Hello, Is there anybody in the St Louis area that can arc my brake shoes for my 1937 Ford? Thanks in advance. Mike
Some have lined the inside of the drum with sticky sand paper and then run the new shoes back and forth on it. Paul in CT
Those services are getting scarce! They used to be available everywhere! The brake shoe , in an oversized drum will make contact near the center of the shoe, leaving both ends with out contact. What I have done in the past is secure my belt sander , upside down in my vise and carefully take a little off the center of the shoe, using the belt to help align the shoe. This is a “ backyard” fix and not perfect, but will shorten the time it takes to wear the shoes in. Hope you find a shop that still has one of those machines! Bones
Actually a properly arced lining will make contact in the center with a gap at the ends. During a brake application the shoes flex to give full contact. There is a spec for the correct gap between the ends of the lining and the drum.
This is true, but a regular shoe in an oversized drum will have too much gap at the ends, causing a soft pedal and possibly excess flexing of the shoe , itself. I am old enough to to remember the machines in local shops that would re arch the shoes to fit the drums that the shop had just turned! Kinda rare today, people just buy new drums, in stead of turning them. Back in the day you could buy oversized shoes , also. If you put regular shoes in an oversized drum, you will get a somewhat soft pedal , until they wear in. Bones
I do it with a body file or wood rasp with each shoe in my bench vice…sign of the times.. Find a trailer service shop as most trailers still have drum brakes…
Are these relined and have not been arced? If these are off the shelf shoes and the drums are not turned past maxim over size I would run them they will self arc and improve with milage just no super big loads.
A friend mine used sticky back sandpaper inside of his drums, and spun them by hand, while adjusting, and pulling the drum to check contact area. When he was satisfied, he removed the sandpaper, vacuumed away the dust, and reinstalled the drums.
Back when I was turning wrenches, most shops had an Ammaco Brake Drum Lathe. One end of the bench for the machine had the shoe arcer. The first time I used it at one shop, one of the mechanics asked what the heck is that kid doing now?
In the late 60s and early 70s I worked for Sears doing front ends and brakes There brake job shoes were unfinished. You turned the drums and arced the shoes to fit.
When I was in Sears Automotive 62-65 I tried to stay away of both those spots as they were the dirtiest 2 jobs. Tires and batteries took up mytime with a little lube rack fill in. Blowing the brakes after removing drums was the worst with all the asbestos dust. Had to be killing the brake guys over the years….
I am about to send a set of shoes to be relined and arced by C.H. Topping. http://www.chtopping.com/Home/ Seem to be friendly enough, and have been in business since the 1930s, but I haven't seen their work yet.
the spec my machine calls for is .030 under. I measure the drum, then set the machine for that measurement less .030.
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