OK I got a '77 f-150 2wd. Just replaced the front rotors, calipers and pads. NOW the problem... I can't seem to get the tension spring and bar that holds the caliper in place back into place. Am I doing something wrong here?? They came out easy enough. HELP !!!

 

Make sure the caliper is sitting nice on the perch at the bottom. Pivot the caliper and pads in place. Lineup the bar and spring and tap it in with a hammer.

 

x2 on above advice. It does take a hammer to put them back in. You shouldn't have to wail on them, but some percussive maintenance is required.

 

X2 on making sure the other end of the caliper is properly engaged with the spindle.

Definitely light taps to get it started. The deeper you get the spring and block in there, the harder you can hit them, and they will likely need to be hit harder, the deeper they go in. But again as stated above, you certainly don't want any full-force blows with the hammer.

 

Are the sliding bars and springs new by any chance? I found out a few years ago (on a 4wd though, in case they are different) that there are either at least two different sizes of those, OR they simply made them wrong.
We could not use the new ones because it was obvious immediately they were not going to go in without a fight. After a few healthy hits with the hammer, we stopped and re-grouped.
Using the old ones fixed the issue and they went back in like normal. I actually have had them go in by hand (still took a firm push) but like the others said a slight tap with a hammer is normal.

Did you orient the springy thingy correctly, with it's "ears" pointing down over the sliding bar?
Sorry if we're talking about different setups. My main experience is with the 4wd version, but I have worked on a 2wd or two over the years and thought I remembered the layout was basically the same.

Good luck.

Paul

 

Thx for the suggestions and replies ALL are helpful, Yes they are NEW slides and springs I will try the old ones after I clean 'em up a bit. I should mention that I have done TBears brake upgrade. So THAT may have something to do with it also BUT I have my doubts. Anyway if you wanna see what I have done there are pics in the Ontario Chapters thread.

 

Well there was NO difference between the old and NEW
slider and spring. I did however get the slider in place with some good whacks with the hammer. I didn't get the spring in though. NO room !!!! I will leave it as is and when I do fire her up and test the brakes I WILL GO easy and keep checking for play B4 I do any serious driving. There is NO movement in the caliper in any direction so any thoughts on this ??

 

You need that slider spring, Jon. Is the V of the caliper lining up with the spindle bracket? Lubed the slider and spring? Compare the old caliper with the new.
Looking at the pics in the Ontario Chapter, I know you've done the above. Just wonder if the caliper is different.

 

Just looked at the rockauto site, it shows a different number for 73-9 F150

 

The boxes show 18-4084, 83 Rock shows 184034,33 the 8 mistaken for a 3 ???

 

George the only thing different in the calipers is the size of the piston, everything seems to in alinement. I have a neighbor who is a certified mechanic. I will ask him to have a looky see at what is wrong wrong. I will keep you and the rest of the gang posted. Going for my pre-op tomorrow and surgery on Thursday. Thanks for the reply Bud ttyl Play safe and stay warm.

 

Should fit OK. I know that I reused OEM, just slid a file across flat surfaces to clean off rust, light coat of high temp grease, tapped into place easily. Make sure caliper is down on pads and rotor, and engaged proper with mount on other end/side away from locks.

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/d...ps73a49a14.jpg

 

Best wishes and prayers for you on your surgery, Jon


PS: Found that # also goes to a 77 Custom (184084,3)

 

This.

That's an incorrect installation then. Not a good thing.

Yes. DON'T DRIVE IT THAT WAY!
Even as a temporary way to get around the neighborhood, that's not really a good solution. Certainly no need to test it on a short drive because it will give you no indication of it's long term function and may actually leave you stranded.
So again, don't do that. Fix it right before you drive it.

Something's wrong. It may be something you're overlooking, or more likely you're doing it correct and the new parts are the typical modern imported crap that someone engineered to be "close enough to the metric conversions in the Chinese translations to be fine on old vehicles" or whatever their thinking is.
Tolerances are all over the place and I've run into at least three situations where the disc brake pads were too thick to allow the caliper over the rotor, and two where the shoes would not let the drum fit over them.
Nothing says that a caliper can't be made too big to fit into the notches.
Definitely worth taking a file to dress down both the caliper and the bracket, to make sure that surfaces are smooth, clean and free of anything not bare metal.

Good luck. With everything!

Paul

 

You have to have the spring in there. No spring and you WILL have problems with the brakes. You either have the wrong parts (caliper and or hardware) or they are installed wrong,