Rear brake adjustment/lining?

[slowneasy]

Those of you who adjust your rear brakes, about how many "clicks" do you usually have to make? Twevle sound about right?

Also, is it normal for the front brake shoe to wear about 30% faster than the back shoe? My are like this on both sides.

Thanks,
slowneasy

 

[sam peterson]

Thats the big problem with the front brakes. They will wear faster because of the front end weight and weight transfer when stopping but the rears don't do enough to help with the brake balance. Thats why it is important to keep the rear brakes adjusted properly. Unfortunately the self adjusters don't do a good enough job. There is no set amount of clicks to adjust the rears. The ideal way is to adjust them up just until the wheel won't turn and then back them off till it rolls free. Count the clicks and do both sides the same. You will need to release the adjuster lever to back them off. This can be a little tricky but once you get the hang of it you will have no problem. To get the lay of the land pull a drum and get a good look at how the adjuster works and how it lines up with the adj hole---Sam

 

[M_Pulling]

I just did my brake adj about 600 miles ago. I had 16700 on the truck and when I pulled the rear wheels I noticed that DC must have know my brakes would not adjust. They have this nice little green paint on the adjuster arm and the star wheel. It indicated absolutely no brake adjustment at all on either rear brake. After talking with our local mobile brake man he commented about this being a problem on DC Rams. His sugestion manually adjust the brakes at each oil change and tire rotation. His observation has been that the self adjusters are there for looks. Mine and his $. 02

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2001 2500 QC 4X2 Flame Red Clear Coat
Magalia Ram

 

[slowneasy]

Sam, thanks for your response but I might not have been too clear on the brake wear thingie. On my rear brakes, the front shoe is wearing about 30% faster than the back shoe. These are the shoes, not front pads. Any ideas anyone?

Thanks
slowneasy

 

[sam peterson]

I think I did misunderstand you. The front primary shoe on the rear brakes is shorter and considerable thinner from the factory. They are only 1/4 thick when new. They don't need much lining as its main purpose is to energize the secondary shoe. ----Sorry Sam