I just finished putting a Power Stop K36 HD and towing kit on my truck - rotors and pads but that 'kit' fiasco is for another thread.

This was the first brake job on my '11 at 71.5K miles. There was no other choice as the fronts were down to within 1/32 of the pad backer steel - dang I usually go 100K but since I'm the second owner have no clue as to how hard this truck was driven the first 40K. Nothing came apart easy. All four wheels needed an 8 pound sledge hammer to 'persuade' them that they needed to come off the hub. That is after I had to break each of the 32 lug nuts loose with a 4 foot cheater and some inappropriate language for my neighborhood. Then the 4 bracket bolts on the rear - Someone at Ford must have had a bad day as the Lock Tite was beyond heavy as that 4 foot cheater was needed again just to break them loose. My Harbor Freight 'Earthquake' air gun works fairly well but wasn't up to that task. The front rotors only needed a little 4 pound hammer help and they popped right off. The rears - I had to drill and tap for some jack bolts - along with some 4 pound help to get them off. After that, with the exception of trying to figure out how to install those @#$% anti rattle clips, went fairly well, just lots of time. A plus is that the brake fluid is now all new. One extra thing I did install that worked out well are a set of Speed Bleeders. I had my wife work the brake pedal and it was only a pump it until I say stop, not the usual "Pump It - Hold ..... DAMMIT ..... I said HOLD"!!!!!!!

Now - those brakes. I can say that, after only a few break in miles, without a doubt, they are the best brakes that I have had on any of my several Ford Super Duty trucks. Hammer them, and you will stop. No hesitation, no lock up, just a real hard stop. Now, if they will work as well pulling our 38', 12++K 5er, I'll be very happy.

 

Sounds like it was due and well worth doing.

Steve

 

and I thought I was the only one having that kind of fun lately..

I encountered much of the same in regards to the Lock Tite, bad language, and cheater bar when *trying* to remove the Ready Lift this weekend..



ETA-and stripped out bolts from the moron that the previous owner had install said Ready Lift.

 

I just put some slotted rotors and extreme duty pad on my 06 F250. Everything came apart easy for me. I just drove it and the thing barely stops! I hope a bit of break in time helps out. My previous brakes were just replaced 5k ago with new ford parts but I wanted to do an upgrade. Hopefully they get better.

 

If you are using Power Stop brakes you do need to run through their break in procedure (probably other brands too). Mine barely stopped the first 2-3 times. Then, with the extreme duty pads, they also often don't work as well as conventional pads until they get hot.

Power Stop says five moderate stops from 40 down to 5 and no cooling between stops and then five more from 25 to 5 with a cooling time between. I ran through the procedure 2 times just to be sure and may do it one more time - just because I can

 

I want to try those Speed Bleeders so I'm not constantly saying pump..hold...pump...hold.

 

That part is easy - it's when the person doing the brake pedal has a wandering mind and forgets to keep holding the pedal, sucking air back in the system - hence the DAMMIT - I said HOLD.

I did mine from an empty MC reservoir to no air in 2 trips around. The first round really did the job, the second was just in case.

Ford calipers take a 3/8"-24 bleeder (Speed Bleeder Bleeding Brakes Bleeding Motorcycle Brakes Automotive Bleeder Screw Brake Bleeder). I've used Russell as well though these seem as well made and cost a bit less even with shipping. A 1/4" ID piece of clear plastic tubing fits the outlet

 

Thanks for the link.

 

Lots of anti seize is your friend.

 

Oh yeah and something I neglected to mention. I used LOTS wherever there was an interface that could rust (iron hub to iron rotor) or corrode (aluminum wheel hub centers to that iron hub). Contrary to other folks (and Ford) recommendations, I did not use Lock Tite on the bracket bolts but as I have in the past, checked bolt torque after a few hundred miles but will probably not find anything loosened.

 

Very good idea. The last brake job I did on a SD, it took me over an hour alone just to remove the wheels..

 

I just finished the same Power Stop Kit upgrade a few weeks ago: Calipers, Rotors, Pads, Russel Lines. Took 2 weekends and a whole lot of @%$*!ing.

 

maybe those are the cat's meow, but i've always just used one of these:



One Man Brake Bleeder Kit

never had a problem. i just hook it up to the bleeder screw, pump the pedal about 4 times, then empty the little bottle and repeat until i'm happy with the color of the fluid coming out of the caliper.

easy peasy.

NOT looking forward to the day i have to do the brakes on the SD. it's been over 10 years now and only the Right-Rear tires has ever been off the truck for a flat repair. everything else is just as it was in 2004 when we bought it. (just clicked over 30k on the clock )

 

Mike - even better (cheaper!!) is any clear bottle and a piece of clear tubing. Put just enough new fluid in the bottom of the bottle to cover the tubing end and go to it and the way I used to do it. But I've had speed bleeders in almost every vehicle I've owned for about 15 years so it's just part of the job.

That 11 year old truck with 11-12 year old tires is past due. It's also time to give those calipers a good look as they are probably starting to rust solid.

What I had to do an a '97 F150 was to back the lug nuts off about 3 turns and drive around the block to loosen the wheel. Even then it took a couple violent sharp turns to pop them loose. I did them one at a time and it still took over an hour.

 

I've never done the clear bottle thing (mostly because I have the other already) and I know it works, but the only thing I don't like about that is that it is hard to get it higher than the bleeder screw. With the little bottle you can stick it to the frame or control arm above the brake caliper so that any air that does get into the tube will naturally flow up the tube to the bottle, whereas if you just place another container on the ground, you can accidentally re-introduce air stuck in the tube back into the caliper.


that being said, the first stroke of the pedal should flush the tube completely, so the chances are minimal.


my marriage is with the $7 though. I've tried it with the wife. she's good help and follows directions well and wants to do it right ... but still, we all know how that story ends.


yeah ... it took the guy a while to get that one wheel broke free to fix the flat ... I'm thinking of just taking in to the shop I use when I don't want to mess with it and pay him to rotate the tires and check the brakes out. It's stored in a garage with a concrete floor (and plastic under the concrete) so it doesn't get exposed to much moisture during storage, but still it is something I've been concerned about.


I should go through it and flush all the fluids, especially the brake fluid. not many miles, and it gets used pretty regularly all summer long (couple times a month in the summer) but it just dawned on us that it is now a 10 year old truck!