Rear brake shoe size

[professor229]

Ok... I am overthinking this again.... but ordered new shoes through Amazon.... and they will be delivered on Tuesday.... but let the paranoia set in.... As I read the forum this morning some of the posts said that most Rangers that are 4x2 (line my 2004) are 9" drums/shoes..... Well..... I actually went out and pulled the wheel and drum off the other day before I ordered and got out my tape measure to be sure.... and I have attached two pictures..... I measured the inside diameter of the drums and it was almost exactly 10 inches..... Please confirm..... PS..... My first car was a 1962 Chevy.... and I replaced the shoes on that several times and also replaced the shoes on a 1949 Ford rear end that I installed on my 1927 Chevy truck... I also have installed shoes several times in the 1960s-70s working for Texaco so this is not new to me... but haven't done it for years now....so I have watched the A1 You Tube video on this several times and the only thing "different" about all this is the self adjuster unit that looks fairly simple... Will do one side at a time and use the other side for reference to confirm everything and will have the video on my cell phone too and hit pause after each step... I even have the brake tools shown except for the spring compressor tool to remove the spring from the backing plate... but have used a regular pliers for this for years as well.... I should be OK... already had the drums off (to measure and take pictures) and blew out the dust (from a distance) so I should be all set..... am I missing anything? and have I got the concept right on measuring to make sure this Ranger requires 10 inch shoes? Please advise.. pictures attached......

And a PS.... why did some Rangers come with 10 inch instead of 9 inch? Was that a special order upgrade from the person who ordered the Ranger new?

As always... thanks for helping.....

 

[Uncle Gump]

You're measuring right... 10 inch drums. Be sure to have them turned... they look hot spotted. Also being from the rust belt... I'm gonna guess the self adjuster is seized... if you can get it apart... wire wheel it and lube it so it turn freely. Also the springs/hardware typically take a beating with the heat (not to mention salt). Be sure to inspect it all really well be for just putting it back on.

I'm not sure of a hard fast rule on what got 10 inch drums... but 8.8 rear end... 4x4.... trailer tow equipped vehicles seem to all have gotten 10 inch drums.

 

[professor229]

Hey... well first, thanks for confirming the size... I know that it makes sense but honestly, there always seems to be an exception to the rule... For whatever reason, Amazon had a set of Wagner 10" shoes for $17 delivered (prime) free.... they will be here on Tuesday.... and yes, they say "riveted" which is what I wanted...

I pulled both drums a couple weeks ago because of issues with the emergency brake and was advised by the local mechanic to pull the drums off both sides BEFORE trying to deploy the e-brake..... if you deploy the brake with the drums on, and it does not release, and the drums are now tight, you have a problem.... One side did deploy and release.. the other side did not and I found a bent sheathe and also a spring missing.... but, when I pulled the drum on the driver's side, one of the brake shoe pads fell to the ground... not riveted but "bonded" which I assume means "glued." So I mixed up some epoxy and cleaned up the back of the pad the shoe metal and clamped them together for the recommended time, and then I could NOT get the drum back on with the pad back in place... so I had to use the adjuster to narrow the distance to get the drum on and the adjusters worked easily.... so that is NOT a problem.... This is a $500 project vehicle and I have over 200 hours into it last winter to solve a whole bunch of problems although I did not touch the motor other than doing an oilf change... lots of interior cosmetics and also body work... brakes now, alignment, and heater fan switch... it's coming along but needs color sanding now... but all that is secondary to getting the rear brakes right so it can pull my small boat trailer to the lake and back.... It's been fun...

Thanks again for confirming the 10" drums... I got a little nervous when I read the forum comment about most XL two door Rangers having 9 inch brakes....

 

[professor229]

Hey..... Got up early and started the rear brake job at 5 a.m. to beat the heat... The flat rate book says 1.5 hours.... the flat rate book didn't take into account almost 20 years of rust..... I found a needle nose vise grip to work the best... I finally finished just short of three hours later.... Installing a "kit" with each assembly would really have sped up the process... If this was something other than a project grocery getter I probably would have installed new drums as well.. but on the test drive, it was all good.... The drums were cleaned up and then some minor grooves and restore was done with 120 grit sandpaper...

The next problem? I have driven Chevy trucks all my life and I am used to the annoying idler pulley squeal especially at low RPMs and idle... I have the same sound on this Ford 3 liter motor except it is not as bad. At first I thought it my be a wheel bearing but the annoying sound/squeal.... happens in first gear and when the tranny shifts to second gear, the sound disappears immediately... If it was a wheel bearing, it would still be howling.... I have not tried to listen for this idler sound in the engine compartment yet... but will get out the stethescope soon.... any other suggestions as to what the noise could be? Something else I should check? Was pleased with the rear brakes but it brought back a lot of memories... haven't done this kind of work for over 20 years.... so..... almost three hours of work and saved myself $165-$200 which were the two labor quotes....

Stay cool!!!

 

[superj]

no idea on the noise, my 3.0 hasn't given us any trouble except for the ac cutting out intermittently. my two wheel drive 04 ranger has the 8.8 also so i probably have the 10" drums too.

 

[Ranger850]

Cam syncro chirp?

04 3.0 chirping sound from back of engine - Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums

1983 - 2012 Ranger & B-Series - 04 3.0 chirping sound from back of engine - I thought it was the cam position sensor, but on the 4.0s that did this. I have a definite chirp from back there. (used a hose to trace the sound)

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