Drum Brake Rebuild
Thread Starter
2nd Gear Member
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 367
From: Virginia
Drum Brake Rebuild
So I wondered why the MC was empty, and there was no brake pressure, so I took off the front drivers side drum, and found:
Nothing!
So my question is... I've found several rebuild kits in catalogs, which seem to include everything from shoes to springs. I don't have the $ to upgrade to discs now, so I think I'm going to rebuild all four drums. Is this worth doing, or should I just get shoes for the others and only rebuild the one that's missing? Any suggestions on vendors?
I've spent my Christmas vacation doing carpentry work to make money for parts, so now I'm excited about making progress.
Nothing!
So my question is... I've found several rebuild kits in catalogs, which seem to include everything from shoes to springs. I don't have the $ to upgrade to discs now, so I think I'm going to rebuild all four drums. Is this worth doing, or should I just get shoes for the others and only rebuild the one that's missing? Any suggestions on vendors?
I've spent my Christmas vacation doing carpentry work to make money for parts, so now I'm excited about making progress.
3rd Gear Member
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 790
From: Arkansas
Buy new wheel cylinders, don't rebuild. They are cheap and easy to replace. As far as parts, any parts store can sell you them. If the springs are good then re-use them. Get new adjusters because the star keys are usually worn out on these older cars. Good luck!
2nd Gear Member
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 300
From: Arizona
Agree with 65fastback. Don't rebuild, replace. If the cylinder is real bad the piston will bind, even after honing. Also replace the brake hose as well.
I have had brakes just as bad. The brake fluid is hygroscopic, so the other wheel cylinders are just as rusted on the inside.
I don't want to sound like your mother but you need to pull that backing plate, wire wheel it down to bare metal and paint it gloss black.
I have had brakes just as bad. The brake fluid is hygroscopic, so the other wheel cylinders are just as rusted on the inside.
I don't want to sound like your mother but you need to pull that backing plate, wire wheel it down to bare metal and paint it gloss black.
3rd Gear Member
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 886
From: North East Texas on the Red River
Start by going to an auto machine shop and get them to mic the drums. If they are thin REPLACE them!
Get all your parts and if you are not accustomed to doing wheel cylinder honing, then replace the wheel cylinders.
Actually, if you can find some old shop with old drum brake equipment, you can drastically improve drum brakes. You can never make them as good as discs, but you can make them WAAaay better than stock.
To do this, if you can find a shop with the right equipment for riveting shoe lining and true arcing them to the drums, here's what you need to ask them to do:
If they have equipment for riveting brake lining material, have them cut the lining into three pieces for each shoe and rivet it into place with about 1/4 inch between lining sections. With the lining riveted onto the shoes, have them true arc the shoes to fit the drums. They will leave the shoes in their respective drum, so make sure you use the correct shoe set with the correct drum that they were fitted to.
In the sixties and seventies, this equipment was VERY common and you could find someone that would make up shoes like I described. The three lining sections allow the heat to be much more quickly dissipated. After all, that's what brakes do, convert the energy of motion (kintetic) to thermal energy (heat.)
The true arcing process fits the shoes to the drum so that you have brakes right away without waiting for them to "seat." If shoes are seated by driving and they were a very poor fit, it will overheat areas of the shoes causing damage to the new lining. It's not the kind of damage that renders them unusable, but rather it makes them less effective.
So.... look and ask around and see if there are any old brake and alignment shops in your area that might can do this for you. It would give you very good brakes to use while you're filling the piggy bank for disc brakes.
Get all your parts and if you are not accustomed to doing wheel cylinder honing, then replace the wheel cylinders.
Actually, if you can find some old shop with old drum brake equipment, you can drastically improve drum brakes. You can never make them as good as discs, but you can make them WAAaay better than stock.
To do this, if you can find a shop with the right equipment for riveting shoe lining and true arcing them to the drums, here's what you need to ask them to do:
If they have equipment for riveting brake lining material, have them cut the lining into three pieces for each shoe and rivet it into place with about 1/4 inch between lining sections. With the lining riveted onto the shoes, have them true arc the shoes to fit the drums. They will leave the shoes in their respective drum, so make sure you use the correct shoe set with the correct drum that they were fitted to.
In the sixties and seventies, this equipment was VERY common and you could find someone that would make up shoes like I described. The three lining sections allow the heat to be much more quickly dissipated. After all, that's what brakes do, convert the energy of motion (kintetic) to thermal energy (heat.)
The true arcing process fits the shoes to the drum so that you have brakes right away without waiting for them to "seat." If shoes are seated by driving and they were a very poor fit, it will overheat areas of the shoes causing damage to the new lining. It's not the kind of damage that renders them unusable, but rather it makes them less effective.
So.... look and ask around and see if there are any old brake and alignment shops in your area that might can do this for you. It would give you very good brakes to use while you're filling the piggy bank for disc brakes.
Thread Starter
2nd Gear Member
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 367
From: Virginia
65 Coup- I will definitely get some paint on those! I have already started wire wheeling and painting things that are easy to got at. It's a cheap way to make me feel like I'm making progress!
MBDiag- You are a wealth of knowledge. I'll look into finding a shop that can do the arcing. It sounds like a great way to improve the performance of the drum brakes. The drums all look good, not too worn. New cylinders and shoes all around for sure. The brake lines will be next.
Thanks for the input, I'll keep you posted.
-JHP
MBDiag- You are a wealth of knowledge. I'll look into finding a shop that can do the arcing. It sounds like a great way to improve the performance of the drum brakes. The drums all look good, not too worn. New cylinders and shoes all around for sure. The brake lines will be next.
Thanks for the input, I'll keep you posted.
-JHP
5th Gear Member
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 3,302
From: Northernish Eastish Central Texas
After 18 years in a barn... I would bet you a beer that your entire brake system is shot. The M/C, all 4 corners, and all the lines will be rusted internally. The proportioning valve will be rusted and stuck. All the rubber hoses will be cracked.
I would recommend completely replacing every component of the brake system. At this point investing in DiscBrakeSwap.com components will be a good investment.
Brakes and steering are the single biggest safety features of your car. They demand to be done absolutely right.
I would recommend completely replacing every component of the brake system. At this point investing in DiscBrakeSwap.com components will be a good investment.
Brakes and steering are the single biggest safety features of your car. They demand to be done absolutely right.
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