Young Ed Posted February 27, 2012 Report Posted February 27, 2012 And if you have dual wheel cylinders you do the lower first. Quote
desoto1939 Posted February 27, 2012 Report Posted February 27, 2012 If you had done a major adjustment, and this means that you adjusted the lower eccentric pins and also the upper cams then after the lines have been bleed and you have all four wheel adjusted so that you get a little drag then depress the brak pedal to make sure that you have a good pedal. You might then have to move the upper adjuster to get the shoes alittle closer to the drum or this is called a minor adjustment. rich hartung refer tot he technical posting on the use of the ammco brake gage. desoto1939@aol.com Quote
Bingster Posted February 28, 2012 Report Posted February 28, 2012 This is a little disheartening. I'm facing doing my brakes on my '47 Desoto and I can't help but thinking that the braking systems on these old cars must have worked well for them as designed. Maybe not as quick as disc brakes but still the logic as to how the old system works seems pretty solid and simple, in theory. Can we hear from some guys whop did their brakes and have a great pedal? Quote
52b3b Joe Posted February 28, 2012 Report Posted February 28, 2012 Another thing to look at is to make sure the MC is put together right. I made the mistake of taking mine apart 6 months before I rebuilt it and forgot how it went back. The manual got me confused and I ended up putting the rubber washer in the wrong location and had the same problem you having. After much frustration (and swearing) and taking the MC apart 3 times, my dad (knows his mopars) took one look at it and said you have the rubber washer in the wrong spot. I put it back together and it works great with a great pedal. Just a thought... Quote
austinsailor Posted February 28, 2012 Report Posted February 28, 2012 I have a 40 Dodge sedan and a 48 b1b on the road. All new brakes all around. Adjusting with the factory brake adjusting tool, I have solid brakes about 1/4 down on the pedel. Stops straight. Not as quick as modern disks, but quite adaquate. Having driven these things occasionally over the years and having done some piece meal repairs, but never a complete job correctly, I was quite surprised how well they can work when done properly. What I haven't done, and don't understand how it works, is the arching of the shoes. I get the reason, I understand what the results are supposed to do, I just don't see how running the shoe against that tool can arch it properly. If I did, I'd probably find one and buy it. Quote
Young Ed Posted February 28, 2012 Report Posted February 28, 2012 Correct my p15 and 46 pickup both stop fine. Only close call I had was a cop car flying out in front of me and the brakes saved me. Quote
Dodgeb4ya Posted February 28, 2012 Report Posted February 28, 2012 First measure your drum diameter with a drum mike. Then you position the 1st shoe of 2shoes for that drum in the arching machine. Adjust the machine 1st adjustment to the std. drum diameter IE 10",11" 12" ect, then do the micrometer adjustment-IE .020", .044" ect. oversize for the drum you just measured. Then carefully run the shoe very very lightly up against the sanding drum and swing the mounted shoe back and forth to put a matching radius to the pre miked drum. You have to screw the mounted shoe assembly in a 1/4 turn or so at a time untill you see the full face of the arched shoe was fully arched. The shoes must be matched to each brake drum size. Usually you don't even have to adjust the anchors from the factory position after arching the 8 shoes on a complete brake job. This is how I do them-easy. Bob Quote
austinsailor Posted February 28, 2012 Report Posted February 28, 2012 That makes sense, I see how that ones works. But the machines I remember just had 2 pins and a sanding drum between and they would sort of slide it back and forth against the pins. Didn't make sense. Quote
JIPJOBXX Posted February 28, 2012 Report Posted February 28, 2012 Just read your tread and I had the same problem and it turned out to be air in the system. I made up one of those devices that use the garden sprayer as the pump and it worked great. Just set it up on the master cylinder and pump up some pressure on the sprayer tank and go around from the rear to the front and let the air bleed out. You will need to find a filler cap for your master cylinder and drill and tap that to make up a fitting that will work with the portable pump. I'm sold on the one I made and if you want to be a little bit more fugal you sometimes can find these pumps at the Goodwill or Salvation Army thrift stores. The arc thing is that you haft to remember one thing and that is to make sure your shoes are not asbestos as that is bad for your health. I had my shoes arc but when I saw where is was doing it I just stayed outside and in the fresh air. Anyway take some time and make up one of those portable pressure rigs and you won't go wrong believe me I have been down that dark road on what to do to get my brakes to work correctly. Quote
Dodgeb4ya Posted February 28, 2012 Report Posted February 28, 2012 (edited) Most all shoes today are not asbestos. Kinda too bad as they actually had really good stopping characteristics. Some heavy truck applications still use them. I have the dust collection for this Ammco machine but I like to use it outside for the enjoyment of the birds and other animals with out the bag. Edited February 28, 2012 by Dodgeb4ya Quote
Guest P15-D24 Posted February 28, 2012 Report Posted February 28, 2012 This is a little disheartening. I'm facing doing my brakes on my '47 Desoto and I can't help but thinking that the braking systems on these old cars must have worked well for them as designed. Maybe not as quick as disc brakes but still the logic as to how the old system works seems pretty solid and simple, in theory.Can we hear from some guys whop did their brakes and have a great pedal? Do it half assed and you will have half assed brake performance. Do it right includes: Brake drum turned Shoes turned to properly fit the brake drums Proper adjustment tool to center and adjust brake shoe cleareance Proper clearance on shoe heel and toe Hydraulics done correctly including fresh rubber on the flex lines (or replaced with stainless flex lines) Master and wheel cylinders correctly bored, honed and surfaced with fresh rubber Brake lines and Tee fittings checked for cracks and leaks (If I was doing an full overhaul I would replace all with stainless and never half to deal with them again) Brakes properly bleed, with a consistent pedal height before final shoe adjustment If you use Dot 5 you won't have to deal with them for years. If you use Dot 3 you should do an annual fluid flush Quote
Dodgeb4ya Posted February 28, 2012 Report Posted February 28, 2012 Do as mentioned above, use USA parts, drive the car 500-1000 miles -recheck minor adjustment and you will find these brakes work and stop excellent. Arc the shoes properly-cannot say that enough. Quote
Bingster Posted February 28, 2012 Report Posted February 28, 2012 Glad to hear you guys chime in!! Quote
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