69 Front Drum Brake Guts Pic 1/2 ton 2WD

[Gregski]

could someone please show me a pic of the components of the front drum brake setup, I am piecing together a 1969 GMC 1500 six lug two wheel drive and believe I am missing the adjustment

I searched the forum and found some good stuff but the pics were of the rear setup with the parking brake linkage and components and I would really appreciate a pic of the front setup so I can compare apples to apples

here are the pictures of what I saw when I removed the driver side drum, I believe not only am I missing some pieces but the star adjustor thingie is facing the wrong way as well as the spring above it, please feel free to correct me

My Driver Side Pics Shown Below

[Gregski]

just for completion here are the pics of my passenger side as well

same story here, some parts are missing, and if I go to source them from my random parts pimp I need to know exactly what I am looking for otherwise I am bound to come away with wrong parts dug out of his miscellaneous piles

I don't know much but I don't agree with the way that spring hugs the star adjuster wheel thingie

[aerotest]

Here’s some pics

[Gregski]

Originally Posted by aerotest

Here’s some pics

Thank you, anyway you can post pics of the other side, the driver side?

[aerotest]

You are missing the adjuster mechanism. It mounts under the spring retainer on the rear brake pad or the right side and under the forward pad on the left side. You star adjuster is in the correct position on the left side but backward on the right side.

[Gregski]

Originally Posted by aerotest

You are missing the adjuster mechanism. It mounts under the spring retainer on the rear brake pad or the right side and under the forward pad on the left side. You star adjuster is in the correct position on the left side but backward on the right side.

Thank you

[3757chevy]

upper springs appear to be wrong as well.

[Gregski]

Originally Posted by 3757chevy

upper springs appear to be wrong as well.

Wow, I think you are right!

[3757chevy]

Napa United brake part #'s 2201 maxi pack and 80659 LH and 80660 RH adjuster kits will give you everything you need to get it right,hope that helps.

[Gregski]

Originally Posted by 3757chevy

Napa United brake part #'s 2201 maxi pack and 80659 LH and 80660 RH adjuster kits will give you everything you need to get it right,hope that helps.

Awesome, thank you so much, I am going to post the pics of those kits here just to help others as well

[bbrriiaann1973]

May I say the amount of money to fix and maintain drum brakes is not even close to the ease of adding 5 lug disc brakes.

I have a 70 c10 2wd that has drum brakes and converted to disc brakes

[Gregski]

Originally Posted by bbrriiaann1973

May I say the amount of money to fix and maintain drum brakes is not even close to the ease of adding 5 lug disc brakes.

I have a 70 c10 2wd that has drum brakes and converted to disc brakes

disc brake conversion is definitely something in the works, I am just looking for a limp along solution for now as I need to take care of other things on the truck first, I do plan on keeping the six luggers though, ha ha

[bbrriiaann1973]

Ok

[Steeveedee]

The parts are correct if one doesn't have automatic adjusters. You can tell by looking at the teeth on the adjuster wheel. They are much coarser than the self-adjusting brake wheel's teeth.

[Gregski]

Originally Posted by Steeveedee

The parts are correct if one doesn't have automatic adjusters. You can tell by looking at the teeth on the adjuster wheel. They are much coarser than the self-adjusting brake wheel's teeth.

Hmmm, so the plot thickens, are you telling us that there are two correct configurations for front brake drums on these half ton trucks? One is a manual setup such as mine, and the other is the self adjusting setup?

[Steeveedee]

Yup. Also, with the manual adjusted brakes, the spring is supposed to be on the star wheel so that it doesn't rotate. This is the opposite of automatic adjusting brakes. Reference page 5-39 of the FSM. '70 is the same as '69, and the manuals were graciously uploaded by one of the members for reference.

[davidh]

Well I started to attempt replacing my wheel cylinders and came across one of my shoes that had come off the rivets. I put them on as they were before. After reading this however I believe it was mentioned the shoe with more material goes on the back side. Can anybody verify if the rest of this is set up OK? 1967C 10

[davidh]

What came off. The drums feel like they were recently turned there’s no grooves or deep ridges.

[Steeveedee]

Remember it as Big shoe goes in the Back. So, your shoes are not properly installed.

Could be worse. When I worked the parts counter many years ago, some guys bought new shoes and put them on. They they came back complaining that the second set was too wide. They had installed the rear shoes on the front. Rear shoes were 1-3/4 and the fronts were 2-1/2 inches. They looked at each other sadly when they realized that they'd have to do the fronts again. Though how they didn't notice how skinny the shoes were compared to what came off.

[davidh]

Originally Posted by Steeveedee

Remember it as Big shoe goes in the Back. So, your shoes are not properly installed.

Could be worse. When I worked the parts counter many years ago, some guys bought new shoes and put them on. They they came back complaining that the second set was too wide. They had installed the rear shoes on the front. Rear shoes were 1-3/4 and the fronts were 2-1/2 inches. They looked at each other sadly when they realized that they'd have to do the fronts again. Though how they didn't notice how skinny the shoes were compared to what came off.

Thank you for the help.