2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission Rear Drum brake adjustment DIY

[justinemmons]

i am wanting to adjust my brakes but i have never dealt with drum brakes before. i have read many different theorys about how to tighten. some say brakes should not drag others say a little drag. the factory service manual talks about using an adjustment guage with a little drag on the tool and puting it back together then followed by repeated forward and reverse stopping to activate the automatic adjusters. since i do not have an adjustment guage what else can i do?

 

[NIsaacs]

First make sure they need adjusted. Jack up both wheels and spin the tire, do you feel or hear faint shoe contact? Pull the adjuster plug and take a medium sized screwdriver and pry the star wheel forward and back while turning the tire. How much movement? Then try and center the star wheel from your forward/back movement. Now, can you still feel/hear slight contact? If not, then turn the wheel a few clicks and repeat the above. Do not go too tight, you can't back up the star wheel without releasing the adjuster lever. If you need to, use a small shank screwdriver and push the lever off the star wheel, (it can sometimes be difficult) then you can back it up. I like my shoes to just barley touch.



PS: If your park brake peddle goes down more than half way, chances are you need to adjust the brakes.



Nick

 

[Midnite]

Nick--how do you handle adjustment with a limited slip rear-end? Do one side as you mention above, and then do the other side until you can't move the wheel, then back it off a couple clicks?

 

[GAmes]

With the LS you have to have both sides off the ground. It might be my many hours on flight lines, but I can't hear the first side I adjust when I am adjusting the other side. Get just a tad of drag on both sides, then crank up the engine and apply the brakes. That puts them in the position they will be in while driving. Dollars to donuts, after you shut down and spin the tires you won't hear the slight drag and will have to give both sides a couple more clicks. Repeat until the slight drag happens after shutdown. BTW, I have never heard of a truck that has self adjusters that work. I use a brake adjustment spoon rather than a screwdriver, personnal preference.

 

[KRStone]

Do you need to put the trans in neutral when checking each rear wheel's brakes?



Let me explain:



If the trans is in park, turning the driver rear wheel will also spin the passenger rear wheel. So, any drag or friction on the passenger side could be mistaken for the driver's side, right?



If the trans is in neutral, and the friction on the passenger side was sufficient, any force I applied to spinning the driver's side could spin the driveline instead.



Does this make any sense?

 

[GAmes]

Do you need to put the trans in neutral when checking each rear wheel's brakes?



Let me explain:



If the trans is in park, turning the driver rear wheel will also spin the passenger rear wheel. So, any drag or friction on the passenger side could be mistaken for the driver's side, right?



If the trans is in neutral, and the friction on the passenger side was sufficient, any force I applied to spinning the driver's side could spin the driveline instead.

If the trans is in park you'd better hope that you can't spin the wheels. Perhaps, if you don't have limited slip you could turn one of them, IDK.



In neutral, with LS one will spin forward when the other is spinning backward. Internal friction of the trans should keep the driveshaft from spinning. Even if it does spin, who cares? You are listening for a little brake shoe contact here. If there is sufficient friction to keep the wheel from turning it is too tight.

 

[KRStone]

If there feels like adequate friction, how do you know if it's the brake you're adjusting or the other side?

 

[surfbeetle]

I just use my brake adjusting tool (snap on, looks like a curved flat screwdriver) and adjust up the shoes until the wheel just stops moving. I wiggle the wheel back and forth a bit while tightening the brake up. Even with posi, you don't need to have both rear wheels off the ground when doing it this way since I'm only moving the wheel a very small amount. Then I use a screwdriver to push back the clicker so I can back off the star adjuster 5 teeth. I do it the same on both sides, always works great. One other thing I like to do beforehand is to pull the drum and do a visual inspection and let all of the brake dust get out of there.