My '50 chevy 1/2 ton truck brakes have never been any good. ive put thousands of miles on them the way they are, and they are REALLY bad. i have to pump them a good 3-5 times before i have enough pedal pressure to stop it or even slow down. i replaced the wheel cylinders and the master cylinder already, and the brake lines look brand new (probably P.O.). ive tried bleeding them, but it hasnt changed it, unless im doing something wrong. i had them adjusted once, and they were good for about a thousand miles (gradually went back to having to pump them). i pulled off the front passenger side drum, and the shoes look like they have plenty of meat on them. im wondering if anyone has had problems like this before, or any advice on how to fix it.
It sounds like what your doing Wrong is not keeping them adjusted. Stock 50's brakes are not self adjusting and need to be run up constantly. City driving requier more often than Hwy. miles. Drum brake wheel cylenders retract compleatly each time you take your foot off the pedal. As the shoes ware and are not kept adjusted up the cylenders need to push the shoes further. That's why pumping them makes the brakes work, - - Sorta. In the old days we changed oil about every 2K to 3K miles. Part of that service was always a grease job and a brake adjustment. Just the way it was. The Wizzard
ok im going to give adjusting them a shot next weekend. these are the old "huck" style brakes, and you have to adjust both front and rear shoes individually. is there a trick to adjusting them? can they be over adjusted? i dont have to worry about unscrewing the adjusted out of the wheel cylinder do I? i just dont want to make this worse than it already is. thanks again
Two ways to do this. Get some help until you understand it or learn as you go. You can make them pull left or right by getting them out of sink. To tight and you'll heat up a drum and Glaze the shoes (not good). It basicly takes a good ear. Listen to them drag. When left and right sound the same should be good to go. It's a lot easier to show than to explain. You can't run the adjuster out of the cylender with the drum on. Some guys would run the shoes out tight on the drum then back off equally on each side. Some guys were good at just listening to the Shoe gently Kiss the drum (that's how I do it) If it pulls Left then tighten up the Right side. You want them to spin freely or the heat build up can run the wheel bearing grease out. That's not good. If you are close to Vancouver stop by and I'll help you out. The Wizzard
well i appreciate the help. i think im going to try the whole "tighten them down, and back them off equally". that sounds like the easiest way to NOT screw it up, haha. if i was in vancouver i was accept you offer, but right now im trying to get it a little safer to drive to get it from northern california back up to portland. so maybe on the next trip. thanks for all your help
That will work, just don't over tighten them and count the clicks as you back off. Remember, your balancing them so you may need to test drive and re-adjust a time or two untill they don't pull or grab. Once they are correct you should be able to just tighten them up equal amounts on each wheel once in a while as needed. Good Luck, The Wizzard
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