sound like a stuck caliper?

[jgilbs]

nada. still on the jack stands :fire: i have absolutley no clue what is wrong, and i need to be back at school this weekend. I have taken a week long break from it, so maybe ill see it with a fresh set of eyes. I am going to center my attention on the pedal linkage and BOO. I noticed the pedal has to be 1/2 down before the brake lights turn on, and when I was road testing it at night, I noticed when I stepped on the brake, the left headlight would go off. So I'm looking at that, but the BOO isnt linked to the hydralic system, so who knows.

 

[V8BoatBuilder]

nada. still on the jack stands :fire: i have absolutley no clue what is wrong, and i need to be back at school this weekend. I have taken a week long break from it, so maybe ill see it with a fresh set of eyes. I am going to center my attention on the pedal linkage and BOO. I noticed the pedal has to be 1/2 down before the brake lights turn on, and when I was road testing it at night, I noticed when I stepped on the brake, the left headlight would go off. So I'm looking at that, but the BOO isnt linked to the hydralic system, so who knows.

Maybe the pedal isn't fully releasing due to a jam... worth checking.

 

[jgilbs]

when i pull up on the pedal, it wont come up, so it is in its furthest disengaged position, which would indicate the pedal isnt sticking. just tested the pedal, the light goes on when you apply slight pressure, but the interior lights dim - is this normal?

 

[boominXplorer]

I dont really feel like looking through all the posts but do you have a vaccume in the brake boost line?

 

[jgilbs]

yep. the booster works fine(or so it seems).

 

[V8BoatBuilder]

when i pull up on the pedal, it wont come up, so it is in its furthest disengaged position, which would indicate the pedal isnt sticking. just tested the pedal, the light goes on when you apply slight pressure, but the interior lights dim - is this normal?

Yes - it's normal for the lights to dim if the truck is off.

 

[jgilbs]

im gonna remove the MC and the pedal linkage and inspect and reinstall it tonight. ill keep ya all updated.

 

[tlivingd]

I didnt read 5 pages of responces but.
did you replace the front rubber brake lines? sometimes the inner material of the line seperates then acts as a one way valve. this leaves pressure on the caliper. it is strange that both sides started doing it at once. but i've seen it before.

 

[jgilbs]

yep, sure did. for everyone who doesnt want to read through all those posts, heres what ive done:
replaced rotors
repaced pads
repaced both front flex hoses
replaced rear hard lines
replaced front hardlines
replaced MC
replaced wheel cylinders
bled brakes in the proper sequence

but the front wheels are still sticking

 

[Runnin'OnEmpty]

Jeff, you have several problems that seem to be related.

Try disabling the ABS by pulling the fuse, and see if that affects anything.....

My hunch is that the ABS pump might be starting inadvertently, and somehow causing the front brakes to retain pressure and dimming the lights.

 

[jgilbs]

i have a 92, so I only have rear abs(they never worked but after i bled them today, the light came on for the first time since ive owned the truck - so now i got that goin for me)

today i went out to adjust the pushrod length. i noticed that when I reinstalled the MC last time, I trapped the hood release cable between the MC and the booster(whoops) i fixed the problem, rebled everything and it still sticks. albeit not as bad as before, but it is still not operational.

 

[jgilbs]

is there any possibility that when my caliper was sticking last time the heat warped the steering kuckle that the caliper mounts to, causing the caliper to not slide properly and making it drag?

 

[Pheonixx77]

all i can say is holy crap! i read all 5 pages and i can definatley say your truck is frggin possesed.
secondly i have a few questions? does the steering wander? is it hard to make a turn? I had my drivers front caliper stick, then i replaced it. then pass caliper was sticking. after replacing both front calipers, pads AND rotors.
I said screw it...i have been driving my truck with what i thought to be brake drag and found out today what it was...the U-joints in BOTH my front wheels are binding. if your steering "POPS" or sticks, jerks, or just sucks and wanders all over hell and back you problem may be Wheel joints my friend.
to check this...start truck and get wheels straight..then turn slowly from left to right, if you see the wheels jump or get stuck ot the steering wheel is hard to turn it's your wheel joints.

considering EVERYTHING brake related is new on your truck, i could say you can rule out brake problems. unless you assembled something really wrong. (BTW have you got that hott counter girl from napa's phone number yet?) ------start looking at steering stuff to see why you "feel the drag"

 

[Runnin'OnEmpty]

I don't think Jeff has a problem at all, he's just buying more parts so he can keep seeing that hottie NAPA counter girl..........

Jeff, try removing the booster hose and plug it. Then see if the brakes drag after application.......just trying to figure out a way to isolate the problem.

 

[jgilbs]

all i can say is holy crap! i read all 5 pages and i can definatley say your truck is frggin possesed.
secondly i have a few questions? does the steering wander? is it hard to make a turn? I had my drivers front caliper stick, then i replaced it. then pass caliper was sticking. after replacing both front calipers, pads AND rotors.
I said screw it...i have been driving my truck with what i thought to be brake drag and found out today what it was...the U-joints in BOTH my front wheels are binding. if your steering "POPS" or sticks, jerks, or just sucks and wanders all over hell and back you problem may be Wheel joints my friend.
to check this...start truck and get wheels straight..then turn slowly from left to right, if you see the wheels jump or get stuck ot the steering wheel is hard to turn it's your wheel joints.

considering EVERYTHING brake related is new on your truck, i could say you can rule out brake problems. unless you assembled something really wrong. (BTW have you got that hott counter girl from napa's phone number yet?) ------start looking at steering stuff to see why you "feel the drag"

that is a VERY interesting suggestion. I had never noticed my steering pop until AFTER i inititally replaced the rotors. then i took the truck out for a block and noticed that it did pop once, and pretty hard too. once again VERY GOOD suggestion, i will definetly check that out.

anyone know how much ujoints are to replace?

 

[jgilbs]

ok so I just turned my truck on(didnt start it) and I turned my steering wheel lock to lock. heard a weird almost squeaking noise. looked under my truck and theres ATF/PS fluid all under my truck now! ouch!

 

[tlivingd]

ok so I just turned my truck on(didnt start it) and I turned my steering wheel lock to lock. heard a weird almost squeaking noise. looked under my truck and theres ATF/PS fluid all under my truck now! ouch!

DOH been there before. I had the bearing of the fixed idler pully lock up and the pully fell off. I armstrong steered it home (it was still cool and didnt come close to over heating) and had powersteering fluid EVERYWHERE under the hood. it comes out of the vent hole in the cap of the power steering res.

Nate

 

[Pheonixx77]

I told you to start it...
I bought joints from autozone. best they had were 13.99$ labor will be about 4 hrs at a shop. unless you have a press you will have to go to the shop. it is my understanding the U-joints are pressed in.

save the 20$ for the wheel joints....

EDIT: if you have a buddy steer the truck while you look underneath you will see the U-joint right behind the spindle. When the wheel is turning you will see it bind if there is something wrong.

 

[jgilbs]

DOH been there before. I had the bearing of the fixed idler pully lock up and the pully fell off. I armstrong steered it home (it was still cool and didnt come close to over heating) and had powersteering fluid EVERYWHERE under the hood. it comes out of the vent hole in the cap of the power steering res.

Nate

so theres no leak? i just refill it with ATF and I should be good?

Phoenix - you said 4 hours labor? does this include removal of the axle? I am a broke college kid looking to save money whereever I can. Can I remove the axle myself and savetime? or is the gear in the diffy pressured in as well?

the thing is i didnt really hear or feel any binding. it turned pretty smoothly from lock to lock. i will have to get a buddy to help me, but it SEEMED like it was fine. i didnt feel any bumps or anything when I steered it.

 

[410Fortune]

You dont need to go to a shop to have the U joints replaced...rent a u joint press from the parts store.....

U joints should not cause any problems in the front end unless the hubs are locked, otherwise the axle shafts are not even spinning.

Again are you sure you have the right calipers?