Hey guys. I have replaced all the wheel cylinders on my 50 cad. The shoes looked good so I left them. Im getting a grinding that seems to come from the front right wheel when the brakes are applied. I adjusted the star wheel to ensure 1 rotation of free spin on that wheel. The pads and drum look fine, no gouges or anything like that. I replaced the driver side brake hose because that was clogged. The passenger side I left because it works without leaking. The grinding is only when my foot is on the brake, goes away once I release it. Any ideas?
That's what I was thinking....if it's not adjusted correctly or worn really bad it could allow the drum to rub on the backing plate when the brakes are applied.
I was afraid of that but thought, maybe theyd constantly be noisy rather then only with brake pressure. But at this point I cant imagine anything else. I know its terribly basic, but the setup is new to me - I'm used to modern disc/calipers. Visually the bearings look ok. Chrome round balls, no discoloration or flat spots I could see. The spindle looks fine with no scoring or scrapes - but I dont drive far at all and this problem just arose. Would pictures help or is there something else I'm missing?
Never 'leave' shoes that for which you have no history. I think they are the cause. One more thing: new shoes are made of new material, the Cadillac will stop better. Cosmo
They have lots of material on them still, and the stopping power was fine. But i'll take more pictures and post them tomorrow.
is there any sign on the drum where it may be rubbing? if its grinding than there must be visible signs somewhere right
No visible grinds that I noticed. I just bought grease and greased the crap out of all the bearing surfaces. These pics were pre greasing.
In the 1st picture, the drum looks like it may be hot-spotted. That could cause the noise and it extreme cases tear the lining off the shoe. I'd have the drums cut, get new linings and new hardware kits. Also make sure the shoes are on the anchor (at the very top) and the linings aren't hung up on the backing plate. Just grab the star wheel at the bottom, if it pulls out and the shoes come with it, they aren't hung up.
Thanks for the reply. When you say linings what do you mean? The metal part of the shoe? When I put the wheel cylinders in, I undid the top springs to open the shoes outward. Everything seemed intact and ok. I should note that I drove the car in the neighborhood one evening before I changed the driver side front cylinder. I had changed the other 3, but ran out of daylight and wanted to see if I had brakes. I didnt know at the time that the drivers hose was clogged, which Ive since replaced. So that first test run was double duty on that front passenger. (The problem child). I didnt go over 20 though and took her easy.
Just confirmed - greasing the bearings didnt fix it, although Im glad I did. I think youre right - time to grind the drums.
yea i would start with the drums. cutting the drums may or may not fix it, but it least you know it will not be a waste of money since it looks like they need it
Look at all that crap on that drum. Likely the problem. Some times you can clean them up with elbow grease and sand paper but those may need to be turned. Note how greasy. That may be from a leaky cylinder that has been replaced. It also could be from leaky wheel bearing seals. All that needs to be degreased and cleaned up. Pay attention to the contact points where the shoe slides on the backing plate. You may have to dress that area with a file if it's rough.
Having them resurfaced right now. Took me several shops to find someone who knew how to set them on the machine. Had to go back to get my shop manual for the tolerances when resurfacing.
Great news, the resurfacing fixed the problem. No more grind. Better yet the guy told me "no charge, a handshake and a smile was all I needed." Made my day
i know you already have them back together, but did you grease the contact points on the backing plates where the shoes slide? contact points of the pins, springs adjuster etc? i use white lithium grease and a little goes a long way to avoid premature wear on parts and assure even wear and quiet operation.
That is debatable... using those old shoes is like taking a shower and putting your used undies back on with a big skid mark in them.
Hahah. Well I used the old shoes because theres a lot of life in them, this thing barely gets driven. But napa has them for $20 when I want to swap them out.
The issue with the old shoes is that they're probably glazed and have fluids trapped in them. If it was a DD, it would be wise to do the brakes from A-Z.
It did seem like they had a lack of bite. I just figured that was how all drum brake systems were supposed to be. Sucky as I've been told
Most drum brake systems work pretty well if everything is right. I was tempted to keep drums all around on my '59 Ford, but opted for discs up front.
Now that you have turned the drums, the mating diameters of shoe and drum are not the same. This results in a very small contact patch that can best be described as the tangent of two curves, (back to your high school geometry class), this contact may be as small as an 1/8" for a day or so. Until the shoe is worn in to make full contact, the brakes will need frequent adjustment and unless this is done the brake pedal will get progressively lower. Back in the day, brake shops had a machine to grind the shoes to match the reground drum diameter so full contact was immediately obtained. If you stay on top of the adjustment braking will gradually improve and in about a year you should have full braking capability. Best Regards and good luck with all your endeavors, KB PS: Have you transmission issues been sorted out?
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