orientation of brake shoes-1953 Kaiser

[PK5321]

While replacing the brake cylinders I noticed on the rear wheels that the brake shoes with the longer lining were placed in the rear position.  I see from previous discussions on this forum, and from the shop manual, that they should be in the forward position.  Has anyone had experience with this both ways?  Does it make a big difference in the operation of the brakes?

[joefrazer]

Yes, it makes a difference. The long shoe should be on the side facing the front of the vehicle. If placed on the back, the long shoe will drag.

[Tevel Jean-Jacques]

Hello,

I'm just jumping into this post as I have issues with my 52 Manhattan that could ber linked to this matter. I replaced all the brakes parts (pads, master and wheel cylinders are new) and the car still doesn't brake properly. I have a 1950 Dodge and a 1956 Belair and they both brake far far better. If I had to evaluate the brake power on each of those cars, I would say that the Doge has 100% of braking power, the Belair is at 90% and the Kaiser at less than 50%.

Everything seems to be lined and set correctly. No idea anymore on what else I could do. Any advise is welcome.

Great day to all.
JJ.

[Corsairdeluxe]

Worth a try... there are places where the shoes touch the backing plate and the hold down clips. Smear a LIGHT coat of grease containing Molybdenum disulfide on them. It will help.How much I can not say.

[joefrazer]

Another problem is with the lining material used today. It’s much harder than what was used years ago so this will cause poor brake performance.

[rialto]

I put modern Wagner brake shoes all around on my 54 Manhattan. The pedal pressure to stop it is now much higher than my 53 which has forty year old linings. The 54 can stop really fast but it takes a good hard push on the pedal.

[kfnut]

I have to ask . You probable have done this but I will ask . Have the shoes been adjusted as per the shop manual ? Have you bled all the air from the system ? After brake work , I usually have to make that adjustment 2 or 3 times after driving the car . I guess the shoes shift a little .

[Tevel Jean-Jacques]

Hi,

I bled the the whole circuit several time and tried to adjust the lining as much as I could.

There is one more thing I would like to try. While removing one of the drum, I notice that the shoes "bite" the drums just close to the wheel cylinder and almost not at the opposite side. This tells me (and I easily admit I can be wrong) that the force applied close to the cylinder is most probably much lower than what it should be if the shoes were pushing first at the opposite side of the drum (because of the moment arm).

I plan to add a substrate plate to move the lower side of the shoes closer to the drum and see what it does. I'm not expecting a miracle from that, but that could improve the performance a little bit.

I don't know if my explanation is really clear, but being French-speaking and my English speaking skills being what they are...... I just did my best on this one......

Wish you all a great day..
JJ.

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

If you read the car magazine road tests of Kaisers 1951-55 (yes there is one road test of a 1955; the magazine has a photo of a young Mike Wallace and his (then) wife Buff Cobb with two GM "dream cars") the evaluators have generally the same comment on Kaiser brakes.  While the actual surface area (total all 4 wheels) is larger than most other American cars, the pedal is a lot "firmer" than others.  That means there is a need for more pressure.  I have noticed it on all the K-F cars I've owned over my 40+ years (everything from a Henry J to a 1951 Frazer and a 1953 Kaiser Dragon).

[DTort96646]

That's why I added a dual master cylinder and power brake booster to my 1951 Frazer Manhattan. Power steering too. Power brake addition was relatively easy, power steering more difficult. Both well worth the effort.

[joefrazer]

I replaced the front axle brake linings on my 50K Traveler with Auto Zone's #173 shoes and it was all I could do to get the car stopped - way too much pedal pressure was required. I poked around my parts room and found a set of NORS shoes in a softer compound and swapped them out and that made the difference. Much less pedal pressure required and I had a better feeling of being able to get the car stopped when needed.

[Terry T]

problem could be exacerbated by not re-radiusing shoes if drums were "turned"

[Jerry Wilbeck]

I was advised to buy "softer" shoes than can be obtained from NAPA or other stores.  I was able to get them from another source in my area, and the brakes work fine.  I suspect that the older NOS shoes were made from asbestos.  The US Government has regulated those parts out of American suppliers of shoes, so I'm almost certain I have Chinese Asbestos brake shoes on my car now.

[kfnut]

What is the source you used to get those brake linings ?

[Jerry Wilbeck]

Hello,
I had my drums machined and the shoes were attached to my existing metal by a supplier to Carquest Auto Parts, 306 East Main St., Royse City, TX 75189.  Their phone number is 972-636-5611.  It will cost you some shipping, but the end results will be OK if yours turn out like mine.  You must specify "soft linings".
Jerry