tinroof80 Posted January 13, 2012 Report Posted January 13, 2012 Hello all, I have a 1947 p-15 that has been in the family for a good many years now. I am still learning things about it everyday. But I have run into an issue with the brakes. I am convinced that the reason I don't have a good pedal is because they are not adjusted properly. The shoes are new, and I had the drums turned. My question is, some of the anchor bolts I can turn a full 360 degree turn and the shoe never touches the drum.....does this mean that the cam on the anchor bolt is worn too much and I need new ones? Thanks Quote
Young Ed Posted January 13, 2012 Report Posted January 13, 2012 Have you verified that the shoe is moving in and out while you are turning the nut? I have seen 1 case where the cam broke loose from the rest of the mechanism and no amount of turning would make the shoe touch. Quote
tinroof80 Posted January 14, 2012 Author Report Posted January 14, 2012 I'm pretty sure it is, but I guess I need to pull the drums back off to verify. Any other ideas in case everything is functioning properly? Quote
austinsailor Posted January 14, 2012 Report Posted January 14, 2012 Make sure you have the correct shoes. If the shoes are for too small a drum you'd have this problem. Also, tell us where you are. You might have another owner just down the street who could take a look. Quote
tinroof80 Posted January 14, 2012 Author Report Posted January 14, 2012 I'm in Wadesboro, NC. And as far as the shoes, they looked right at first glance. I didn't study them real hard though. When I get back to the car I'll take a second look. Quote
captden29 Posted January 14, 2012 Report Posted January 14, 2012 tin this is a very interesting problem. this is the kind of thing that would happen to me. i would eventually figure it out, but frustrated in the meantime. a simple job gone to hell.these brakes can be problematic, but simple enough to get right. let us know what is going on once you pull the drum. if you changed the pins on the wheel cylinders they can be the problem, or the wheel cyliders can be the wrong ones. if you just changed the shoes and nothing else then that could be interesting. keep us posted. capt den Quote
Plymouthy Adams Posted January 14, 2012 Report Posted January 14, 2012 there were the optional 11 inch brakes for the P15...not addressed in the shop manual but addressed through the parts breakdown....verify size by measuring your brake drums..I believe one of our former members either had thie larger brakes or knew of someone who did.. Quote
tinroof80 Posted January 15, 2012 Author Report Posted January 15, 2012 just for kicks and giggles, today I put one of the old shoes back on where I was having the issue, and wouldn't you know....it adjusted like it was suppose to. and here's something funny, the new shoe was only worn at the heel. I just can see a little bit of difference in the shoes with the naked eye, but I just wouldn't have thought what little bit of difference there is would make that much of a difference. as far as the pins go, I did check them(on the one drum I pulled off at least) and they are the same. and the drums are 10". so....it looks like the shoes are the problem after all. should I try it with more than one shoe to be sure the issue is consistent? and another question I have, on the minor adjusters, left is left and right is right, are the major adjusters the same? Quote
captden29 Posted January 16, 2012 Report Posted January 16, 2012 how old are the shoes? if not that old you can use them, but if they are old and bonded, the linings can come right off the metal part. i know this from experience. when i did the brakes over on my 54 windsor[long story why] the shoes were only 2 years old so i re-used them.also from experience, use quality parts, even if much more money. i firmly recommend you not use brake parts from roberts or bernbaum, especially bernbaum. i did, and that is why i had to do everything over again. i spent more trying to save money and could have had serious results from failing brakes. glad you found the problem. capt den Quote
tinroof80 Posted January 16, 2012 Author Report Posted January 16, 2012 Unfortunately, the shoes did come from bernbaum, but maybe since they didn't work they will let me return them. I certainly hope so since it was 125 dollars worth. As for my old shoes, I guess I'll try to have them relined. When I pulled the right front drum off for the first time, part of the lining hit the ground. Any suggestions where I can have them done? The wheel cylinders and master cylinder rebuild kit came from NAPA. I try to get all my parts from there if I can help it. Bernbaum's was the only place that had the shoes(that I could find). I'm sure I will have many more questions before it's all over. One that comes to mind, what are you using for water pump grease? Lubriplate makes a water pump grease, but you can only buy it by the case. Thank you for your help. Quote
Jim Yergin Posted January 16, 2012 Report Posted January 16, 2012 I use boat trailer wheel bearing grease that I get at Walmart. Jim Yergin Quote
Young Ed Posted January 16, 2012 Report Posted January 16, 2012 I get mine done at www.brakeplace.com Quote
tinroof80 Posted January 18, 2012 Author Report Posted January 18, 2012 does it matter which direction the major adjusters turn to adjust the shoes? Quote
deathbound Posted January 19, 2012 Report Posted January 19, 2012 I get mine done at www.brakeplace.com Highly recommend them......I had them re-sleeve my rear wheel cylinders in stainless steel. I sent them last Monday, they received them, re-sleeved them & shipped them 4 days after I sent them. Just waiting for them in the mail. Quote
tinroof80 Posted January 19, 2012 Author Report Posted January 19, 2012 Just shipped my shoes to brakeplace yesterday. And bernbaum's is letting me return the defective shoes I bought from them. Thanks guys for all the help. Quote
tinroof80 Posted February 2, 2012 Author Report Posted February 2, 2012 has anyone ever successfully turned rear brake drums? Quote
Robert Horne Posted February 2, 2012 Report Posted February 2, 2012 has anyone ever successfully turned rear brake drums? I had my rear drums turned/shaved at a local shop. The drums had high spots from sitting a long time. Brakes have been good ever since...... I bought Ford shoe linings, 2 inch by 10 inch, at Advance Auto to put on my Plymouth shoes. Bought a box of rivets from ebay..... Quote
tinroof80 Posted February 2, 2012 Author Report Posted February 2, 2012 I had all of mine turned by a local guy. I have him turn pretty much all of my rotors and drums, never had any problems, until now. The front ones went on and adjusted fine, the back ones however act like they are out of round. My theory is that he didn't get them mounted on the lathe quite right and they didn't turn true on the machine. I took them to another shop and their machine didn't have the right adapters. This is why I ask. If it comes to it, I know where 3 cars are. A 49 and two 51's. I know the shoes are the same but are the drums the same? Quote
Bingster Posted February 2, 2012 Report Posted February 2, 2012 I bought front brake shoes for my '47 Desoto about three years ago before I knew anything about these old cars. Are their brake shoes bad, or just the other parts? Quote
tinroof80 Posted February 2, 2012 Author Report Posted February 2, 2012 If your talking about the shoes I bought from bernbaum's, I wouldn't know about any of their other parts, shoes are the only thing I bought from them. All the other parts I bought, I got from NAPA. The only other thing I replaced were the wheel cylinders and they all look to be right. Quote
tinroof80 Posted February 14, 2012 Author Report Posted February 14, 2012 I finally got the brakes working good. turns out, the rear drums had high spots that the first man's lathe would not take out. I had to take them to a local machine shop and have the man put them on his big fancy lathe. On to the next job....exhaust! Quote
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