now that this problem is finally sorted in the rear I am back on to installing brake calipers…

one thing I forgot to do when I had everything apart was to chase the threats on the forward part of the uprights! Now I have to do it already installed in the car which is not very fun! Just test fitted the left side….

Also I got a new parking brake cable because on my original one the plastic shielding around was 80% gone and water got inside and it rusted itself in place…



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Last edited by LeMans850i

(working on the front bushings)
Finally I could go back on the rear brakes..

the way the parking break calipers set up the brake cable is routing straight forward from the caliper, then follows the lower arm front under the headers crosses (I added 12” of heat sleeves per side) to frame, and then makes the turn towards the pulley,.  This is a considerable shorter distance than the original route! So after test fitting it I marked the amount each side has to be shortened and the combined amount,  the cable has to be shorter. I found a company in SoCal that can do that and I drive there on Tuesdays.

i hate if I have to do extra loops/turns… just not an option!IMG_0340

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Last edited by LeMans850i
@rocky posted:

Are you looking at camber lock options?

(or is that another thread?)

Here’s how we (mostly Wade) did it… the discussion is on Page 4…  scroll down.

https://pantera.infopop.cc/top...-1973-l-model?page=4

1BA915F7-9CF0-4DD7-8943-7C4B283575974A053A5E-D17B-473B-9065-3F113EE0B4AD

I just read your thread… You pretty much did everything! Which is about where I’m going in the end…  double thumbs up to you,👍👍

I think I’m gonna skip the camber lock… I talked to Jerry at PIM About it, and he essentially said if I’m not going to do heavy duty racing it’s pretty much a mute point and if I bump anything it just moves to ball joints versus bending some more structural parts… if it does create a problem, I will address it!

i’m gonna focus right now on the Wilwood break conversion and hopefully getting my parking brake cable shortened and get the wheels back on. They haven’t been on since they got redone! Can’t wait to see that!

and then still lots of electric, fuel system,(Holley is already done) external fuel filler and on and on..

well, YOU know how that works 🤔😁

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Last edited by LeMans850i

The biggest problem with my (I bought it about 4 months  ago and drove it 1 -one- mile) Pantera is that it was in a museum starting 2016 and then got sold 2021 and was  sitting in a garage. There was work done to the car pre 2016 seems like including a repaint (car was taken apart) and I guess the poly bushings, half shafts and other little things but when they put it back together they assembled it dry… no grease anywhere!
door hinges, window mechanism, head light mechanism, locks, and then also (age related) speedo cable, pedal box, wiper assembly and so on!

Now I am sure that a lot has to do with being 50 years old and it just dried up and maintenance was “deferred “ LOL

I found proof that between 2016 and the time I bought it in 2022 the car got driven for 80 (eighty) miles !!

Someone took -keeping it -ORIGINAL-  way to serious!🧐  I am sure that the gas I drained out of the fuel tank was 10 years old… -Maple syrup- and Coca-Cola brake fluid together with all leaking seals, and rusted brake discs… (omg to the rear wheel bearings)

I have my work cut out with it, but I’m making my own and no, it will be not original!  Period correct YES but not another “original “ Yellow L Pantera! There are enough of them out there..

Another fun fact… when I get in the car the seat is expelling yellow foam powder…

things to do….

Last edited by LeMans850i

UPDATE FROM THE PRESIDENT OF CENTRIC ON THE ROTOR PART NUMBER 125.61053

My client who was Ops Director for Centric (but at a different company now) reached out to the current President of Centric on our dimension problems with their rotors and was told that "we no longer catelog those parts and neither does their other division (presumably StopTech). The part number/SKU has been killed off, otherwise the obsolete inventory problems never get resolved".

Centrics parent company went bankrupt a few years ago, Centric was spun off to a new parent company.  We asked would they consider doing a limited run with specific dimensions again for Panteras and were told NO!!! Per the President "New ownership new strategy". The president actually went online trying to help out and refered me to PI Motorsports website sending a picture of the parts PIM has on their site.

Back to square one and this seemingly never ending rat hole!

Sorry, I tried.

Last edited by tomsealbeach

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