Me and my wife just got finished changing the rear drum brakes on my '98 f150. Talk about a pain in the ***. The first one took forever and the second one took 20 minutes.
The old ones were paper-thin and fell apart when they came off. I do have a few questions.

When I was done, the adjuster was screwed all the way in and the drums barely fit back on. I had to tap one side on with a rubber mallet. Is that ok?
It drives fine although the brake pedal is still mushy. The squealing noises stopped. I backed up and hit the brakes a few times. Didn't really seem to do much. The drums were hot when I parked it.

Did I miss anything? Would bleeding the brakes tighten the pedal up? It has been mushy since i bought the truck.

Thanks guys,

Stephen

 

I'd bleed all 4 corners, just because I change brake fluid every 2 years anyways... Cant really hurt anything.

Did you get the shoes on the right sides? I think there's 2 longer ones, and 2 shorter ones... they've got to go on the correct way. Mine didnt at first, and I realized my mistake... I dont remember which goes where, but, there's a difference.

Good luck
~Nate

 

Yeah, I put them back on just like they were. One of the shoes has a metal stud at the bottom. That is the one that connects to your e-brake cable. I will bleed them tomorrow and see what that does.

 

Sounds like you have an e-brake cable that is frozen. Even with brand new shoes AND drums, you shouldn't need to have the adjuster all the way in in order to get the drums on. Also accounts for your hot drums, and mushy pedal. They are way out of adjustment even though they seem tight.

With the drums off, pull on the ebrake cables underneath (not by the pedal, but by physically pulling them with your hands) and look for free movement of the brake assemblies while you do so. If you see any binding, then you have a problem.

Good luck!

 

Here is what i did:

I lifted the rear end and put the truck in netrual. Both back tires spun fairly easily. I set the parking brake halfway and was unable to spin the tires. I released the brake and the tires spun. I then had the wife push the brake pedal and the tires wouldn't spin, so I think everything is ok.

I attempted to bleed the rear brakes. I had my wife pump the pedal and then hold it down (with the truck running) while i cracked the bleed valves open. Rust-colored fluid came out at first and then nothing. The pedal sank to the floor everytime I cracked a valve open but pumped back up when I closed it.
I'm thinking maybe the line could be clogged with rust or God knows what. Any idea what I should do now?

The brakes improved quite a bit afterwards. I tried to bleed the front. I got one side done but the other side is completely stripped so i couldnt get it open.

 

 

None of my books say anything about using one of those tools. Did I miss something?

 

here is what i did.


Clean all dirt from and remove the brake master cylinder filler cap and fill the brake master cylinder reservoir with the specified brake fluid






Place a box end wrench on the RH rear bleeder screw. Attach a rubber drain tube to the RH rear bleeder screw and submerge the free end of the tube in a container partially filled with clean brake fluid.
Have an assistant pump the brake pedal and then hold firm pressure on the brake pedal.
Loosen the RH rear bleeder screw until a stream of brake fluid comes out. While the assistant maintains pressure on the brake pedal, tighten the RH rear bleeder screw.
Repeat until clear, bubble-free fluid comes out.
Refill the brake master cylinder reservoir as necessary.






Tighten the RH rear bleeder screw.
Repeat Steps 2, 3, 4, and 5 for the LH rear bleeder screw.






Place a box end wrench on the RH front disc brake caliper bleeder screw. Attach a rubber drain tube to the RH front disc brake caliper bleeder screw, and submerge the free end of the tube in a container partially filled with clean brake fluid.
Have an assistant pump the brake pedal and then hold firm pressure on the brake pedal.
Loosen the RH front disc brake caliper bleeder screw until a stream of brake fluid comes out. While the assistant maintains pressure on the brake pedal, tighten the RH front disc brake caliper bleeder screw.
Repeat until clear, bubble-free fluid comes out.
Refill the brake master cylinder reservoir as necessary.






Tighten the RH front disc brake caliper bleeder screw.
Repeat Steps 7, 8, 9, and 10 for the LH front disc brake caliper bleeder screw.