Speaking of brakes

rrlund · Oct 4, 2013

Since I was having so much trouble with those trailer brakes I thought I'd better see what I could do with the truck brakes. They've been kind of sketchy. The right rear tightened right up OK with the adjuster,but I haven't been able to do anything with the left one since I let a kid use it for a brake project at the Career Center about a dozen years ago. I've tried for all those years to get that thing adjusted up right. Today I couldn't even budge the adjuster.

It took some heat,PB Blaster,the air chisel and a BIG hammer to get the drum off. I got to looking at it and the darned adjuster was in backwards so I'd been loosening it all these years. Joe stopped in right after I got it turned around. He looked in the drum and said "those shoes have never touched that drum!". There wasn't a mark in that thing. Looked like it had just been turned. I got it adjusted and those brakes work now,let me tell you!

Now if I could get the trailer to stop like that. I'll feel better pulling silage wagons with it next week anyway.

pete black · Oct 4, 2013

my current project, replacing wheel cylinders and shoes on a 52 chevy pu. never liked brake work. wonder if newer generation would know what a brake adjuster wrench is?

Lazy WP · Oct 4, 2013

Just my opinion, but I think over time the magnets get weak. I would change them all, at the same time, and see if that doesn't solve the problem on your trailer.

rrlund · Oct 4, 2013

If the controller doesn't work,I'll have to. I could have gotten the entire unit,backing plate,shoes,magnets and all for $98 a wheel. Cost me just over $40 per wheel for the shoes.

I found out it's not the ground. I traced it up to the tongue,looked sketchy,no end on the wire,just wrapped around a pop rivet. I chiseled it off,punched it out,cut the wire back and skinned it to nice shiny wire. I put a new crimped end on it,drilled the hole out a little bigger in the trailer frame,took a wire brush to it and put a big new metal screw in it.

So then I slid under the truck,found where the wire from the plug was hooked to the frame. That looked rough too. I tugged a little and pulled the wire right out of the crimped end. I skinned it back and put a new end on. I took the air chisel to the bolt in the frame,took the die grinder to the frame and shined it up,put in a new bolt and washer. Figured I had it licked. NOPE. No change what so ever.

I can't feature all four magnets going bad at once though. Still thinking controller. Wish I knew how many amps or whatever it needed to be putting out to activate those brakes to the max though.

Dodgeit · Oct 4, 2013

(quoted from post at 17:00:14 10/04/13) If the controller doesn't work,I'll have to. I could have gotten the entire unit,backing plate,shoes,magnets and all for $98 a wheel. Cost me just over $40 per wheel for the shoes.

I found out it's not the ground. I traced it up to the tongue,looked sketchy,no end on the wire,just wrapped around a pop rivet. I chiseled it off,punched it out,cut the wire back and skinned it to nice shiny wire. I put a new crimped end on it,drilled the hole out a little bigger in the trailer frame,took a wire brush to it and put a big new metal screw in it.

So then I slid under the truck,found where the wire from the plug was hooked to the frame. That looked rough too. I tugged a little and pulled the wire right out of the crimped end. I skinned it back and put a new end on. I took the air chisel to the bolt in the frame,took the die grinder to the frame and shined it up,put in a new bolt and washer. Figured I had it licked. NOPE. No change what so ever.

I can't feature all four magnets going bad at once though. Still thinking controller. Wish I knew how many amps or whatever it needed to be putting out to activate those brakes to the max though.

Brakes cost me $1064.00 today. Front rotors were shot, front and rear shoes almost gone. Rear rotors turned, rear seals on the axle hubs leaking. Inner bearing on one side outer on the other going bad. So replaced those four bearings too. Oil change was the cheapest. 2006 Dodge 2500 Diesel.

To keep it tractor related, I'm pulling tomorrow so truck had to be able to get there and back.

rrlund · Oct 4, 2013

You must have gone to one of the big chains? They'd have tried to sell you all that even if you'd been there last week.

Dodgeit · Oct 4, 2013

No it was the local tire store. They allow you to look on while they do the work. I was there to look at the rotors, because there was a metal to metal grinding when I applied the brakes. The inside of both front rotors was chewed up good. Oil leaking out of the rear was evident, as soon as they pulled the rotors off to turn them. They pulled the bearings and let me check them out. I could have done the work myself and killed a whole day doing it. Big pull tomorrow so I spent the time doings things to get ready for that. The rear end problems would have held for awhile, but I decided to get it behind me.

John B. · Oct 4, 2013

rrlund, make sure on your trailer that the shoes are in their proper position. The shoe with the longest material goes on the back side. This helps in the self energization of drum brakes. If the shoes are not in their proper position they don't hold worth a darn. This is why drum brakes don't hold well when backing up, the self energization doesn't work. Apply your parking brake on your truck and back up then try to pull forward. I have seen many DIY'ers put drum shoes on and not know this and their vehicle doesn't stop well.

Now the electric magnets on your trailer don't get weak unless you have an electrical power problem not supplying the voltage they need to operate correctly, they either work or they don't. Rust on the drums or magnet can lessen the holding power though.

Mike in Mn. · Oct 4, 2013

Couple of stories about brakes that never worked from the factory, back in the sixties working at a gas station installing new tires on about a 63 big ol Buick, left rear never had a drum installed, new rusty shoes and no drum. Bought a 87 chev pickup in about 95, did a complete brake job, the rear were all rusty and looked like they hadn't worked in years, went to bleed the new ones and couldn't get any fluid through, after some investigating found the line to the rear pinched flat under a factory washered bolt that held the fuel tank brackets on, those rear brakes never did work.

Bob · Oct 4, 2013

"left rear never had a drum installed,"

What the HECK kept the cylinder from overextending and pooping the cup(s) out????

waltdavies · Oct 5, 2013

Thank God they don't most people in the old days let their brakes go until the vehicle wouldn't stop.
Walt

Speaking of brakes

rrlund

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pete black

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Lazy WP

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rrlund

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Dodgeit

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rrlund

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Dodgeit

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John B.

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Mike in Mn.

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Bob

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waltdavies

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