I have posted before about my brakes dragging. For awhile my front brakes were dragging intermittently (though not lately) and the rear brakes would often seem to "stick" after I used the parking brake, though it didn't seem to do that until after I did the rear shoes.

My truck badly needed front pads so today, while putting on my new wheels and tires, I changed out the front pads and lubricated all the caliper sliding points with antisieze, and installed new pins and springs. I also pulled the rear drums and backed off the shoes a bit.

Tonight while I was driving into town I noticed the truck kept wanting to pull to the left. I opened the window a little bit and could smell hot brakes. It kept doing on and off all the way back (35 miles). When I got to my place I noticed that both front brakes smelled hot, but the wheels were cool to the touch.

Also it feels like I have a soft pedal now and I have to push the parking brake pedal all the way down to get it to set (which I think is related to the rear shoes)

#1, I thought the rear drums were supposed to be self-adjusting when you set the parking brake, but they sure don't seem to. #2, is there supposed to be some way to tell when the rear drums are adjusted correctly? And #3 why do these stupid brakes keep dragging?

 

maybe ur vac pump is bad

 

Prolly need to change the rubber brake lines. They deteriorate from the inside and don't allow the calipers to fully retract.

 

A good point. However it may be the caliper pistons sticking. Did you notice if the pistons were phenolic (like plastic) or metal? The phenolic ones tend to go out of round over time and stick when they get hot.As for the rear brakes make sure the parking brake cable is not binding and then adjust each brake up until you can just feel the brake drag a little as you turn the wheel. Do not rely on the self adjusters, do it yourself every so often.

 

Yeah it has the phenolic pistons...

I may just replace all the rubber lines and both front calipers at some point. I dunno.

It seems like, for example, if I'm sitting at a light for several minutes with my foot on the brake, when I go to take off again the front brakes often feel like they are sticking or dragging. Then eventually they release.

Anyway...how can you turn the rear drums and tell if they're correctly adjusted or not, with all the other drag you'd have from turning the driveline?

 

Don't you adjust the back brakes by reversing and braking several times.

 

Yes but that is if you are one of the lucky people whose self adjusters actually work.If you can get the front brakes to drag at a convenient time you can reach in with a wrench and open a bleed screw for a second and then see if the brales still drag. If not then the rubbet hose is faulty, if no change then you have sticking pistons.As for a load on the rear wheel when turning by hand it is easy to feel the extra drag as the brakes adjust up plus you can hear a slight rubbing of the brake lining.

 

With both rear wheels in the air and in neutral, adjust the brakes to where they have a good, noticeable drag, but not so much that you can't turn them at all.

It is important to adjust them as evenly as possible.

Jason

 

Another thing that helps with the rear brakes getting stuck, use the parking brake every time you stop.
That keeps the cable free.

Rear brakes adjust by stopping in reverse if the adjusters are working.
Clean the adjusters and never seize the bolt part every time you have the rear wheels apart.

After a night of plowing snow, man do I have good brakes.
Lots of trip across the parking lot in reverse and then stopping.

Asd for the front brakes, did you notice any grooves worn into the calipers or steering knucle mount?
Second guess, bad hoses or caliper pistons as mentioned above.

 

The brakes felt a little better this morning (I backed up and hit the brakes while leaving, maybe that helped with the rears) but it still felt like the fronts were dragging when I first left my house, then freed up. Dave what do you mean by grooves worn in the caliper or spindle? I assume you mean where the caliper slides? At any rate, I didn't notice any. I do use the parking brake a lot. Everything's nice and new and clean inside the rear drums since I just recently did the shoes. Question, I noticed Raybestos lists an aluminum piston available for these calipers, can you buy the calipers with an aluminum or steel piston already in them?

 

I don't remember the brand name on mine, but they do have metal pistons.
I don't remember for sure, but I think they are steel.
I think I remember the insides being rusty last time I had them apart.

Yes, I meant on the slide and down in the grove on the caliper.

On my 44 I had to use a welder and fill in some worn places, then file it down smooth so the caliper would slide easy and get rid of a rattle that drove me nuts at about 25 MPH.
The caliper had just enough play that at a little over 20 it would ride up with the rotor then drop back to the bottom constantly.
Over 30, the caliper stayed up.
Under 20 it stayed down.
20 to 30 thunk....thunk...thunk....thunk....thunk

I use the parking brake every time I turn the engine off.
In the winter, a week of no parking brake and the next time you use it it will hang some.
Two weeks and it will hang a lot.

 

The front calipers seizing is a common problem, especially right after you change the pads. When the pads wear over the years, the caliper bore will rust behind the pistons. When you put new pads in, you have to take a c-clamp and push the piston back up in the caliper. When you do this, the piston rides right over the rust behind it, and gets stuck. Calipers are pretty cheap to replace.

You can also manually adjust your rear brakes if you have to. I had to take the auto adjusters off my 80 because they would adjust too much and make them drag. I had the 89 apart the other day, and saw someone else has already took the auto adjusters off this truck.

 

Rear brakes that have over sized drums will drag also........ too many people do not check the sizes of the drums when replacing shoes..... some shops also do not care if they are over sized when being turned.

 

Took my truck to shop 2day for the same thing I had done new shoes drums pins and springs the only things I did not replace was the pins on the e brake lever and weel cyl thought I had freed up the levers when put the new ebrake cables on but I was wrong and now have to get my new drums turned and replace shoes and wheel cyl from over heating yep I am an idiot

 

NO!! your not an idiot.....

Just a Shadetree Mechanic at the expensive part of the learning curve. (BTDT)