Front brakes drag a little

[fields_mj]

I noticed when I got my truck that the front brakes always drag just a little. The PO had just replaced the passenger side caliper and pads, and somewhere along the way home (1,000 miles from FL), the brake line developed a hole in it. Replaced the line, and then had some work done to the front end (ball joints and bearings). Along the way the mech bled my lines for me, and adjusted the rear brakes. I noticed before and after that the brakes drag a tad. When I jack the front end up, I can spin the tires, but there's resistance, and they only spin about half a turn when I stop. It looks like the caliper just never draws back in any. Pressure is released, but it doesn't move back into the housing, and so the pads drag on the disk.

Is there anything I can do to adjust/fix this? Will a hydroboost upgrade help?

Thanks,
Mark

 

[Goofyexponent]

Rempove the calipers by tapping out the pins. Clean the slots on the caliper and knuckle where the pins make contact. Grease with a synthetic grease and install the pins. The pins act as the "slider" bolts on a modern vehicle. I did it to my F250 about 2 months ago and it mde a world of difference!

 

[yARIC008]

Yes, grease the sliders and you'll be back in business. Seems people forget to do this when changing out the brake pads. You don't really have to do it if the little boot is fully intact but usually it's ripped or something.

 

[typ4]

Brake line or brake hose? Hoses can go bad and hold pressure, also the master cyl may not be releasing all the way, check for proper pushrod length.

 

[Goofyexponent]

Brake line or brake hose? Hoses can go bad and hold pressure, also the master cyl may not be releasing all the way, check for proper pushrod length.

Good point. The air over Hydraulic brakes on the 1979L9000 I driver did this. The hose desntigrates so that the pressure would go through to the caliper, but would not release immediatly. MAJOR PITA in my opinion!!!

 

[fields_mj]

Sorry, it was the brake hose, and the drivers side looks like it's in good shape. I've already had the pins out, cleaned everything up, and greased them. Sounds like its as good as it's going to get.

Thanks,
Mark

 

[cm1hedge]

Just remember, there will be a little drag on the rotors. Aslong as they aren't getting hot, I would say you should be OK.

 

[MUDKICKR]

what about the whl bearings? have you adjusted them or ckd the bearings themselves? if the whl bearings are to tight then that will make the whl drag. first off with the whl in the air spin the tire. then have someone push the brk pedal and release it. spin the tire again. if it still spins the same then open the bleeder screw on the caliper. if it spins better with the bleeder screw open then the hose is bad, if not then tighten the bleeder screw and remove the caliper. spin the tire again. if it still spins the same then whl bearings, if not then there could be a problem with the caliper. ck the brk slides and make sure they move good, also make sure the brk pads slide as well. push the caliper piston in with c-clamp, does it go in easy or hard? easy means its good, hard means its bad. if everything is good there then look at the master cyl for a problem.

 

[fields_mj]

Wheel bearings are new. I'm not convinced that the master cylinder is in such good shape. I have some other work that has to be done first, but some kind of hydroboost system is going to have to go in before too long anyway. So I'm not going to fool around trying to figure out if anything is wrong with the booster/MC.

Thanks!
Mark

 

[MUDKICKR]

just because the whl bearings are new doesnt mean that they arent the problem. they could be adjusted to tight. also brake booster only helps with the pedal effort, it wont do what you are talking about. putting this job off only to change to a different system isnt the best idea. fix the problem first, then modify the trk. you dont want to have to chase this problem down after spending the time and money converting it to hydroboost

 

[yARIC008]

just because the whl bearings are new doesnt mean that they arent the problem. they could be adjusted to tight.

Yup, I've had that before. There is a certain procedure that has to be followed when installing the bearings for them to work right. The easiest way to figure it out would be to just remove the wheel, remove the caliper and then spin the wheel and go from there.

 

[fields_mj]

I didn't explain myself very clearly. I had a mechanic replace the bearings when I first got the truck this summer. They were far enough gone that they had scored the spindles. The spindles weren't in terrible shape, but still they were scored. I didn't have the money to replace the spindles at the time. The mechanic was supposed to be replacing the ball joints, but he warned me up front that as he pulled the bearings out they may need replaced. Since I couldn't replace the spindles at the time, he took some emery cloth and crocus cloth and knocked the worst of the scoring out. Not long ago, while looking into this whole dragging issue, I had the pass side up on a jack, and the wheel off, and I noticed that there's a lot more play in that spindle than there should be. Since it was already well into the fall, I didn't bother checking the drivers side because I'm not going to do anything with them until then anyway. This spring I will be pulling the front end back apart and replacing the spindles, bearings (again, just because I have it apart), front drive shaft u-joints, and a new (used) 3.55 center chunk (Dana 50). Then I'll have someone swap out the rear diff with a set of 3.55s that I have for it (currently around a 4.56). Next on my list is a new IP and injectors. The truck has 170K on it right now, and I think they are the originals. Wish I could wait another year, and spend the $$ on some of the other stuff instead, but at 170K I figure it needs to be done. Somewhere in there, I will need new tires and when I do, I will be buying 4 new rims and a good set of stock tires. Total cost will probably be the same as what I would have to pay for a full set of the extra wide tires that are on it now. Then, after all that, I will be diving into the breaks. I think there are issues with the booster and master cylinder already, so I will be upgrading to a hydro boost AND replacing the M/C. If there are still issues with the breaks, I will deal with them at that point. After all that I figure I will have spent between $2500 and $3K on the truck, and that will have completely blown my budget for the year. Throw in a different front seat, and this truck better run like a champ for the next 10 years, or I'll have lost my rear end on it.