One thing that has me worried in my rig is braking in the rain- dry pavement is fine, the brakes will put you through the windshield. But in the rain, the front brakes get very touchy, and I have to be very easy on them or they lock up and skid. Tires are brand new, the brakes are in good shape, but the front shocks are shot, and I can't imagine the track bar bushing and such are in very good condition. But would all that cause poor braking? It's a big issue, especially here in Seattle, we get quite a bit of rain.

Sam

 

Do you have drums or disks on the front? Which ones are locking up, the front or rear?

I'm thinking you may have a proportioning valve problem that shows up in the rain because of the friction loss between the tire and pavement. You could try replacing your factory valve with an adjustable one like what is offered by Wilwood, and you can dial in the sensitivity.

 

Usually with an empty PU its the back that wants to lock first. Sounds like something is not happy in the system. Agree it could be the prop valve... it could also be something as simple as a little air in the rear brakes or shoe adjustment not quite right. Suggest bleeding the rear brakes and "spoon" the rear adjusters until you feel very slight drag.

When adjusting the rear shoes, it is best to back off the parking brake cable first. If the cable is too tight it can throw off the shoe adjustment. After shoes are adjusted, adjust the parking brake cable.

 

It has disks on the front, with the big dual piston calipers. I'll definitely check into the prop valve, as far as i know, it's original!

I think I'll just re-place the back brakes too, the shoes had lots of meat but the more think about it I think the drums are warped. Either way, it can't hurt!

Thanks

Sam