Here are my goals, need your advice

[Eric]

I will be doing a full body off restoration to an '84 El Camino upon my return from overseas.

I am trying to get the suspension/brakes squared away since that is what i will tackle first since the frame will be sitting there.

i have read about B/F body spindle swaps a bit, but have picked up that they increase bumpsteer, but give you bigger brakes. what size are the stock brakes? if it is not much smaller than the "big brakes" i do not see the added bump steer as an acceptable trade off.
what would you do to get a better than factory brake setup for the front? stock spindles and a big brake kit, spindle swap, or just add slotted rotors, good pads and a dual piston caliper?

for suspension i am trying to acheive a dropped but level stance, not slamed to the ground,
up front what control arms would you run? removing any un-needed weight is key, so stock control arms are going in a scrap pile. coil over or replacement coils for the front?
same for the rear, boxed lowers? tubular? fixed position or adjustable? what type of bushings? what springs for the rear to compliment the dropped stance up front?

and since the rear end will need to be in place to have a rolling frame, for a car that will probably put closer to the 400 Rear Wheel Hp/Tq # (LS motor swap) the 8.5 10 bolt? 12 bolt(any factory direct swaps as far as suspension mounts goes?)

I appologize for the mass amout of questions, but if you feel inclined to answer any of them, could you explain your reason for the answer so i can get a better understanding of what needs to be done prior to getting home so i can do it once and not worry about it later down the road. I am new to workin with older chevy's its always been a Ford or old Jeep.

Thanks
-Eric

 

[dsaundry]

Have you checked some of the stuff available on ebay? It's going to have a bunch of the stuff you are looking for. Just search g-body and or your year and make of car. Have found many good parts for both my Malibu and Lemans GT.

 

[khan0165]

I think my car is throwing 350-ish HP to the rear on a good day, and I'm very abusive to my 8.5... I've also seen many 10sec cars run on fairly stock 8.5s.
... so definitly a good choice for your application. My 8.5 has a Eaton Posi unit, with 3.42 gears. And for added security, it has an aluminum stud girdle cover.

JBreu is running a 12bolt, so he's probably a good guy for good insight on that type of rear end.

the way I see it... a 12bolt would be great for any +500hp applications, and the added width is great for stuffing bigger wheels out back. Anything much under that kinda power... it's just not worth it to run a heavier rear like that.

that being said... the 8.5s are getting harder and harder to find. So if you've got a 12bolt in your sites, grab it. I've also heard you can just buy a new 8.5 for around $800, but I have yet to confirm.

 

[Eric]

good info about parts out on eBay, i will have to check it out when i get to computers that allow access.
also good to know about the 8.5, seems something easily abtainable

 

[Longroof79]

Eric,
You're right about the bump steer issue using B-body spindles which incorporates 11 or 12" rotors. The stock rotor size is 10.5".
I would consider front brakes and spindles from a late model 2-WD S-10 with dual piston calipers. I believe the stock rotor size is 11".
Not much difference, but the advantage of having dual piston calipers out weighs the rotor size. 11" is still a bit better than 10.5". Still something to consider. Apparently it's a bolt on swap, but you do need the entire assemblies, spindles and all.

This type of set-up can also allow you to install larger 13" Corvette rotors, with an adapter to move the calipers outward. The downside (or upside) would be that larger diameter wheels would be needed.

 

[Longroof79]

BTW, here's a link to an older thread regarding the subject.

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=12563

 

[Eric]

Thanks for the link to Blazer dual piston brakes, those are plentiful back home. but then also saw there is a dual piston direct swap for the G-Body spindle/rotor. so many options!