Can I change a rear cylinder in a parking lot?

[basilbowman]

Both of mine are leaking and making the brakes seize up - can I do it at college without a shop? The garage wants $275 to change both rear cylinders and I'm reluctant to pay $255 worth of labour to change two ten dollar parts. I've got my tools here, but I don't have a shop. I've not done it before, but they already had the wheels off and the axle unbolted, so it's all broken loose already. Does anyone know of a writeup or something I can look at to tell how hard of a job it is? Thanks,

-N

 

[Clayton]

It should take longer to jack it up and get the wheel and drum off provided the brake line isn't seized into the cylinder. Pretty simple job but you may wanna soak the backside in pb blaster overnight.

 

[MR.T]

Suggest offering some bucks to someone at the college that's more experienced, and maybe with access to shops on campus.

 

[basilbowman]

Wonder if Shadetreemechanic wants to show me how to do it and pocket the cash... I should ask

 

[Michael Fowler]

WHEEL cylinders? I thought you were talking engine cylinders. Whew--wheel cylinders are much easier!
Pretty simple:
1) Jack up and remove road wheel, brake drum and brake shoes.
2) Disconnect the brake line from the wheel cylinder--use a flare nut wrench on the brake line fitting.
3) Remove the bolts that retain the wheel cylinder and lift away.

Reassembly is the reverse + bleed the brake lines.
No need to remove the axle from the vehicle.
Check your work and STAND on the brake pedal with the engine running before driving. best to find the leaks that way.

 

[basilbowman]

Cheers. I figure it'll cost me about fifty bucks to do the cylinders, shoes and go buy a set of flare nut wrenches to replace the ones I left up at home. Is it worth two hundred bucks to have to deal with brakes is the question? How dirty do I want to get ?

 

[basilbowman]

I read somewhere that you can do it without pulling the shoes off. Is that true? How about the bearings - are they sealed or do I need to go buy grease? I've never done anything on this rear end, up till now it's all been up under the hood or in the cab - can you tell?

 

[Black dawg]

if the shoes are saturated enough to be grabby, they need to be replaced also.

 

[basilbowman]

Just the one grabbing occasionally, but the garage I took it in to said the shoes didn't need to be replaced

 

[DeepRoots]

my friend Derrick once changed a cylinder head and a turbo on a big cam cummins on a side street in Camden Nj. I'm sure you can change a wheel cylinder.

 

[basilbowman]

That's my thought, but I'm really not sure if I can swing the time. How long can I drive on it? Can it last until I get it home next weekend (250~miles)?

 

[Black dawg]

are you sure the wheel cylinders are leaking and not the wheel seals? brake fluid very rarely makes shoes grabby, but gearlube almost always does.

 

[Clayton]

How badly is it leaking, Is it running down the wheel?

 

[basilbowman]

It's not leaking bad enough to run down the wheel. I'm going on what Harold, my guy at the garage, told me as far as how bad it actually is - but I'm ok with trusting his assessment that the cylinders are bad but not totally shot. Also, when I went to pick it up, he said that one of the grease ports (I still don't know if these bearings are sealed, need to be packed, or are lubed with tranny fluid) was kind of wet, so that's probably where my grabbing is from. Without pulling a wheel I'm not sure what "kind of wet" means, but I'm feeling like it wasn't pouring out or he'd have made a bigger deal out of it. My hope is to baby it home and throw it up on the lift and deal with it there, does that seem like a reasonable idea?

 

[flareside_thun]

If you're comfortable driving that distance, then give it ashot....just be prepared to use your e brake. That price quote seems a little much for a job that takes less than an hour.....yes, they can be swapped out withiut pulling the shoes....just get it home and take your time, doing it one side at a time.