So you think your a drum brake guru, or maybe you just like a good puzzle.

So, I'm gonna get a boat next summer and need to get my e-brake working. It was inoperable upon buying this truck (1995 f150 4x4 4.9L) 1 year ago. I have since replaced all three cables, all drum hardware, and cylinders. E-brake now works but left drum is overheating. After deliberation I discovered that the e-brake is culprit. Try re-lubing contact points and e-brake pivots but the condition still persists. I then discover a nick in the brake cable sheathing just prior to grommet... This inhibits cable from retracting fully. Now, I finally think I have solved the problem. Nope. Cable is replaced and left drum still sticks after engaging e-brake. At this point It could be quite a few things, which do you think is more likely?

1) Worn or bent backing plate is placing e-brake arm in a bind against the brake shoe. I think this is likely b/c there seems to be some friction between these pieces. Hopefully not, these backing plates are expensive. and no I dont have a runout gauge.

2) Something to do with auto tensioner not releasing enough slack.

3) Wrong parts. The shoes that I ordered were supposed to be riveted, I got bonded. Also I thought that brake shoes should have a slightly smaller shoe to lead and larger to follow. All 4 shoes were the exact same. This is the third time in 6 months to recieve wrong parts from Raybestos in the right box. Or it could be a wrong cable and the odds with 4 cables increase exponentionally.

Anyway, If you had enough patience to read this, I would like to hear your opinions.

Thanks Mark

 

No one has an opinion. Can anyone confirm that the brake shoes for a 1995 F150 should have one shoe that has a larger friction lining (secondary, with e-brake lever) and one with smaller (primary, facing forward)

or are all four the same?

 

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3FYRwfKNHxw

 

I'm gonna search for a thread I started recently about brakes, search it too if you want... I had a very similar issue. Had the shoes set up for drivers side on the passenger side wheel.
I'm posting my pic so I can blow it up... Please note, this pic shows shoes installed BACKWARDS.

 

From my thread:

Diesel_Brad 01:56 PM 10-25-2013
Larger shoe(secondary shoe) always goes to the rear of the vehicle.

Think of it this way...
The 1st shoe(primary shoe, shorter shoe) would hit something 1st. The second shoe(secondary shoes, larger shoe) will hit something second if the vehicle is rolling forward

 

yep, I understand. Problem is all four of the brake shoes I received are the exact same and I am wondering if this is the cause of my e-brake problems.

 

Try a different brand of shoes. Have you had someone apply and release the brake while watching it with the drum off? Might shed some light on the situation.

 

Since you're supposed to have short/long combo, who's to know if they're even the right LONG shoe part. I'd return the whole lot and start with the correctly matched pair.

 

Found this TSB

ISSUE: The rear parking brake cables may bind and not allow the rear brake shoes to return fully to the anchor pins after the parking brake is applied. This may result in early brake wear, rear brake vibration/shudder, rear brake noise, drift/pull condition and/or poor fuel economy. This may be caused by a tight bend in the parking brake cable at the left side rear spring bracket.

1983 Ford Bronco TSBs & FSAs (Recalls) for '83-96 Broncos & F150s picture | SuperMotors.net

I'm gonna chase this tomorrow and see if it helps...

 

You already know now that you have the wrong brake shoes. I would spend the quality time fixing that problem before jumping off onto another path of questionable return.

 

First, thanks for your input. Shoes do not seem to be the issue. Spoke with the local shop and they said that the manufacture of drum shoes has been getting shoddy and thus more and more brake shoes are being sold with the same size linings. (This makes sense as everyone wants 4 way discs nowadays) However they said to check lining width and put the fatter lining towards the back. I confirmed this on my brake shoes which I corrected. However shoes are not the issue. I have isolated the problem upstream. The brakes work fine, and the ebrake lever returns to normal position after manually pulling on the cable. I confirmed this by having a helper watch the movement of the ebrake lever while I activated it by hand. Full engagement and disengagement noted.

I have found that the front e-brake cable has some minor abrasions, so perhaps this is the problem, or perhaps it is the parking brake control.

 

Any 95-96 owners out there that have had problems with the auto tension parking brake control. I know previous years had the ability to adjust brake cable tension via the equalizer.

 

Drum brakes vs disc brakes is apples to oranges. The brakes are designed to have a larger rear shoe and a smaller front shoe for a reason, typically if it's a servo system. I install brakes for a living, and refuse to install incorrect parts. I have never heard a parts rep say this. Find a new source for parts. Have you had someone operate the parking brake with the drum off so you can look for binding like I suggested in my first post?

 

Right there is your problem. there should be 2 different sized shoes.

Primary(the front shoe) is smaller than the Secondary(the rear shoe)[Big to the Back]

 

blkf250hd

Thanks for your response.

I had a helper activate the ebrake while I watched. The parking brake lever was binding because of tension from the cable. Its as if the spring (the long one surrounding the cable) cannot overcome the force of the autotensioner.

The shoes, ACDELCO durastop are listed at rockauto and Amazon as confirmed fit. That does not mean that I recieved the correct item. However the brakes do function normally as long as I do not apply the ebrake. After using the ebrake the wheels get locked up, but if I were to relieve some tension (by pulling on the cable) they immediatly free up.

Via process of elimination I now believe that the problem lies up stream of the drum brakes. If replacing the chaffed cable does not solve the problem I will look into new shoes.