parking brake cable problem
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5th Wheeling
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 44
Likes: 0
From: Norwood, MA
parking brake cable problem
Hi - my '93 f150's parking brake cables let go. I took apart the driver's side rear brake and installed a new parking brake cable. I can't get the drum to go back on because the brake pads are expanded. I tried using a tie down ratchet band good for 3000 lbs and attached a new equalizer to the new parking brake cable near the frame brackett, but I've put as much force on the ratchet as I can and the drum still won't go on as the brake pads are still expanded. Anybody got any ideas on how to get the drum back on? Thx
Hotshot
Joined: Jun 2015
Posts: 12,878
Likes: 2,446
Hi - my '93 f150's parking brake cables let go. I took apart the driver's side rear brake and installed a new parking brake cable. I can't get the drum to go back on because the brake shoes are expanded. I tried using a tie down ratchet band good for 3000 lbs and attached a new equalizer to the new parking brake cable near the frame brackett, but I've put as much force on the ratchet as I can and the drum still won't go on as the brake pads are still expanded. Anybody got any ideas on how to get the drum back on? Thx
That’s nuts. You should be able to easily push them together by hand. The wheel cylinder is seized and/or the star adjuster is too far out. Have you tried backing off the adjuster?
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5th Wheeling
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 44
Likes: 0
From: Norwood, MA
the parking brake can't be released because the front cable and the rear cables aren't connected, so the spring at the end of the rear cable is pushing on the brake mechanism. I'm trying to pull the rear cable enough to allow the brake shoes to reset but so far no luck.
Lead Driver
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 6,185
Likes: 633
From: Houston/Sugar Land
Do you think they would release if you disconnected the rear brake cable? When I replaced my driver side cable, I just pulled the wheel and disconnected the old and installed the new one. Sorry about the guessing but I other than that I can't visualize what could be the issue. Perhaps a picture would help.
Lead Driver
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 6,185
Likes: 633
From: Houston/Sugar Land
Just throwing this out for you. There is a difference between the cable on the driver and passenger side. Sure you got the correct one?
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5th Wheeling
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 44
Likes: 0
From: Norwood, MA
I used the shorter cable for the driver's side. One thing I noticed is that the spring on the end of the rear parking brake cable was longer that the spring on the old cable. Had a hard time getting the spring and cable to fit inside the brake mechanism.
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Thread Starter
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5th Wheeling
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 44
Likes: 0
From: Norwood, MA
I found my problem. The bar with a spring on the left end that runs between the brake shoes was installed wrong and was blocking the shoes from sitting properly (rookie mistake). Thanks to everyone who took the time to provide suggestions.
Lead Driver
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 6,185
Likes: 633
From: Houston/Sugar Land
Glad you got it worked out. For anyone else that has never worked on these rear drum brakes, ALWAYS only do one side at a time for reference . Sandy
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