I've got the truck torn down to remove the rear brake rotors (pulsing when I hit the brakes, fronts have already been turned). As soon as I got the caliper off, I noticed that the inner part of the disc is about 1/2 the thickness of the outer part... ruh roh Raggy. I'll probably need new rotors to the tune of $75 plus per side... OUCH! My question is what is the likely cause of this- calipers hanging on slide pins?

 

Okay time for questions #2 and #3- do the axle shafts have to come out to get the rotors off? And do I need to unhook the parking brake somehow?

 

That happend to my truck when I was on leave....drove to a friends house about 30 miles away...thought I smelt my clutch burning but felt the rear driverside wheel and sure and ***** she was hotter then one of the olsen twins.

Turns out the pistons froze and my dad rebuilt the whole caliper for $45. My rotor wasnt as bad as urs tho... I must of just cought it freezing up. As much as I know...my dad didnt say anything about having to take the axle shafts out...should be just like the front axle. Take off tire>brake caliper>rotor.

As for barking brake....No idear.

If I had to buy new rotors just for the rear i'de get original rotors. But geting started on the powerslot conversion seems like a good idea, althought you'de see a bigger performance gain if it was the front rotors.

My $.02

 

Powerslot rotors aren't in the budget right now, heck all I was told I could spend was the $40 it costs to have the rotors turned!
Okay next question- I pulled the pad out of the left side caliper and noticed one of the dust boots on the piston was slightly torn, so I was thinking that the pistons were sticking which is why the rotor is worn thinner on that side, but the pad doesn't appear to be any more worn than the outer pad. Plus, the inside surface of the rotor and the pad have a weird wear pattern in them... high and low spots. To add to the weirdness the rotor on the right side looks fine (haven't pulled the caliper yet).
So I'm thinking I'll be out one rotor and a caliper rebuild kit at least. Pads should be okay, and with what they cost I hope I can just re-use them. This sucks, I was hoping for a $40 bill to have the rotors turned and I'd be set.

 

Dude...thats exaclty what happend to my truck, rear drivers side rotor, my dad also told me that the rotor looked weird to him too! I will talk to my dad today more about it....i could of sworn he said somthing about the parking brake cable too....check that out while ur under there. I got a 6spd so my parking brake is being used at all time when the vehicle isnt running so i kinda figured it wouldn't "rust up" but i was wrong!

 

If it were my truck I would buy remanufactured calipers and install new guide pins. You may be able to turn your rotor and "get by" with them but I would not turn any rotor, you will be back into those brakes before you know it. There is just too much risk in "going cheap" on your brakes by not doing what SHOULD be done. I am not saying you need to put on a $2000 set of exotic brakes on your rig, It just gives peace of mind as well as confidence to know that your brakes are at 100% and will work when needed. I hope this helps, Todd

 

Todd- guide pins seem to be fine on the one caliper that is off- the caliper slides freely with no resistance/binding at all. Nobody I've called has caliper rebuild kits, so I'm probably looking at one new caliper at least (the pass. side looks good, haven't pulled it down yet). Trying to convince the wife to let me spring for a set of rear Powerslots for $180/pair but she's not buying my story yet.
I definitely don't want to half-**** it because I don't want to have to do it over, but I'm working on a very strict budget. Still trying to convince the left rear rotor to set itself free but it's not buying my story either.

 

Have you got the rear rotors off yet? I know Pete (F250_) had a little problem getting his off and would probably be glad to offer his advise. He did a write up on his deal, but I can't seem to find it now. No you don't pull the axles to remove the rotors, they work just like the fronts. Don't turn the rotors, the wierd wear pattern you see is probably from them being warped. If they have that much wear on them, they will not last long and will just cost you another set of pads.

 

Barry- I'm stuck for now, wifey had to leave so I'm watching the girls and can't work on the truck. I'm going to hit the wheel studs and the area around the hub/rotor junction with PB blast then beat on the rotors with a BFH and hope they pop off. Replacing stuff is going to be a pain because no one parts house has all the parts needed. I still am curious about the caliper on the driver's side (if it's good or not). More to come when wifey gets home and I can go work again.

 

Chase, here's a link to Pete's thread on his brakes,
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/7...firmation.html
He was to the point of wondering if someone had welded his on. He made a make shift press out of a piece of 2x4 and two pipe clamps. He laid the 2x4 across the hub and clamped the outside of the rotor and the board. He put as much pressure as he could then tapped with a hammer. Soaking with something like PB blaster is a must. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

 

Thanks for the link Barry.

 

Chase, Here's another link that may help. Super Duty Slotted Disk Brake Upgrade - Part II .: Articles

 

Should have gave you part one first, Super Duty Slotted Disk Brake Upgrade - Part I .: Articles

 

Could the emergency brake shoes be the culprit on why the rotors won't come off? I had to back mine off to remove my rotors. You may just have to whack the rotor on its side where it meets the axle hub to set it free. I hope this helps, Todd

 

Nope I got 'em off, just took some persuasion from PB blaster and a sledge hammer. Rust and dust semi-fuse the rotor to the hub and makes it not want to come off.
Now that they are off though, I think I've got another problem On both rotors, there are hairline cracks in the e-brake drum housings. I don't know if I did it banging on the rotors with a sledge or if they were already there, but now I think I'm going to end up buying 2 new rotors. I took my channel locks and pushed the pistons back into the calipers and I don't know that my driver's side caliper is all that bad... it didn't take much more force (if any) to push the pistons in than the passenger side, but I did notice that on the pass. side pushing one piston in would push the other out slightly which never happened on the driver's side. There is a slight tear in the boot on one piston on the driver's side as well. Here are some photos:


left rotor


right rotor


inner surface of left rotor


another view, inner surface of left rotor


crack in e-brake drum, left rotor


crack in e-brake drum, right rotor


left e-brake assembly


right e-brake assembly

I think the e-brakes look fine but I've never seen them before, so let me know what you think. Also should I be worried about those small cracks? There are several in each rotor. Should I worry about the caliper or not?