Potential brake adjuster mod? Would this work?

[Slickster]

Just a thought on how to solve the brake adjustment woes on old mopars, adapt the outside portion of the anchor bolt with a slot in it for a flat blade screwdriver, or machined for an allen wrench or cut shoulders in it for an open end wrench, loosen nut, rotate bolt until shoes touch drum, back off until shoes are free, tighten nut...possible?

[Doug&Deb]

That would work. However it wouldn’t be as accurate as the proper tool. Also the shoes need arced to the drums. It’s worth trying though. These brakes are a bugger to adjust. 

[Sam Buchanan]

3 hours ago, Slickster said:

Just a thought on how to solve the brake adjustment woes on old mopars, adapt the outside portion of the anchor bolt with a slot in it for a flat blade screwdriver, or machined for an allen wrench or cut shoulders in it for an open end wrench, loosen nut, rotate bolt until shoes touch drum, back off until shoes are free, tighten nut...possible?

 

That's a pretty common mod, a set of Dodge brakes I salvaged had been modified with slots many years ago. I ground flats in my P15 anchor bolts so I could use a wrench. This makes it easier to tighten the nut without turning the bolt and messing up the adjustment.

 

 

 

But you still need to use a brake adjustment tool:

 

Edited November 14, 2020 by Sam Buchanan

[James_Douglas]

There was a company that made a kit that would do that. With a slot and also a cam in place of the spacer...I have one I got off ebay years ago...

[squirebill]

Do what they do on the front brakes.  They have a castle nut and a cotter pin.  Just means you don't torque it to the specified value but rather something less that would be tight but loose enough to turn the bolt from the back of the backing plate.  A hundred years ago I had a friend who was a front end and brake mechanic at a Firestone Tire and service shop who advised me of this modification back then and he had done it on many Mopar cars.  Requires cross drilling the rear bolts for the cotter pins and getting more  castle nuts like used on the front.  I did it on my '50 Plymouth back in the mid '60s and more recently on my B1B and '49 Plymouth Suburban.  Not something you use very often (how often do you adjust your brakes?) but makes life easy when you do.  Never had or used the special tool to adjust brakes.  Just spin the wheel, crank the adjuster til it binds, back it off til free, and go to the next adjuster.  Regards. 

[Dodgeb4ya]

In the 40's/ 50's a company made a self adjusting shoe anchor bolt kit.

The shoes automatically centered to the drums.

They worked good.

[desoto1939]

on my 39 Desoto the two bottom eccentric pins have the flats to accept and open end wrench. I think it is a 1/2 open wrench.

 

Also they had stamped in the arrows on each pin so you knew that when the arrows are pointing at each other then you are at the same contact point on each eccentric pin.

 

The flats permit you to roate the pin so you can make the shoe lining contact the ammco 1750 brake adjusting tool pin and or the contact point onthe miller MT19 Brake gage.

 

Rich Hartung

desoto1939@aol.com

[desoto1939]

with the tool being shown there is a  bend inthe flat part of the tool and then the 6 mil feeler gage is under the rolled peice. So how do you mic the drum with this tool it would seem that the top edgeof the flat black would be onthe inside of the drum and where you are setting the minimum space is not totaly way off the mark.

 

Do not understand how it works compared to the ammco 1750 brake tool.

 

Rich HArtung

desoto1939@aol.com

[Sniper]

You don't mic the drum.  You install the shoes with the adjusters backed off, put on the drum, adjust the adjuster so that a shoe just touches the drum, pull the drum, set the tool so that it just touches the high spot of the shoe then back off the adjuster so that a 6 mil feeler gauge just barely drags between the high spot of the shoe and the adjuster, then readjust the tool to just touch the shoe.  That's your setting for the tool, you'll roll it around both shoes and adjust them to just touch the tool.  That will set your major adjustment.  

[Slickster]

Man I thought I was going to revolutionize the process....still seems like a really good way to get an effective brake adjustment without the not-available, costly special tools...

[Sam Buchanan]

7 hours ago, squirebill said:

Do what they do on the front brakes.  They have a castle nut and a cotter pin.  Just means you don't torque it to the specified value but rather something less that would be tight but loose enough to turn the bolt from the back of the backing plate. 

 

I thought the castle nuts and cotter pins on the front anchor bolts are because they're part of the attachment of a front suspension member.....wouldn't want those to come loose.

[squirebill]

True and good point.  The manual specs the torque @ 55-75 ft. lbs.  I'm saying lube the anchor bolt  it's full unthreaded length (to prevent rusting and seizing) and torque it to the low end of the torque spec.  Frankly, I have never been able to fit a socket and torque wrench to properly torque the nut/bolt assembly.  So as I said, tighten the nut/bolt assembly  until secure.   Install the cotter pin.  This would prevent the nut from loosening.  So no worries.   On the rear brake anchor bolts, no suspension member and again no worries.   

[Dodgeb4ya]

You might need to Arc the shoes before attempting to use the .006" feeler gauge.

I drop the shoes into each drum and see how much of the lining doesn't touch the drum surface.

Each shoe needs to just about perfectly fit tight to the drum (90%+ contact) for a high solid pedal after complete proper major shoe adjustments.

Edited November 15, 2020 by Dodgeb4ya