Rear Brakes, Emergency Situation...

[Sabyre]

I changed the rear shoes today, it was long overdue and highly needed. I changed the passengers side without incident then proceeded to do the drivers side and noticed the adjuster cable was broken. I called the parts store and they had one so I threw the tire back on and got the part, again without incident.

I got back and changed the drivers side. We went to test it and the passangers side tire dragged out of the driveway. I spent some time going forward and reverse to try and get it to adjust properly and nothing worked. I took it a couple miles down the road thinking it may come out of it. It didn't. In fact I had to stop to let things cool down. There was smoke pouring from the drivers side brake.

The drivers side actually started sticking so bad that it would lock up going forward. We were stuck there.

It seems both brakes are sticking but the drivers side is sticking much worse. To get home I had to remove the drum from the drivers side and drive it home with no drum.

I Don't know what to do, I need some advice and some help.

The adjusters are all the way retracted so I dont see how that would be the problem. Also even after the brake stuck I could remove the drum without too much excessive effort. Also it will go in reverse just fine (sticks very little) but forward the brake locks.

Any help on this matter will be greatly appreciated. It is my daily driver. I consider myself to be very mechanically inclined, but I will admit I stay away from drum brakes because I really cant stand to do them. However money situation made me change them this time.

 

[l1k2gadd]

I'm getting ready to do my 1993 XLT 4x4s rear brakes. I hope this isn't something I will need to be concerned with.

The Haynes manual has a step-by-step diagram on the removal and replacement procedures. Are you sure you put everything back correctly? Were there two different sized brake pads and did you put one of each different size in each side of the truck? Did you remove and replace one side at a time without any questions about reinstalling anything? Did you try to use the other side (or a Chilton's or Haynes' or Ford Manual) for comparison if you did have questions while doing the job? My first drum brake job was ver-r-ry confusing for me with where everything was supposed to go when I was putting it back in.

 

[Sabyre]

Yeah, I use a Haynes manual. I did one side at a time, I am pretty confident that I did assemble things correctly. The shoes are two different sizes. A big and small for each size. If I recall correctly the larger goes to the rear. I did place things on the ground as I removed them in thier repsective positions so that I could easily match which pad goes where.

I did notice when I removed the drum the last time that the shoes do not seat flush with the anchor pin. The only way to get the to seat flush was to extend the adjuster. But this did not help as it extended the shoes too far and I could not even get the drum back on.

After sitting and thinking about this a while I got an idea. If the shoes wont sit flush on top with the adjuster completely retracted it must be something in the middle hanging it up. The only thing really in the middle that goes all the way across is the ebrake strut. Perhaps it is jammed or not seated properly. I will look at it tomorrow and see what I can come up with.

EDIT: It wasn't the passengers side that dragged the tire... It has been the drivers side this whole time. The passengers side does stick a little, but nothing extreme.

 

[marragtop]

Make sure you have the ebrake bar installed properly and that it meshes with the side of the shoe and lever. Also, make sure that the parking brake isn't engaged. The cable should be slack.
One last thought... if you drove it home with the drum off, didn't the wheel cylinder blow?

 

[Sabyre]

I hope not, but probably. I'm gonna look at it in a few minutes.

Should the top of the shoes be flush against the anchor pin?

 

[Sabyre]

OK, It turned out to be the ebrake sticking. I disconnected it completely and everything fits flush and proper. The cables are in bad shape and I hadn't used the ebrake in years. I will eventually replace it, but that can wait until I do a disc conversion.

Thanks to those that replied. I appreciate the help.

Also the wheel cylinder was fine. Not blown. It is a stick shift so I didnt have to use the brakes too much. Thank the gods, getting sick of the parts store and waisted afternoons.