[Studedean]

im new to disk brakes, inally figured out to assemble them, but one thing doesnt seem right. ive placed the caliper into its slot, but what holds it in? everythinh seems to loose to stay that way. its a lincoln versailles rear end. new parts, and ive bolted on the caliper holder. I slide it into whjat appears to be its slot and it looks like nothings holding it in. theres a allen wrench screw under it, but it doesnt go in far enough to tighten anything.as I have it the front pad is sitting in slots in the caliper holder, and sort of floating there. the piston is behind it. but the caliper assembly looks like it would just fall out the back as soon as you drive. I have no brake lines in place yet. is it possible thsi is what keeps it in place?

[timothale]

There is a U shaped keeper about 1 1/2 inches long that slides in between the caliper bracket and the caliper, It has a cresent cut out that the allen bolt tightens down to retain, Ford sliding calipers tend to wear out one side of the rotor, make sure the parts are clean and a light coat of anti seize lube . I think the front keeper should fit from the 70's mid size casrs if you can't find your missing parts.

[Studedean]

do you have a photo of the pieces you are describing, and where they go?
ALL of the parts i am putting on are brand new, so i imagine I should have the parts you mention. If I dont I will go back and ask.
I am probably not describing this very well. I screwed in the caliper keeper bracket into the only piece it could attach to on the rear end. I found where the rear brake pad slides into the caliper keeper, and placed it in. btw, it just falls out the bottom w/o the rotor in place. then I put on the roter, and slide the caliper down onto it bottom first w/ the other pad attached to the roter. all looks great and as any diagram shows it should look, but its just sitting there, you can literally pull the whole caliper off by pulling back on it and that cant be right. another weird deal, im on ym second non fitting set of lug nuts for this 77-80 versailles, they screw on and you can force them, but I know their not right.

[timothale]

find a shop manual for fords or pickups from that era. the front brakes are very similar with the caliper retainer. The Broncofix web site has a good picture but I couldn't copy it, it is listed under the versailles conversion info, do some googling

[timothale]

My wife scanned the picts from my ford pickup shop manual I.ll try to attach, The allen screw with the cone shapped shoulder aligns with the cresent cutout ,83 and Later pickups used a different retainer, The parts look the same for light duty pickups and passenger cars with sliding calipers,

[Studedean]

I understand better what the issues is and thanks for the copies. my caliper support spring seems to long as it is longer than the caliper support key mentioned in the photo. also is the caliper support key the bottom of the actual caliper, as I do not have a seperate piece for this.
I can drive this piece in there, but it sure doesnt seem stable in there. it does take up the slack as designed, but what keeps the caliper support spring from just bouncing out the back of the whole unit while driving? I can push it w/ just my thumb and knock it out.
again I really appreciate the photos

[Studedean]

so you know im measuring my support spring around 3 1/4"

[timothale]

I've had 4 versaille rear ends over the years. the spring should just be a little longer than the key, so the ends hook over the key. My one ton ford HD dayton brakes were a lot bigger, mabe someone gave you big truck parts. go to a wrecking yard and check out front brakes from mid sized ford cars fron the 70's mabe ealy 80's and see if you can find a spring to match your key. I ve gathered 80's lincoln town car rear discs, they fit on mustang 8.8 with ranger 5 bolt axle shafts , they were cheaper than the explorer 8.8 disc and easier than looking for another 9 in versailles-or monarch 9 disc

[Studedean]

your photo looks ot show the key as a different piece. i have it all together, but I gotta say the spring is just held in w/ the weight of the caliper... seems like the first bump, and its gone.

[timothale]

with the correct key, spring and caliper you should have to tap it together with a hammer. do you have the correct rear calipers with the emergency brake, ? I think Mustang II front calipers look the same without the E brake lever but are smaller.

[Studedean]

I noticed in your photos i do not appear to have the key part. i have the spring, but the part that would go with or be tightened by the hex screw is not present. I have the spring in there and its tight, but it looks like without the key part it will just spit out the back. so lemme guess the key is like impossible to find???

[timothale]

The kes holds the caliper in place, the spring keeps it from ratteling. I would check ford midsized cars from the 70's early 80 to see if a front key would work. I checked the interchange list on line and they did not have that part listed, Try granada monarch, fairlane, maverick mustang front keys.. what I do when I don't have an interchange book is go to napa auto parts on line and look up the part number for a 76 versailles front caliper then look up the part number for the various cars listed and years and compare part numbers . that will give you an idea of which cars to look for at a wrecking yard to fing the missing keys. most versailles parts are long out of stock , you can still find calipers, rotors and pads,

[timothale]

try Napa auto parts on line or go to your dealer and ask for parts UP 82132 hardware kit $ 12,69 for each rear wheel. if they can't get those parts try front key part no up 82432 $ 5.49 or try a front hardware kit. UP 82117a for $ 14.99 prices are for one wheel. or a trip to the bone yards with your allen wrench and some penetrating oil to get the screw loose and tap out a couple keys.