Who needs rear breaks?

[Ldoherty0603]

I didn't read the whole thing, just the first 5 posts or so. So far good advice given.

I would start by cracking a rear bleeder and hitting the pedal, see if you have fluid coming to the rear. The whole problem could be an obstructed line.

If that is OK, I would tear the brakes down and rebuild. New shoes, cylinders, and a a hardware kit, and adjusters if they don't come in the kit.

Buy these two tools, they are the best things ever for those stupid springs:

This one is for the springs that go to the anchor pin at the top, the round end with the lip is for removing, you just stick it over the pin and turn it, it will pull the spring off.

The small end is for installing, you hook it on the top of the pin, hook your spring over it and lift, it will put the spring on the pin for you.

This one is for all the horizontal springs, you hook one end in the shoe, pull the other end to where it goes with the hook. Works very nicely.

This guy is nice to have, but I've found it's job can be done just as well by a pair of needle nose pliers. It's for the round coil springs that hold the shoes to the backers.

When doing drum brakes, especially unfamiliar ones I like to take it apart piece by piece and lay it all out on the ground as if it were still on the car, so lay your springs out in their positions as you take them off.


Now, the most important thing to keep in mind, the Ranger uses a leading/trailing type drum brake. This means the front and rear shoes are different, and the springs will come apart if you put them in backwards (ask me how I know).

Anyway, there will be one shoe that is long and thin, and one that is short and thick. The short thick one goes towards the front. Very important to make sure that is done correctly. If you screw up just about anything else you won't be able to get it together, that part you can do wrong and not notice until you go down the road and you hear the noise from the adjuster pawl being shoved into the drum.


Also buy one of the big bottles of brake fluid, and then when you bleed the brakes do all 4 wheels until it comes out nice and clear, rather than brown or green. Brake fluid absorbs moisture over time and becomes corrosive. It's important to change it out every 3 years or so. Most people don't do it.

It sounds like this is something that is just gonna have to happen since I have never checked my brakes out before (mainly bc I thought they worked) Thank you to everyone who has put out info on this thread for me!!!!

 

[Andy D]

When I do drum brakes , I jack up both rear wheels and pull the drums, Then I replace one side at a time so I have a good one to compare to. Auto Zone will carry everything you need to to fix the brakes.So do all the other chains. I just use AZ because there is one within walking distance.

PS I use a Tabasco bottle 1/2 full of brake fluid and 2 feet of tubing to bleed brakes. Best pedal ever and it is a one person job.

 

[adsm08]

I have an idea here for a one-man pressure bleeder/brake flusher. I just need to find some parts to build it.

 

[hank857]

these things have self adjusting supposedly but they dont do a good job of self adjusting. Check to see if the brakes are in adjustment 1st, then if they are not adjust them mechanically. Then make sure you periodically run in reverse to get them to self adjust. Lift the rear end and spin the tires by hand, you should hear the brakes against the drum. If ya dont then either they are way out of adjustment or completly worn away and the only way to find out is to pull the wheel and then the drum for inspection. New drums are cheap as are the wheel cylinders and brake shoes.

 

[cp2295]

I would check and have a helper sit in the vehicle jack it up and have them press on the brakes and see if they work or not.

 

[Andy D]

I have an idea here for a one-man pressure bleeder/brake flusher. I just need to find some parts to build it.

My kit is just stuff I had around the house. I rigged 2 of them and bled both sides simultaneously. Between this method and using a gravity bleed to prove my hard line replacements, I get a much better pedal than when I did it with 2 people. If you have to resort to pressure, then there are still problems. is my take.

 

[harbt95]

The entire time I had my ranger it only had one rear brake. Never really thought about it because it kinda worked. I sold it and it hit me one day, that brake doesn't work right because you forgot to bleed the wheel cylinder after you blew it apart and put it back together, morel of the story always bleed your wheel cylinders. Lol


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