Joe makes a good point about the glazing. I'd scuff the shoes with some 80 grit sand paper. Before you do, though, look at the wear/glaze pattern on the shoes. Does it look like they are contacting the drums uniformly along the circumference of the shoes, or do you see wear just at the ends or only along a portion of the linings? Back in the olden days when I worked at a garage, we did a lot of brake work. We would turn the drums, then mic their diameter and arc the shoes to match. ( We actually installed our own riveted linings. ) If the shoe arc is too large, the shoes only contact at the top and bottom, making them less efficient. If the arc is too small, they will only contact along a portion of the shoe's length, which can cause them to "cam" against the drum, resulting in grabbing and not fully releasing. Are you confident the parts house gave you drums/shoes specified for YOUR car, and not just "the closest thing they could find"?
Also, how did you go about adjusting the brakes when you installed them? You should adjust the star adjuster until the wheel locks up and can't be turned, then back off until you can turn the wheel by hand, but still hear/feel a slight dragging of the shoes against the drum.
Hey guys, long time since, I have a couple of updates that won't all be necessarily be touching up on my last point, but are sure to spark up interest.
To start off, I bought a 1963 Falcon Futura- no this does not mean I am forgetting about my comet, in fact, I bought this car thinking about my kick ass of a car. You see, the Futura I bought does not in fact does not have a futur-a (hahahaha, see what I did there, no? okay),the chassis and body is rotted beyond belief. So why did I buy it? Well, the car had one of the cleanest interiors I've (relatively) seen for what the car itself looks like. I am talking all original upholstery, trim, accessories, glass- you name it, it has it. The wiring harness is complete and in good condition, it has both transmission and engine components that I need. It even has all emblems, exterior trim , rims, and ORIGINAL JACKSTAND. It's probably not big of deal to y'all, but I personally find it kinda awesome. I'm not sure on why the old man who originally had it sat it down at 38,000 miles, but, it was clear to me that he mightve had intention to restore the car at one point. He bought new weather gaskets that should pretty much match up to mines, and a couple of other things here and there. I am just happy I now have a variety of parts I needed.
So where do I go from here? Well, I am going to exchange a couple of parts over to the comet: steering wheel (after restoring it), the radio, weather molding, transmission tube, rearview mirror, ignition switch, etc. And I will be selling whatever is left over.
Apart from that, what am I doing?
Well, I am not sure, I mean I know what I am doing, I just don't know what order I should take.
There is two main areas of focus as of now. Front brakes and frame. Now, after some inspection, we were able to deduce that the shoes were riding on the inner lip of the drums. Have I taken the time to fix it? Not really, after the brakes locked up, the drums hardened up from the heating, obtaining a blue tint, meaning that the brakes cannot be turned, and in itself I will have nothing but heat fade when braking. So what am I going to do?
Well, I've been working for a while so I am able to afford front disk brakes. I am also available to buy a welding set up if wanted. Both at the same time. However, since I am currently at automotive school, snap-on is offering a go big deal, worth around 18,000 but being sold at 6,500. I know that not every tool I will own needs to be snap on but I'd be having lifetime warranty on what not on tools and a tool box. I know I won't need all tools starting off, but I am striving to become a technician within a couple months of graduating and would eventually need them. Im not sure on how I feel, but I guess I just wanted to get some advice from yall since it is a tempting choice. Please let me know what yall think.
As is that isall I wanted to say for the night, please let me know how yall feel.
buy the tools. The tools will bring a job. The job will bring income. The income will bring you resources to fix your comet the way you want. The tools will help you repair the comet, too.
) If the shoe arc is too large, the shoes only contact at the top and bottom, making them less efficient. If the arc is too small, they will only contact along a portion of the shoe's length, which can cause them to "cam" against the drum, resulting in grabbing and not fully releasing. Are you confident the parts house gave you drums/shoes specified for YOUR car, and not just "the closest thing they could find"?
