I am in the process of putting new shoes wheel cylinders an rubber brake lines on my goat, I have everything back together and the drums are real tight even with the adjusters all the in . My question is do I turn the drums (they are in real good shape) or take some meat of the shoes? I'ts been a long time since I did drum brakes ,we used to have the shoes arched but I've heard they don't do that anymore. any advice would be appreciated. Bill

I am in the process of putting new shoes wheel cylinders an rubber brake lines on my goat, I have everything back together and the drums are real tight even with the adjusters all the in . My question is do I turn the drums (they are in real good shape) or take some meat of the shoes? I'ts been a long time since I did drum brakes ,we used to have the shoes arched but I've heard they don't do that anymore. any advice would be appreciated. Bill

Sounds like you may need to back off the parking brake adjustment a little.Sometimes it gets adjusted a little tighter as the brakes wear and the self adjusters don't keep up with the slack.So in order for the parking brake to hold it gets adjusted tighter to compensate for the slack in the self adjuster.

chief I thought about that, but they are still tight with the parking brake disconnected.

Bill,
How tight do you mean? Can you turn the drum at all without the wheel on?
When I rebuilt mine (everything new including drums) they were pretty snug. When you put the wheel you should be able to turn them with one hand but they may not spin freely. They will likely need to be driven a couple miles for everything to get "seated".
FWIW, I would turn the drums to remove the glaze so they won't squeal and double check to make sure you got the right shoes.

hey bill, it sounds like you didnt back off the brake adjusters that the bottom of the brake shoes sit against. just back them off all the way slip the drum back on. you will find that they are now too loose, just adjust the adjuster out till you just hear the drums rub the shoes when you rotate the drum, hope this helps

thanks for your replys guys the drums are real tight can hardly get them on the adjusters are all the way closed the shoes seem just like the old ones except they have alot more meat on them, I guess I'll have the drums turned a little thanks again Bill

Bill
Before you turn the drums you can measure the lining thickness as per workshop manual

Thickness 0.196 " Primary
0.265 " Secondary
I would only turn the drums if they are scored , you may have to tke the linings to a brake shop and have them ground to suit the drums
Bob

Double check your assembly,it sounds like something is'nt seated or installed properly,most likely there is something causing interference somewhere.Or incorrect parts on it.Have had them where they were snug but not tight enough to keep it from turning at all.

Are the tops of the shoes in contact with the post on the top of the backing plate? If not your wheel cylinders may be frozen and not fully releasing the shoes.

Thanks for the replys again as to the wheel cylinders they are new and I can't see as they are the problem the shoes seem to be seated al right,I bought the shoes from OPG (I know thats the first mistake) they look just like the ones I took off except the primary has a lot more meat on it I'm thinking about going to the local parts house and buying another set of shoes , the ones from OPG are Delco so I thought they would right. Thats what I get for thinking. thanks again.Bill

the one thing that i've found usually causing this problem is the parking brake cable. make sure the p/brake asm is completely released before grinding on the shoes or turning the drums to make them fit in a situation like this.


mike

well I took the drums in and had them turned problem solved the guy at the machine shop said they were out of round . One thing though, I checked them with calipers old shoes 9.465 new shoes 9.515 so much for 9.5 inch brakes. thanks for all your help Bill