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sperkins
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Jun 14, 2013

1979 Revcon front brakes Question

I am getting ready to do some work on my 79 Revcon front brakes, front brakes and calipers are standered Ford items and i believe the rotors are also, but does any one know about the hubs and a arm bushings? Did Revcon still use the toronado hub bearing and casting how about the ball joints?

Thank you

6 Replies

  • Thank you for the information everything is helpfull
    And we are here in southeastern Montana
  • The rotor is not really Ford, but you can use Ford, if you take a 1/4 inch off the outside of the disc, which is what everyone does. Steering knuckle is not Toro, and no relation, It is much bigger. Wheel bearings are common, and can be found by pulling the number off the old bearing. I have not figured out where they got it from. The lower ball joint can be replaced with a Hummer H1 lower joint. MAKE SURE YOU ARE ASKING FOR AN H1, and not an H2 or H3, as those are GM parts and will not work. The H1 lower ball joint requires re-drilling the holes to a larger size in the A-arm, but it is a no brainer mod. A-frame bushings can be replaced with '68 Buick, as I recall, but I'll have to look that up to know for sure.
    While you are under the front end, inspect the bellcranks. Make sure when you turn the wheel, they don't rock up and down. The bolt is to be torqued to 150 ft-lbs. I would also install jam nuts on the bottom, so they can not back out again. OEM nut was stamped after install. If anyone has loosened them, the stamp no longer secures the nut, and they will back out. Once you tighten them, jack the front end (both wheels) and twist the wheel. The steering wheel should spin from one lock to the other. Doing this, you are checking that nothing is binding. When the bellcranks are tight, if they are not shimmed properly, it is very easy for them to bind, so you need to check afterword and make sure it still turns without dragging. A few of us have machined these and installed tapered roller bearings which work very well.

    BTW: What state do you hail from?
  • Thank you all for responding, The Revcon i have is the second series it has the 454 with turbo 400 morise transfer case. Ihave been doing some restoration on this unit as we use it, so i am becoming very familiar with its working's. the front brakes are standard ford disk brakes calipers and pads, rotors also sseam to be ford. im not sure what they used for the front steering knuckle? if thats left over from the toro days.
  • To answer your question, we first need to know which version '79 you have. If you have a 455 engine, and the trans direction is facing the opposite way, then most parts in the front end are from the Toro. This coach is really a '78, but was sold in '79

    On the other hand, if you have a 454, and the trans is behind the engine in a conventional configuration, then you have the later version slant nose, and much of the front end is semi custom. Wear parts are still stock items, but you have to know what was used where.

    Revcon did such a mix and match of suppliers trying to stay alive.
    This statement could be misleading. Late 70s to early 80s were the "glory years" for Revcon. They made a ton of coaches during that time period and did very well. As far as understanding the mechanical engineering, in '76, Revcon hired an engineer by the name of Peter Bryant. Peter was very well known in Formula 1 racing. His claim to fame is the T22 that toppled the Lolas that dominated F1 during the late 60s. His purpose in redesigning the front end, was to properly handle the load requirement of the Revcon. Coaches were getting bigger and bigger, which required a much higher load rating. Any time a regular mechanic sees front end parts off a later model Revcon, you always get comments about the size and weight of the C-Vs, and front knuckles. The stuff is big and heavy.
  • There is a Revcon group out there somewhere. I bet you can find an answer there. Unfortunately, I have not URL to offer.

    Revcon did such a mix and match of suppliers trying to stay alive. If the parts turn out to be GMC or Toro and you can get numbers, you might be able to find them on the first try at Applied GMC.

    Matt