35 Terraplane rear brake adjustment

35 Terraplane

Hi Everyone,
After finishing the rear bearing & seals and putting the drum back on I checked the clearance between the shoes and drum thru the inspection hole in the drum.  With the star wheel all the way in was getting 0.010 on the upper rear shoe and about .10 on the front lower shoe.  Took it for a test drive and noticed the car pulling to the right when I applied the brakes.
Got home struck my finger thru the slots in the wheel and the drum was hot.  Checked the other three drums and they were cool to the touch.  Took the drum off and had my wife push the brake pedal.  Only the upper rear shoe moves.  The ends of the shoes do not touch evenly on the anchor pin.  The manual all in caps says don't adjust the anchor pin unless necessary.  Any suggestion on possible problem OR solutions.  Was wondering it the anchors pin needs cleaning and lubrication.
Tried to attach a video clip but it was too large.
Any help is greatly appreciated.  
Tom

farmermike

Tom,

When I redid my seals and brakes on my 35 T it also pulled to one side. I was able to adjust the shoes via the star wheel and have it braking quite well for a cable brake car. Did you replace the shoes? If not, did you clean the shoes to get most of the oil and/or dirt out of them?

Did you get the drums turned? Mine needed it as you could feel the pedal pulse while braking. Keep in mind these steel drums will not be able to be turned at your local tire/brake shop. Their equipment is meant for cast. Take the drums to a fab or welding shop that has a lathe. Make sure they know to place a band around the drum as it will keep the drum from chattering while it is being trued.

 If the seal leaked oil on the shoes it is almost impossible to get it cleaned. If dirty that can be a real problem with pulling. Most of the time the problem with brakes pulling to either side is the front brakes. Another idea would be to back the shoes off on the drum that got hot. Make the other wheels do more of the work.

When jacked off of the floor do both of the front wheels turn with the same effort? If you lock the brakes while they are elevated can you turn either one or do they both lock up the same?

I also thought about adjusting the anchor pins but as you noted, the manual is very clear, DO NOT ADJUST THE ANCHOR PINS!  Not sure what the big deal is but they got my attention. 

What I did was drive a short distance and apply the brakes.  Pull off the road and adjust the star 2 or 3 clicks and test it again. After awhile I was able to get the car to stop in a pretty straight line. The manual should give you general instructions on how to proceed.

Not sure if this helps but it worked on my car. And I did not touch the anchor pins.

Mike

Uncle Josh

Well, that was before the generic brake shoes you get these days, where the half-circle for the anchor pins is lower.  Walt Mordenti highlights the problem and the solution in his tech booklet.  if the pin is not concentric with the shoes, you have to move it, like loosen the nut, take up the shoes and tap it with a hammer.  If that doesn't lower the pin enough, you have to grind .050 out of the bottom of the pin slot.  Just had to go thru that on a 47.

35 Terraplane

Thanks Larry
I bought Walts Tech Tips a few years back.  Forgot he had the write up on the 35 brakes. Just read thru this Tip.  Didn't see anything about grinding the anchor pin hole out in Walt's TIP but I think I get the idea.  When I pulled the drum off again I noticed the blue spring toward the rear appears slightly smaller than the black spring toward the front.  I plan to take them off and test with a spring scale to see how much force is required to pull each say 1/2" to see if they have different spring rates. The springs are also anchored in a different holes on the shoes.  Could be the last person who did the brakes on this car didn't have the correct springs.  I have four brake springs I bought 4-5 years ago off Ebay that were sold as 35 Terraplane brake springs.  You know, just in case I ever needed them.  They appear to be the same as the black spring toward the front.  Will test these as well and see how they compare to what is currently installed.  
Thanks again,
Tom

farmermike

Uncle Josh,
Great information. I had my shoes relined by Paul Shuster so did not go the generic shoes route.