78’ FJ55 brake bleeding issues (1 Viewer)

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New cylinders are notorious for having too narrow of slots. I file the slit wider to fit, thinking that with regular driving and maintenance, I should be replacing shoes more than wheel cylinders.
 
Tanked the old cylinders…..they are TEQ
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Man I really don’t want to take a file to the new cylinders. @Skreddy is your reasoning because you will have to file down every subsequent set of shoes you throw in rather than filing down the slots once and be done with it for eternity?

I might just take a mm off both sides of the raised spot on the shoes unless someone tells me that’s a bad idea.
 
Man I really don’t want to take a file to the new cylinders. @Skreddy is your reasoning because you will have to file down every subsequent set of shoes you throw in rather than filing down the slots once and be done with it for eternity?

I might just take a mm off both sides of the raised spot on the shoes unless someone tells me that’s a bad idea.
That’s exactly it. But sanding the shoe is pretty quick too.
 
Pig rear shoes are different from 40 shoes. Bigger i think. So are the rear cylinders. I think. Found that out when i tried rebuilding my original rear cylinders.
 
@Pighead any idea off the top of your head if OEM shoes for our 55’s are available? Just thought I’d ask even though I’m gonna call first thing tomorrow
 
@Pighead any idea off the top of your head if OEM shoes for our 55’s are available? Just thought I’d ask even though I’m gonna call first thing tomorrow
No idea, i went to rear discs long ago.
 
Shoes for FJ40 and FJ55 appear to be the same, according to the parts list.

Wheel cylinders are likely different. I recall my FJ40 rear cylinders are 7/8" and your picture shows 15/16"


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It appears shoe kits may still be available. The original part no. 04494-60010 has been superceded, see below.
Shoe Kit Drum Brake
Part Number:
04494-60011
Replaces: 04494-60010, 04495-35010, 47410-35010, 47410-35011, 47410-35012, 47410-60010, 47410-60011, 47431-35010
MSRP $117.43
$81.19



I had the same problem with the wheel cylinder slot being too narrow to match the end of the shoe. I found some aftermarket wheel cylinders that had the same threads as the OEM cylinders, and I was able to swap the threaded pieces to maintain the proper fit of the shoes.

Note that the shoes have those indexing tabs to ensure you assemble the shoes on the cylinders correctly. I consider that a 'safety feature' and I'd recommend opening up the slot as opposed to grinding off the tabs on the shoes.

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@73FJ40 thank you for the wealth of info. And for answering another question I had in the back of my head in regards to which part to file down and the safety risks associated with filing down one or the other.

I’ll see if I can order OEM shoes tomorrow. Test fit em’ next week and if I’m still having the issue I’ll go with OEM shoes and file down the cylinders.

Appreciate everyone’s help on this. Had no idea it would be such a pain in the a*%!

Pigheads disc’s are looking really good about now..
 
OEM shoes won’t solve this because the OEM cylinders had the wide ramped slots and corresponding shoes to fit. I recommend just replacing the narrow slot adjustment screws in your new cylinders with the original TEQ screws from your original cylinders. It’s a fine solution to this common problem. You’re all set.
 
OEM/TEQ screws are a larger diameter than the after market ones so the don’t work. Already tried that work around. Good idea however.
 
The width of the shoe 'foot' widened when Toyota superceded the part number, so all modern OEM and aftermarket shoe kits will have the wider foot. Unfortunately the Japanese cylinder manufacturers make them for the original dimension, they didn't catch on to the supercession.

If you have original shoes, you can have them re-lined. You can quickly/easily open up the groove on the wheel cylinder or narrow up the foot on the shoe.
 
Thanks Kurt! You guys (cruiseroutfitters) have been awesome through this entire process. These piggies are just a different breed. I’m leaning towards opening up the slot on the cylinder like Skreddy says he does. Hopefully I can get this buttoned up this weekend.
 
Hello everyone question about a brake booster adjustment tool. I’ve been eyeing this one on Amazon but wanted to see if anyone has had any luck with it specifically.

I filed down the slot on the rear brake cylinders as multiple people suggested to get the shoes to seat correctly, put on the new drums and was able to get the rears to lock up adjusting all the way out. I think the old drums were past the point of no return. Bled the brakes again and still have a very soft pedal. It’s a bit better but not really even close. So I figured I’d look at the booster adjustment then bleed again. Hopefully the link below works for folks.

 
FWIW had same issue when my 40 had drums in the rear, I chose to widen the slot. Dress & grease the adjusters so they work easy. Remember to adjust with wheels bolted on.
 
Sorry everyone, I have another question. Would a bad brake booster and/or a bad check valve allow air into the brake lines? The booster is the only component of my brake system other than the hard lines themselves that I have not replaced.

Im trying to visualize this and for whatever reason I can’t. Maybe because I’ve never seen the inside of a brake booster or replaced a booster or a check valve.

I couldn’t resist trying to bleed the brakes again this morning. I bled each wheel 4 times and every single time had zero bubbles when I moved on and then had bubbles when I returned.

Still have not checked on adjustment of booster rod to master cylinder as I’m waiting for the SST. Is this an air entrance source as well if not adjusted correctly?
 
Thank you @B y r o n

How about an incorrectly adjusted booster rod to master cylinder?

An incorrect booster rod would only change how the movement of the brake booster would be. Not close enough, less brake master movement, to close would simply not allow enough rearward movement.

The order you are bleeding the brakes or a bad connection would be more likely to leave air in the system.
 
Understood and thank you again @B y r o n.

On the 78’ 55 the farthest wheel away from the brake master is the driver side rear. Then passenger side rear then driver side front then driver side front. As it appears to me following the brake lines. Can someone confirm that I’m looking at the lines correctly?
 

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