I've just recently noticed that on longer drives my front brakes overheat like crazy...

Took the calipers off and found cracked pads and all the brake rubbing surfaces were dry... So I put some new pads w/ hi temp brake grease where it needs to be... still overheating.

Brake caliper pistons go out as they should, and I can recompress them with pliers and an old brake pad to get both pistons at once no problems.

These stupid brakes have been tough to figure out... well I think I found that I'm missing brake hardware according to brake pictures online:



Those shims at the right bottom corner of the pic are nowhere to be found on my calipers... I take it they belong where the pads' "ears" are sliding in the caliper?

Just checking to make sure this is where they go... Trying to get the brakes/steering/suspension all set on this truck so I can actually trust towing my Jeep with it some time soon.

FWIW I have a pair of brake hoses waiting to be installed tomorrow just to make sure they aren't internally collapsed or anything.... they're cheap enough to replace so I figured why not.

 

Yes, those "shims" are actually keepers that you drive in after installing the caliper. There are raised bumps or barbs on the ends of the keepers to prevent them from sliding out.

It sounds like the calipers aren't sliding properly and/or are getting cocked with respect to the rotor. W/o the keepers they might tilt and, therefore, drag all the time. However, unless the bracket and the calipers are free of rust and all other junk and are well greased they won't slide even w/the keepers.

You should be able to get the keepers at the parts store. After you do pull the calipers off, suspend them from the spring with a rope or piece of wire to prevent them from hanging by the hose, and clean them awa the vees where they meet the bracket. Make sure everything is clean and free from rust. Lube the vees with high-temp brake lube and then put the caliper back on and drive the keeper in, well lubed, so that equal amounts stick out on each end. But, make sure the bumps on the keepers are positioned such that they'll contact the bracket. I'm not sure which way that is, but want to say the bumps go down - but you need to figure that out.

 

Ford calls them "Caliper Supports."

Pic is of 4WD dual-piston brakes since that's the pic the OP posted
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Section 21, Page 2. I'm not at my computer to look at the drawing, but can you tell from it which way the bumps go?

 

It looks to me like they're on the outside edges.

I attached a pic that's been blown up 400%
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Tnx. That should help him.

 

Yeah... there's no way in hell those clips are going on in any way, shape, or form.



I fail to see where and how they can possibly be attached? There is literally no room on the ends where the caliper slides against it's bracket when bolted up, and the tips of the brake pads have no grooves or notches to hold the stupid things in place.

I greased the contact points up like crazy with some good high temp grease this time... hopefully it will work out fine.


Can somebody take a pic of their F250 calipers assembled with those clips in place?

 

I'm personally wondering if you've got the right stuff up there...

It looks like you've got 8-bolt hubs and dual-piston calipers but on a 2WD, I wonder if this is the result of some guy's backyard engineering and you've got mismatched parts.

 

I do recall the PO telling me that he had to buy brakes for an '85... so God knows what the heck he did wrong

 

2wd is similar set up. the back brake pad has to be wiggled and jiggled around until it seats properly, if not the caliper won't set all the way down to put in the wedges.It's best to put the wire on after the pads are passed the rotor, and before seated.otherwise it pushes the pads crooked, and it won't seat all the way down.

to make sure the caliper pistons are all the way back, use a c clamp on an old brake shoe instead of pliers

 

What engine is in this thing?

 

I can see the exhaust coming together on the right in the picture, must be a v/8

 

Choice of:

302
351W
460

for gas engines, and

420 cid (6.9L diesel)



Reason I ask is, I'm looking up the repair guides on autozone's sites.

I told it a 6-banger 2WD, the pictures are showing 5-bolt hubs and single-piston calipers OR dual-piston calipers are available (LD or HD).

I told it a 460 engine 2WD, the 5-bolt hubs are the same but the single or dual-piston calipers depend on LD or HD.


In any event, I think he's got some guy's "project' and I'm guessing a PO never swapped out the spindles (or whatever those things are called) when "upgrading the hubs & brakes."

To the OP: Are the back wheels also of the 8-bolt variant? Or are they 5-bolt?

In any event, it sounds like you're using the wrong calipers for those spindles. whether you could get calipers that work with those hubs & rotors but that also match up to those spindles, I have no idea........

Of course, this is just the way everything looks to me from the outset....

 

I think your right, he may have the older style that use the sliders and the wedge/bolt from the top. now that I re-look at his picture, I believe that to be the case.... If so, the wedge pins won't work, there is no room for them as the casting is different

 

If the caliper is a Motorcraft it might have a part # we could look up. Maybe ditto the rotor/hub? What about the bracket? If we had the P/N's we could probably figure out what it is.