2000 Ford Excursion with a Sterling 10.5 Full Floating Rear Axle.

Parts Used
Brake Best Shoes Part 122074J01 - OReilly Part #771
Brake Best Hardware Kit 0513 - OReilly Part #H7308

Jack up the rear of the truck (I did both at the same time) and secure with jackstands and remove the rear wheel/s.


Remove the rear caliper bracket mounting bolts - 18mm socket.


Secure the caliper to the springs or set it on something sturdy.


Index your rotor to one of the studs so you know how it came off, then remove it. I know not everyone does this when they remove a rotor, but my truck is vibration free for the first time in a long time so I wasn't going to chance it.


Soon as I looked inside my rotor I knew I had some parking brakes issues. Lots of ground up debris.


Wasn't hard to find the source of the carnage.


Next up was the hub bolts x8 - 18mm socket.


Once all the bolts are off pry loose the axle shaft and remove it from the axle housing.


Set a drain pan under the axle before you pull the shaft out, you wil get some gear oil that drains. Not much but even if a little gear oil on you stinks for days. I break out my "gear oil" gloves anyime I'm going to be near the stinky stuff.




Then you need to loosen and remove the spindle nut socket on the hub with the special tool.

The driver's side is backwards threaded so it lefty to tighten and right to loosen. Insert the ford tool into the spindle and be sure all 4 teeth mate up with the slots in the spindle.

Next up is the hub. You will need a 3 jaw puller and some kind of a press plate (I used what I had in the garage) and popped off the hub.

Set it down carefully, there are bearing cups that will drop out of it so be gentle. Also cover it up and keep it clean!

I covered up the axle shaft opening and taped it down to keep anything from getting into the axle tube. Then took a close look at the springs, clips, groaned and said a few potty words.

Good news is I had new hardware so I wasn't going to wear myself out getting these springs off intact so out came the dremel, and the springs were cut loose.

Then went to remove the right side shoe, it dropped all the way down and I realized the pin was also gone. The other side was intact so I removed it using the needle nose vice grips.
Once the shoes and springs were removed, I pulled free the actuator arm that connects so the rear brake cable; pliers required for this task.


Then remove the actuator arm from the rubber grommet, the grommet needs cleaned up and replaced so don't tear it.

Then I gave the entire backing plate assembly a good soak and scrubbed with fuid film and let it soak, while I worked on the lever arms. This is the arm after a brief wire brushing....followed by the same arm after the dremel got hold of it and some KBS paint.


After the 1st scrub

After painting with KBS. Then the star adjusting screw and the actuator lever got a good dose of Caliper lube.





Set everything out and figured out where it went. Here are the shoes and the hardware kit, and the refabbed lever arm.


1st side I followed a "how to" I had and it said do the lever, then one shoe then hook up the arm and do the other side. This didn't work for me, well got it done after calling in a neighbor for help but I could not pull the spring far enough to slide the second shoe into position. That rear big spring is really stiff. So I ponder side #2 a bit and realized if i didn't hook up the lever I could reduce how far I had to pull that second side.

So I first installed the boot and slide the lever into the slot.


I put some white lithium grease (thanks Tom for the tip on that one had no idea what it was for at first) on the contact points on the backing plate.


Then I connected the two shoes with the rear spring, the longer end of the spring goes on the side where the lever is the shortest, in this picture it would be to the left. The short end of the spring is on the right. I fed the right side in first. The stretched the left side into the lever slot. Few bad words and feet stuffed up in the wheel well for leverage also required.


Then installed the upper smaller spring using needle nosed vice grips and a fair amount of cussing again.


Set the adjusting screw as small as it would go and wedged it into the bottom.


Then installed the lower small spring. Needle grips again here. And a little cussing.


Then the pins and spring clips. Lots of cussing required. I could not compress them far enough by hand, and since I'm not an octopus I couldn't hold them with a pry bar or screwdriver, press from behind and twist the pin to lock it. So out came the needle noses again and i pre-clipped the springs in place (careful to just get the very edge of it) so you have room to get another pair of pliers in there and still have room to turn the pin.


Then reconnect the actuator lever on the backside to the brake cable.


Everything installed.


Now take the rotor and slide it over and see if it fits. Have to hold it center with no hub on there but it's a good first check. On one side I couldn't even get it on. So I adjusted the screw down until I could just slide it over.

Now take your hub and make sure it's clean and relube the bearings by pouring in some gear oil. Mine has Royal Purple in it so that's what I used.


Once it's set then reinstall your spindle locknut and torque to 60 foot lbs. then back it off 7 clicks for new bearings and 5 for used bearings. I did 6 since my bearings are fairly new.


Check the o-ring on your axle shaft if it's torn replace it. Mine was fine so I lubed it up with some more royal purple as well as the spline ends and slide the axle back into the housing. Be sure the splines engage before you shove on it too hard.



Then blue loctite on the 8 x 18mm hub bolts and torque them back to 80 ft lbs in a star pattern.


Then reinstall your rotor and your caliper/bracket and torque those back to 128ft lbs. 18mm socket again.

Put a couple of lugs onto your rotor to hold it tight (had to do this anyway to get my caliper on) and now spin the wheel (truck in N) and see how it feels. If it drags then adjust the screw some more until it doesn't. I had to take mine down as far as it would go. With new shoes it's a tight fit. Then go press the Ebrake pedal and make sure it holds tight. Mine did both sides.

Wheels back on - lugs torqued and went for a test drive. No funny sounds, no dragging, checked for any heat when I got back both felt normal and the same side to side. Then put the brake on and tried to move my truck, it would not budge. Much improved, as before I could probably have driven a few miles with my Ebrake engaged, well until my rear wheels caught fire anyway.

 

Thanks for the write up, and waiting for the rest. Do you really need that spindle nut socket? Is it on tight?

 

Where did you get he spindle nut socket? Is it a common rental tool at the parts store? Would this be a good time to rebuild the rear axle... all the seals and bearings and whatnot?

 

Most excellent!

Stewart

 

You do for the rear axle. I'm guessing people have gotten those on and off without one but with those slots and how important the load on those bearings are - I would wouldn't try it without one.

You can get them at any parts store rental, or buy them on the shelf. They are about 15 bucks. I have used mine several times already so money well spent. If you have seals/bearings bad and need to rebuild your alxe yes I would worry about that first, before I put it all back together if you need Ebrake shoes that's the time to do it. I ignored mine were bad (noticed when I did rear wheel bearings) and didn't feel like stopping to do them, so as punishment I got to tear it all the way down to the axle housing again. Live and learn.

 

Looks like one for the Tech folder to me.

 

Absolutely, along with a few others I have saved but just haven't gotten around to adding because I'm trying to finish revamping the tech folder setup.

Stewart

 

Great write up!

 

Outstanding work..... Thanks for taking the time to document all of this.

 

Another fabulous Christina write-up. Is there anything she can't do?

 

Great job......Thanks Christina!

 

Tell me how to do it and I get stumped but show me how to do it and I have no problems. I work by pics. Great job.

 

Tell me about it. Like most, I'm a visual learner.

Stewart

 

Thanks everyonne - I'm a visual kind myself. You can explain is 6 times but show me a picture of it and I got it forever.

 

Actually most people are (especially photographers like me) which is why people can usually recognize a face but can't attach a name to it.