Brake advice on a 1996 chevy Silverado 4x4

The shoes I took off were equal in length. The ones I put on from autozone one was slightly longer than the other. I put the slightly longer one on the back. (On the drivers side it would be the one closest to the rear bumper. It is the one holding the emergency brake lever. My manual said nothign about different sized shoes.).

Can anyone tell me if I replaced the master cylinder after gettign the rear brakes in order if I have to have a scan tool to properly bleed the system?

stryped wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@l6g2000vbo.googlegroups.com:

Makes me wonder if the shoes on the other side are /also/ the same length, but are shorter than the ones on the side you're working on.

I've seen it before where some (even the pros) make the mistake of mixing up the shoes in that manner.

Normally, the front shoe is the "leading" shoe, and is longer than the rear, or "trailing" shoe.

snipped-for-privacy@l6g2000vbo.googlegroups.com:

I am wondering as well if this was screwed up my Midas. So by front, you mean the front of the vehicle? On the one side I replaced, the one that is about 1/4 inch longer in the packet I bought went to the back. (also the shoe the parking brake is attached to). WIll this cause problems? SHould I switch this? My manual is not clear on this. It is a 1996 chevy truck.

snipped-for-privacy@l6g2000vbo.googlegroups.com:

I found this link with a description of my brakes:

If you scrole down, i have the leading/trailing type of brakes. Not the duo servo.

I really appreciate it guys!

No that is incorrect. It is designed to have the rear shoe longer and the front shoe shorter. As you turn the wheel forward the longer shoe rotates until it is stopped by the anchor pin on which it pivots. The front shoe (is the shorter one) will cause the rear shoe to pivot into the drum surface. Most of the force against the drum is applied by the rear shoe being pushed into the drum by the front shoe.

-jim

stryped wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@f13g2000vbm.googlegroups.com:

The brakes will still work with the shoes in the wrong places, so it's not a disaster. But you really should get this rectified.

The lead/trail shoes I've seen are usually over an inch different from front to rear, so I don't quite understand why you're only seeing 1/4".

stryped wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@c22g2000vbb.googlegroups.com:

Link doesn't work. AZ just bounces me to a membership page.

>

It worked fine for me, Tegger...

"hls" wrote in news:UoCdndsY0dPRvmHWnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:

Are you already an AutoZone member?

Por supuesto... But you can enter as well.

I looked back into some reference material re drum brakes and in most cases they showed the rear brake shoe to be longer than the front one. The rear one, in these systems, is pulled into the drum surface and gives the most braking effect. This is with the anchor pin at the top of the assembly.

Now, Aarcuda and I have posted some things that seem to be at odds, but really they arent. If the brake cylinder were leaking when the OP pulled off the drum, then CASE CLOSED...this means that the cylinder has to be replaced or rebuilt. IF, however, he buggered the cylinder while trying to reassemble the system, and IF it leaked a little, this is not proof that the cylinder is bad.. BUT if he leaked a little fluid due to heavyhandedness, it IS an indication that he MUST bleed the loop. If fluid can come out, air can come in.

It is a darn shame that brakes, a subject that is not all that complicated, is causing this young man such concern. It is NOT that complicated, but you have to know what you are doing, and you have to do what is needed to attain a professional, or at least adequate, brake renewal.

I have known Aarcuda online for a number of years. If he says it, you'd better listen. But in this one case he and I differ, because I have seen so many heavy handed amateurs, when trying to reassemble a system, screw up the wheel cylinders and cause a temporary leak.

You dont want to cheat fate with brakes.

I just re-did the front brakes on our 2001 GMC Sonoma. It took me about 45 minutes to replace the pads on both sides. No leaks, no problem. But for the newbie, they never know what is imperative and what is procedural.

"hls" wrote in news:u9GdnV232--_0WHWnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:

Just did. Username "Tegger" already taken, so I'm "TheRealTegger".

I was assuming the opposite: pin at the bottom. OP has pin (plate) at bottom, so the front shoe would be the leading shoe.

It's also necessary to have sufficient mechanical aptitude to be able to think your way around a mechanism that you've never seen before.

I have a question for y'all what would cause my wheel cylinder to push one side out to far

The guide pin is sticking. Tear the caliper down, take it all apart and clean the pin and all of the moving parts of the caliper with steel wool until the rust is off, then put the Permatex high temperature caliper grease on and reassemble. If you keep the piston in place you might not even need to bleed it.

Some people will tell you that a squirt of WD-40 is all you need to free the pin up. These people are too stupid to live, and they won't live for long because their brakes will freeze up when they get hot. Don't mess with brakes, do it right.

--scott

The OP was May, 2010. Bad, wrong, worn parts.

The wheel cylinders are bran new