Dragging Front Drum - 69 Charger R/T

[EddieE]

I had an interesting conversation at Carlisle yesterday with a brake expert. I think his name was Wayne but I could be wrong. I remember his company is out of Texas and they are brake specialists. I told him that I had a chronic dragging problem with my left front 3" wide drum. All parts are new, including the drums. No power brakes. I switched the drums from side to side and the dragging problem stayed at the left front.

I showed him a picture of the setup, and he stopped me immediately and told me that I had the wrong shoes. When I asked him why, he said "because they're blue, and they're aftermarket." He told me that a few companies had tried to improve the poor stopping performance with bonded shoes, and that they had a lot of problems with dragging. He told me to find reman original shoes with rivets and he was quite certain that would solve the problem. He said it won't stop very fast either way.

Has anyone received this same advice or learned this from experience? I don't doubt him at all. I actually had to wait in line for about 10 minutes just to talk to him, and he was handling some extremely detailed questions.

Also, where should I go to get the original remans with rivets? When I asked if he sold the shoes, he said "No, you don't need to get them from me, just make sure they have rivets and you'll be fine."

Thanks.

 

[67 coronet]

most draging shoes are caused by the contact points of the shoes to the backing plate being ruff or very dirty and not lubed during assembly.i have been in the auto repair industry for 27 plus years and can not think of one way a riveted shoe vs a bonded shoe could cause a minor drag.its all in how the shoe releases.

 

[kiwigtx]

I had new brake shoes installed on all 4 wheels for my Dodge A100. My brake guru (Dr Phil) wasn't 100% happy with the new repro shoes, but he worked with them. Basically he had to mate the shoes to the drums - worked the edges so that the contact and radius was perfect all the way around the shoe face. You cannot just install new brake shoes, and expect them to be correct without any checking/modification. Rivet or bonding - makes no difference as long as the braking material is securely fastened to the backing plates. It also helps if all brake components are functioning correctly - springs, spacers, wheel cylinders etc.

BTW...the brakes on my little pickup are awesome, and stop well - even with no power assist. :headbang:

 

[BeastlyBirdie]

Kiwi is right, so is 67. But, to play devil's advocate, you are sure its the brake, right? You have pulled the drum, compressed the shoes, then put drum back and made sure it was free... I'd also pull it apart and lube all the pivot points, brainfade, the gray stuff.....make sure the cylinder is retracting, etc.

 

[Propwash]

Have you tried getting the car off the ground and adjusting the star adjuster till it doesn't drag? Is the adjuster working properly? If it's an auto adjuster, make sure the metal tab that the teeth on the star adjuster grab on to is not worn (if reused) or aligned/installed correctly. Sometimes the cheap new/aftermarket tabs need to be bent a little to actually make contact and work. Also, was the adjuster installed in the right direction? Just throwing it out there.

 

[BeastlyBirdie]

And the adjuster is in the right way. Don't ask how I know....lol.

 

[Cranky]

Many good suggestions here. Drum brakes are something I generally use. Something many people miss are the return springs. Are they strong enough to pull the shoes back? And sometimes it doesn't matter if they are new. They won't do the job if they are not at least strong enough to do the job. Also, drum systems are supposed to have a pressure residue valve in the master to keep some pressure in the lines to keep air from leaking in from the wheel cylinders and if one side has weak springs, it can drag because of that. You might try swapping them to see if it makes a difference.

 

[WileE]

Besides the excellent points already mentioned... why would a brake company not want to sell you the "correct" shoes, as he says ? ... just scratchin' my head....

 

[EddieE]

Thanks for the responses. Maybe you guys can tell me from these pics if I'm missing something that would cause this...



The 69 Charger R/T's don't have adjusters on the brakes as far as I know just wider 3" shoes. As far as the guy selling shoes (reminds me of Al Bundy) I guess maybe he just brought the big hard-to-find stuff to the show.

Does this setup look legit?

 

[BeastlyBirdie]

Looked at a set that came off my 69 RR, looks the same, however, 2 main things.
1- on one side, the star sits to the right, the other sits to the left. They're off the car, so , sorry I couldn't be more useful.
2-they're blue. Holy crap are they blue. Like phord blue.
BTW, mine are older than dirt and are bonded.....

 

[Propwash]

Good point on the springs. From your pics, your star adjuster is in backwards. Also, how is the brake line into the wheel cylinder? New/old? A restricted/collapsing brake line can cause a brake to drag.

Here's a snapshot from the FSM

 

[EddieE]

I'll switch that adjuster around and see if helps. If it still drags, I'm going to take the shoes off and switch then with the right front. I've already switched the drums (they're new) and the drag remains on the driver's side. Am I wrong to think maybe they just need a few hundred miles to seat themselves? I don't have the experience to shave the shoes to make them an exact fit.

 

[67 coronet]

if they are rubbing dont wait,may not be as simple as need to break in.with your drums off you can push your brakes a bit towards the front and then towards the back to see if they are sticking on the backing plate.with your hands,pushing on the shoe surface.they wont move a bunch,but should nove enogh to tell they are smooth.also,shorter shoe should be forward,dont look like that in your pics.make sure to flop that adjuster as well.

 

[EddieE]

The shoes do make that slight counter-clockwise shift going forward...that's when they seem to lock up.

My brother said to drive everywhere in reverse for about 1,000 miles and that will help them to seat correctly. Is it OK to beat your little brother up if he is 46?