I need to adjust my drum brakes. The front brakes went OK. When I went to adjust the rear brakes I realized the previous owner must have had new drums installed. They don't have the slot you use to slide a feeler gauge between the drum and pad. Any ideas how to adjust this another way? Am I going to have to cut a slot in the drums? I'm guessing that's what I'll end up doing since I can't see any other way to get a feeler gauge in there. Any tips on doing that? I'm sure somebody else has encountered this problem.

One option I have is to use another old drum off my parts truck. It's rusty and needs to be turned but it has the slot and might help me get the major adjustment halfway close and then I can finish up with the star adjuster.



Kevin
1953 Ford F-100
Go Illini

 

Kevin...at first I thought this was a trick question, then I remembered you had a original axle. I never heard of this slot your talking about, thats real interesting. Anyway, can you turn the star until you hear/feel the brakes make contact then back them off to match the front brakes? Just thinkin outloud....
________________
XFM......

 

It works better to adjust the drums tight enough that you can't turn the wheel, then back off until you have a very slight drag. Never heard of the filler gauge trick.

 

The shop manual calls for a consistent .010 gap between the drum and shoe. There is a big nut on the back of the backing plate that is used for major adjustment of the anchor bolt. This is supposed to help you center the shoes vertically in the drum. I took all the hardware off the backing plate to blast and paint it so I'm starting from square one. It wouldn't be hard to cut the necessary slot in the drums. Can anybody think of a reason I shouldn't do that? I don't want to ruin them. If that's not a good idea, I can still use a drum off my parts truck to get things close.



Kevin
1953 Ford F-100
Go Illini

 

Kevin
I've never used a feeler guage when adjusting the brakes.
You shouldn't use the old drum unless your sure that the inside fiameter is the same and that is the same all around.
Move the adjusting nut back and forth several times to make sure there is no binding.
While turning the wheel adjust the nut in until the wheel stops turning, thats with the same pressure used to turn, Back the nut off a quarter turn or so making sure the wheel is free.
Then use the Star wheel to do the final adjustment.

LAST STEP - put a sticky note on the windshield reminding yourself to stop and check the brake for excessive heat the first time you drive it.

 

The drums are balanced to reduce vibration just like the wheels, if you cut a slot in the drums you will need to get the drum rebalanced.

 

There is a guage made for that. It measures the inside of the drum and transfers that measurement to an outside caliper the same size for setting the shoes. I just bought a new one, it was under $40 dollars IIRC. It also has measurment points which will help you determine if a drum is oversize.

Lou

 

Kevin,This the way my father taught years ago how to adjust them on his and my 54.Jack the back end up and back off the star adjusters until there is no drag.While spinning one wheel with your hand turn the adjuster until the wheel stops.Then count the number of turns until there is a slight drag.Go to the other side and spin until it stops and back off the same number of turns.Now jack up the front and turn the adjuster until the wheel stops,now remember your number from the back,add turn extra turns.Repeat on the other wheel and test drive.
I hope this helps.Carl

 

Kevin, I would either cut slots in the backing plates or install backing plates with slots in them. If you cut them in drill two holes and cut out in between. With the drag in the rearend and the wheels/tires removed it's real hard to adjust them through the drum.

 

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My concern is that I took the anchor bolt off the backing plate when I restored it. I need to get that back in the right position so the shoes are centered. I can see how turning the star adjuster until the shoes drag will work. But if the pads aren't centered in the drum, won't I get uneven wear?

4tl8ford,

I'm not picturing what you're talking about. My '53 brakes have a big nut on the backing plate that holds the anchor in place. Is that what you're talking about?



Kevin
1953 Ford F-100
Go Illini

 

I see a couple of posible methods to make the anchor bolt adjustment without the hole in the drum. Disclaimer - I have never tried this.

Method 1 : Cut five equal length pipe sections to hold the drum out from the hub enough so you can tell when the shoes are centered. Before adjusting the shoes you can center the drum on any slop in the lug bolts by turning it and adjusting it to run true.

Method 2: First adjust the star wheel as you normally would for slight drag. Loosen the anchor bolt then have a helper put just enough pressure on the brake pedal to energise the shoes but still allow you to move the wheel a bit. Turning the wheel back and forth ought to force the shoes to center. A 2X4 with a couple of holes to fit over the lug studs can provide a little leverage. Keep pressure on the brake pedal and tighten anchor bolt. Maybe readjust star wheel and repeat.

Craig

 

You must have a bigger truck that an F-1. The larger thucks have the "double anchor" system (like my F-5) All four of my drums have the slot (with a screw on cover) to slide the feeler guage in.

 

OK, Kevin - you have me confused again. I think you're working about two gears faster than I can think. Let me bring you back down to first where I am. Below is an illustration of what we're "supposedly" working with. The brakes on model C (the F-1/F-100) didn't change from 48 on, although the illustration does use the ubiquitous "typical" in the title.

If you look at part number 2027 on both the front and rear brakes, it has a double-D shank that fits pretty tightly in the brake backing plate. I'm trying to figure out which part you need to adjust besides the star wheel? I would most appreciate enlightenment on this point as I'm losing sleep over this.

 

Kevin
I was thinking you had a bigger truck, I know look at your signature. There are several different systems used on these trucks.
If the anchor bolt as shown in Georges picture is the DD type with no ecentric then it bolts in and all adjustment are made with the star wheel.

I stopping here so that it doesn't get anymore confused, when we know what ya got we can move on from there.