Right rear drum sticking

[trophybass]

I got in today to go for a drive and once again it feels like my right rear drum is sticking. As soon as i touch the brakes the right rear immediately locks up. It does this for the first few times i touch the brakes and then it seems ok, that is until i set the parking brake. I drove around for a little bit and then parked it, then my wife took it for a ride and put it in reverse and it was like the parking brake was on. I got in and basically forced it to move. I did a search and found that a leaky axle seal or leaking wheel cylinder could be the culprip. I recently replaced the wheel cylinders but i didnt have this problem before the replacement and i've driven for months with no problems; at least up until the last few times ive driven it. This seems to have just started. Are the drums self adjusting? And if so, does it matter if i back the truck into the garage and let it sit for a few days or even weeks sometimes? If it is the axle seal or wheel cylinder how will i be able to tell? Thanks, Alex

 

[broncnaz]

Drum brakes are self adjusting but usually wont self adjust to the point they lock up. Since you recently replaced the cylinders I'd say they are not the problem, but you never know there could be some dirt or something that is causing it to stick. another thing you might want to pull that drum a spring could have come off and is jamming between the brake shoe and drum.
Axle seal wont do it either.

 

[Tenacious-B]

Your best bet will be to take it apart and see if anything obvious went wrong. Post up your findings.

 

[Imagator]

Alex, I had the same problem with my brakes after we reinstalled them. I didnt change anything out. This was over a year ago but as I recall we took them back apart, didnt see anything wrong, put them back together and re-bled them and the problem went away. As you know, Im not much of a mechanic but could bleeding them incorectly have anything to do with it? Since we didnt change anything on mine and we didnt find anything wrong that is the only thing I could think of that we might have done wrong.

 

[Tenacious-B]

Alex, I had the same problem with my brakes after we reinstalled them. I didnt change anything out. This was over a year ago but as I recall we took them back apart, didnt see anything wrong, put them back together and re-bled them and the problem went away. As you know, Im not much of a mechanic but could bleeding them incorectly have anything to do with it? Since we didnt change anything on mine and we didnt find anything wrong that is the only thing I could think of that we might have done wrong.

It would be worth a shot to check, but typically when you have air in the brake lines it causes the pedal to be a bit spongy. The springs should actually have an easier time retracting the shoes in that case. I'm still inclined to think that either something came apart or possibly broke. Either way, wouldn't hurt to try bleeding them again before pulling off the wheel.

 

[deltarat]

I had trouble with mine sticking a while back. I checked everything and replaced everything in the brakes with new parts-wheel cylinders,shoes, springs,ect and still stuck. It ended up being one of the rubber brake hoses. It looked good on the outside and would let pressure in but would hold the pressure on the brakes. You did not notice it trying to move it, but after driving a while, the drum would be hot. Replaced the hoses and cured the problem.

 

[70_Steve]

Check the backing plates. When I got my Bronco, the backing plates had grooves worn in the three pads that the shoes ride on. Sometimes the brakes would release and sometimes they would get hung up in the grooves and, as you said, it felt like I was driving with the parking brake on. I welded up the grooves and ground them down smooth, and I still run those backing plates today.