What brakes do you suggest?

[TygreII]

I have the one ton with the single rear wheels. I had one of the rer wheels fall off a little bit ago. Things had to be put on hold until a paycheck.
Now I'm looking at replacing these things:
1. Brake drums (the one was damaged)
2. Pads (nothing was left when I pulled the drum)
3. Springs, self adjusters and all that. (I found broken parts and frozen adjuster)
4. Wheel lug studs on both sides. (lost 7 of 8 on the one side. )

What I'm looking for is any advise on good brands and /or places for these parts that won't cost me my first born and a leg.

 

[Rdnck84_03]

For all of the brake parts I have had good luck with O'Reilly, brake best select. They have a master hardware kit that has all springs, and adjuster in a set.

The wheel studs I haven't had much luck from anywhere. Have had several over the years that would stretch before even reaching torque spec.

James

 

[TygreII]

I can buy through work and get a NAPA discount that brings me down to $340. Otherwise NAPA costs me $450+. I was looking at Rock Auto ($270).

 

[Nero]

I personally would avoid rock auto, seems as of late the quality has gone down.

I've always used Napa ultra premium, matter of fact that's what is currently on my truck, both drums and rotors. No issues in years.

 

[u2slow]

Rockauto doesn't control quality - that's up to the individual brand you choose.
I get most of my brake parts from rockauto over the past 15 years.

More important than the brand is your install/setup, and recognizing when certain parts (like the hub itself) are damaged/worn.

 

[TygreII]

I guess that i'm most concerned about the studs. I know that i'm replacing all of them on one side. Should I be doing the other side for good measure?

Thanks u2slow. Its got 250k miles on it, so a good once over is almost a must. It spent most of its life as a ranch truck hauling horses, so I don't think it was babied.

 

[Rdnck84_03]

Ended up going to ford to get the one's I put in my wife's truck. Replaced from parts house first, broke one before it even hit torque. If I remember correctly they were pricey, but when I torque them I don't get that spongey stretching feeling that the aftermarket did.

James

 

[u2slow]

@Tygrell the last studs I bought were Raybestos brand. No issues with them. They were however a Chevy application that I used on my Dodge.

 

[Austin86250]

I personally would avoid rock auto, seems as of late the quality has gone down.

i agree i haven't had the best luck lately, like someone else said they don't control quality but they are still selling it!

i had o riley turn my drums and im running rockauto shoes and so far so good 3 thousand miles strong

 

[Rdnck84_03]

They were however a Chevy application that I used on my Dodge.

Well at least you found something a Chevy is good for.

James

 

[CDX825]

I buy name brand parts from Rock Auto. Never had any issues and I have been ordering from them since 2012.

 

[bulletpruf]

For something like this, I'm with CDX825 - name brand stuff from Rock Auto.

 

[The_Josh_Bear]

I like getting stuff like brake hardware from a local spot so that WHEN it's got a QC issue you can just drive back and swap it out or do whatever in person, rather than have to wait for shipping with Rockauto or other online retailers.

My last pair of rear shoes from NAPA were super strange, they looked fine but bit WAY too hard and locked up all the time with very little pressure. I thought it was all kinds of things and eventually switched to some Orielly shoes and they work fine. It's anecdotal but makes me a little weary of NAPA hardware. They had declining product quality over the last 7-10 years. Not sure where it's at now. But Orielly has seemingly gone the other direction and has better quality in general in my experience.

Also from your first post it sounds like you're only buying one drum, but definitely replace drums in pairs. They will last forever anyway so it's better to get them both going the same distance than one going halfway and quitting.

 

[TygreII]

I bought NAPA drums and shoes from work (dicount). and a harware kit from o'reilys. I also got 16 lug studs.
My thought is this: If I had problems with one side's studs, I'm not going to trust the other's either.
Yes I bought 2 drums for the very same reason as Josh Bear stated.
Right side is done, tomorrow is the left side.
Even though the holes do not seem to be ovaled out, should I trust the rim of the tire that decided to jump off the truck and go rolling out on its own?

 

[The_Josh_Bear]

If it looks ok and mounts square I'd run it and have someone follow to see if it wobbles or anything. Other than that it sounds like the wheel did it's job just fine.