1963 front brakes not making contact with drums

S

Steve Edwards

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Apr 3, 2021
Thunderbird Year
1963
My front brakes, done by the previous owner, suck big time. My mechanic says the front shoes are only making about 25% contact on the drums. He said the machines that used to arc the pads to fit the drums are now illegal because of asbestos dust, and he doesn't have an answer on how to get normal brake action. It's so bad , with pulling about 30-45% to the right that I'm afraid to drive the car. Steve.
 

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Steve Edwards said:
My front brakes, done by the previous owner, suck big time. My mechanic says the front shoes are only making about 25% contact on the drums. He said the machines that used to arc the pads to fit the drums are now illegal because of asbestos dust, and he doesn't have an answer on how to get normal brake action. It's so bad , with pulling about 30-45% to the right that I'm afraid to drive the car. Steve.
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are you saying the shoes are improperly arched. i have never heard of that problem. most mechanics will know how to adjust drum brakes to make proper contact with drums if they are properly installed. i would buy new brake shoes and install them if they are not properly arched. otherwise you can adjust them out against the drum and then back them off equally on both front wheels and the car will stop straight
 
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57tbird57 said:
are you saying the shoes are improperly arched. i have never heard of that problem. most mechanics will know how to adjust drum brakes to make proper contact with drums if they are properly installed. i would buy new brake shoes and install them if they are not properly arched. otherwise you can adjust them out against the drum and then back them off equally on both front wheels and the car will stop straight<
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My classic car mechanic says the shoes need to be arched evenly to press against the drums, and there is no one who can properly do the arching due to the government's ban on asbestos.
 
If I remember correctly ( questionable ) the tolerances were much looser and especially before self adjusting brakes you needed to break them in and adjust frequently. Especially if the drums have been turned and the arch is no longer exact.
 
With the problem you are having I would get new shoes from a reputable supply house. Not finding someone to re-arch the shoe probably has less to do with asbestos and more to do with the fact front drums went out of fashion 50 years ago.
 
Recommending getting NOS brake shoes so you know they're right. I got my last set from these guys:

Home - NOS Parts

nospartsltd.com nospartsltd.com

Then with the drum off, take one of the new shoes and fit it inside of the drum. If there are gaps (i.e. only part of the shoe is touching the drum but most of it is not), then it may be the drum has been turned before to the point where it is out of spec, and you need a different set of drums.

My last brake job, I used bonded Centric aftermarket front brake shoes and the car chattered like mad when stopping. The NOS shoes are riveted and work great.
 
Nobody arcs brake shoes anymore, well - not totally true.
The driver does after a couple hundred miles of driving and braking; the shoes will naturally wear into a compatible arc. I've driven manual drum brake classic cars for 50 years with zero issues and no "pre-arcing" in the last 20.. In fact, drum brakes saved my life in 2016.

Sounds like your mechanic isn't all that familiar with drum brakes. First off (as stated above) have your drums checked to make sure the material is still within spec. If the drums are in spec and not out-of-round then quality shoes are available at all NAPA stores.
I've used their premium shoes and drums on dozens of classics with zero issues.

Next make ABSOLUTELY sure the shoes and springs are installed correctly. There are leading and trailing shoes and adjusters are NOT interchangeable side to side, most will have an L or R imprinted on them someplace. With good drums, quality shoes and a proper installation and adjustment NEITHER side should pull and neither side should have 75% of the shoe material NOT contacting the drums...

If one does pull its often deteriorated rubber brake lines that have "hour-glassed" internally, sometimes its a "stuck" wheel cylinder. Also cleanliness can NOT be overstated, any grease, etc. on the friction surfaces will cause poor braking on that side.
74 Harley said:
With the problem you are having I would get new shoes from a reputable supply house. Not finding someone to re-arch the shoe probably has less to do with asbestos and more to do with the fact front drums went out of fashion 50 years ago.
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True!

Finally - the shoes have to "slide" on the backing plate, they are usually raised pads that serve as slide points. (refer to linked video)..if these surfaces get worn enough the shoe can't slide and the brakes can "hang up" (they also need to be lubricated during re-assembly). In such cases welding more material on the pads and grinding them back will fix the problem.

Notice in the video there is no discussion of "pre-arcing" the brakes:

 
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I'm going to go 'old school'. First take a caliper to the drums and see if they are still in spec. They may have been turned too many times and need to be replaced. Then take the shoes and see how they fit into the drums. If the only contact is on the leading and trailing edges you can re-arch them yourself as they did back when. Just grind down those edges to match the circumference of the drum. That is what they did to re-arch the shoes as you can't bend the steel of the shoe to fit.
 
You may need to check the booster also, I used to daily drive a '61 and braking was never an issue. I was also young, stupid, and drove really fast.
 
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