e brake tightening??

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From the FSM...
brake.webp
 
Re: the bellcrank, mine are rusted and seized. I sprayed some BP Blaster on them but after reading this thread I am not sure that I got any on the swivel portion. On my right wheel the adjusting bolt is all of the way retracted from the backing plate. This happened after I noticed that the hand brake was very hard to pull. I figured I would just force it full out and back in a few times to loosen it up a little. Well, I got the brake handle to go up all the way but on its way back down there was zero resistance. I checked the brake cable running towards each wheel and it was completely slack. I was figuring I forced the the handbrake to the engaged position and the springs on the bellcranks were not strong enough to overcome the corrosion on the entire assembly. If the adjusting bold is supposed to touch the backing plate (with the hand brake disengaged), then I am in good shape on the left wheel.

The right wheel needs a working swivel in order to allow the spring to do its job. Looking at the wheel it appears that the swivel is covered by a boot. Can I just pry it back and give it a shot of BP Blaster or is there something else I should try.

Here is a pic of what I am talking about. I cant tell from the diagram if this is supposed to be exposed or not.

LC%20bell%20crank%20on%20hand%20brake.PNG
 
sorry no answer on the rubber boot, but did have a related question to throw into the mix:

any reason why the e-brake would continue to loosen up (i.e., require it to be pulled very high in order for it to engage.) In the last 6 months I've tightened the e-brake 3 times now (once by the dealer, once by me adjusting the brake shoes, and once by adjusting the cable.) Each time, the the brake gets much better right of the bat (i.e., engages strong with 4 - 7 clicks.) But after a month or two, it seems like we're right back at where we started from (i.e., 10+ clicks until it engages well.)

Can't quite figure out what might be going on? Is there something that is stretching or otherwise getting fatiqued?...
 
sorry no answer on the rubber boot, but did have a related question to throw into the mix:

any reason why the e-brake would continue to loosen up (i.e., require it to be pulled very high in order for it to engage.) In the last 6 months I've tightened the e-brake 3 times now (once by the dealer, once by me adjusting the brake shoes, and once by adjusting the cable.) Each time, the the brake gets much better right of the bat (i.e., engages strong with 4 - 7 clicks.) But after a month or two, it seems like we're right back at where we started from (i.e., 10+ clicks until it engages well.)

Can't quite figure out what might be going on? Is there something that is stretching or otherwise getting fatiqued?...

I have this problem too, I rarely use mine unless I am wheeling or parking on a steep slope. Mine won't even hold on a small slope. It's getting annoying. If I park downhill I turn into the curb, let the truck roll in neutral into the curb and stop, then put it in park so there is no stress on the trans when taking out of P (that loud bang when you remove it from park on a steep hill never sounds good)
 
I just repaired a siezed bellcrank on my 100. I tried the PB Blaster but it didn't help. I ended up dismantling the rear brake assembly, removing the bellcrank and pressing the pin out in a vice using a small socket as a back-up. Then I scraped all the rust and crudd off everything, cleaned out the holes in the bracket with a round wire brush, cleaned out the rubber boot, and put it all back together again. I coated all the internal parts with white grease. The rubber boot was in pretty good condition. I washed it all out inside and sprayed it inside and out with silicone spray before putting it back together. Oh, you have to remove the bellcrank assembly before you can get the boot off. The hardest part of the whole job was getting the retaining keeper and spring back on the brake shoe. It's kind of behind the wheel flange so it's a little hard to press on. I had to get my girlfriend to hold the pin in with her finger behind the backing plate. Oh yeah, I should have mentioned you have to remove the rear brake shoe to get at the bellcrank bracket bolts. Besides that retainer, it was a pretty easy job for anyone who has ever worked on drum brakes before.
Basic drum brake set-up. Shoes and drum were in like new condition after 125k miles.
Anyway, now it works good as new.

I'll get to the other side one of these days.
Good luck!
cp
 
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