BRAKE ISSUE

[LUVMY69FORD250RANGER]

i got a 69 ford ranger, drove a little and have some metal to metal action on them. i felt them , they felt a little scored but not uneven. think its safe to plop some pads on them, and is it like changing pads like on a mazda or toyota. or is it more complicated , thanks

[kilog55]

drum or disk? if they are scored your pads/shoes will wear out faster

[FORDification]

If you've got metal-to-metal contact, you can't just slap some shoes (or pads) on them. The grooves that got etched into the drums/discs will destroy the shoes/pads in no time. You'll need to get the drums/discs turned to clean off the grooves in them first.

Don't cut corners with the brakes...do it right the FIRST time! Your life (and those of others on the road) depend upon it.

[fordman]

well yes the grooves in a drum or disc will eatt he shoes or pads. but they say now days that it is alomost better to not have them turned. as long as they arent totally trashed. the shoies or pads will copy the wear pattern of the drum or disc and stop the truck just fine. the reason they say not to turn them is because it takes metal away from the drum or disc and makes the travel of the brakes longer and the drum or disc weaker or thinner.

[FORDification]

Hmmm...well, I don't know who "they" is, but they is wrong IMO. Yes, obviously turning the drum/rotor is going to remove some metal, that's the idea. However, with discs, the first time you hit the brake pedal it will be compensated for, and will remain constant. With drums, you simply re-adjust the star wheel to compensate, and you're good to go.....and with brakes that will work significantly better than just slapping some new shoes/pads on a damaged drum/rotor.

Metal-to-metal contact is going to heat up the drum/rotor too, and it's much easier to overheat to the point of warpage, which obviously is going to slightly diminish brake effectiveness, besides being very annoying.

As far as I'm concerned, the brakes on these trucks were only so-so from the factory as it is, and cutting corners like that is only making things worse. Considering everything you've got to lose....which is everything!....and considering how inexpensive it is to fix it right the first time, it just plain doesn't make sense to short-change the most important system on any vehicle.

[fordman]

i read it in a car mag a few years ago. it didnt say not turn them if they were ate up. it only said to not turn them if they were slightly grooving or grooved some. i would turn anything that was more then a 1/8 inch deep groove.

[fitzwell]

i read it in a car mag a few years ago. it didnt say not turn them if they were ate up. it only said to not turn them if they were slightly grooving or grooved some. i would turn anything that was more then a 1/8 inch deep groove.

somehow, a car magazine doesn't seem to be the place to look for brake performance. Thing is, it's hard to find anyplace that has folks that can turn a rotor correctly. You have to set up the rotor correctly & not try to take all the gouges in one pass. I was lucky enough to have a old time brake guy show me some tricks on how to do things correctly. Any time i do brakes, the rotors get a cleanup pass.

[390Nut]

i would turn anything that was more then a 1/8 inch deep groove.

That's a LOT when you're talking metal surfacing. Anything with a groove that deep should be replaced. These drums were not meant to be turned that much, nor most rotors. Seriously, taking that much metal off is ASKING for a rotor or drum to disintegrate when it gets hot, which takes about 2-3 seconds of braking to happen in normal driving. The drums/rotors need to be able to absorb the heat and transfer it efficiently, but too thin of metal can't transfer it properly. The thinner the metal, the faster it will hit the fracture point (especially with cast iron) and crack, or shatter. (yes, I've seen the carnage from this).

It's really amazing just how hot these things get. I was watching a nascar race one day, and they had a camera mounted behind and inside of the front wheel (think it was the left wheel, but doesn't matter too much). It took less than a second of the brake pad hitting the rotor before the rotor started to GLOW red hot. Granted, that's a race car going 180+ mph, but the theory is the same, and the heat buildup is real. Go take a ride in your truck, get up to 60 miles an hour, and then brake to a complete stop. Quickly get out and go touch the outer surface of the front drum, where the brake shoes hit (front or rear). It will likely be hot enough that you don't want to leave your hand there very long!

And not to mention, like Keith said, your taking your life, and everyone elses on the road, into your hands when you cut corners on the brakes.

It's just not worth it.

[kilog55]

yeah dont touch your rotors after stopping, heck i dont even like washing the tires at a car wash cause sometimes you can hear the rotors sizzle

[fordman]

paul they will only turn your rotors down so far before they tell you that you have to get a new one. i was just using that as a example depth. i have had one drum that they turned that still had a groove in it when they were done. i was broke at the time so i just used it after they turned it. i don't think it hurt anything. i dont even remeber what the drum came off of. any more. it could have been on my truck for all i know know.

[19FORD67]

get out and just spit on your rotors and forego the blister!

[Rockerdog]

The car mags might have been referring to Merecdes who states their rotors are not to be turned. They recommend installing new pads and burning them in to the rotors existing shape through several hard stops BUT if the rotors are dished, heavily glazed or scored, Mercedes recommends replacing ONLY.

I turn rotors every day at work and have been doing it for over 20 years.
When rotors are warped, stopping distance increases because;

1. The pads are constantly losing contact with the rotors.
2. The glazed finish on the rotors is slippery making it hard for the rotors to grab hold.

The obvious reaction by the driver is to push harder on the pedal to get the vehicle to stop causing more heat buildup and accelerated wear of the new pads.

[390Nut]

The car mags might have been referring to Merecdes who states their rotors are not to be turned. They recommend installing new pads and burning them in to the rotors existing shape through several hard stops BUT if the rotors are dished, heavily glazed or scored, Mercedes recommends replacing ONLY.

I'm not 100% positive, but if I'm not mistaken, the rotors on all new Benz's are cryo treated (this is only third party heresay, not fact, so dont quote me on it!) meaning you CANT turn them. Well, you can, but finding someone who will is hard. Cryo'd rotors (or anything else for that matter) have their molecular structure changed, and turning/machining them is tough because they are much harder metal, and they are also more brittle, more prone to fracture when machined/cut.

They are extremely durable under most circumstances however, and if you can afford to have it done, your rotors will last a very, very long time.

Here's some more info;

http://www.frozenrotors.com/pages/frozen101.php

[Rockerdog]

Hadn't heard about that but it wouldn't surprise me. I work for Lexus and so far we can still machine ours but that may be coming. Not much to service on cars anymore just replace parts.