29 Model A brakes pull to left

[Rick]

Trying to remember which front side to adjust the brakes when it pulls to the left. Original mechanical brakes and parts are good.
Thanks, Rick

[Dennis Pereira]

Adjust all four no guess work.

[Rick]

Originally Posted by Dennis Pereira

Adjust all four no guess work.

I should of added that they were all adjusted and it pulls to left so one side is tighter, just don't know which side. They feel the same when turning wheels by hand

[ETAModel]

I am far from an expert, but it sounds like a linkage problem if all brakes are worn the same (or new), adjusted the same, and pulls to one side.
OTOH, if it pulled to the left and isn't a linkage issue, then tightening the right front should stop it pulling left, or backing off the left front will have same effect.

[nkaminar]

Loosen the front brake on the left side one click and try again. Try a full stop at about 20 miles per hour. The back tires should leave skid marks. If one leaves a skid mark and not the other tighten up the one that did not leave the skid mark one click but test the drag. If it drags loosen up one click and loosen the one with the skid mark one click. Keep testing and adjusting one click at a time. After you think it is adjusted correctly, go for a drive and then measure the brake drum temperatures with an IR thermometer. They should all be the same within 20 degrees or less. This all assuming that everything in the brakes is in good shape. The Model A has more braking effort in the rear so the rear brakes may be hotter.

Depending on what you have done to the brakes, like new shoes, it will take a while for them to settle in and you will have to re test as above and re adjust.

[J Franklin]

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Make sure the linings are perfectly clean. Even oils from hands handeling the lining can cause problems.

[Patrick L.]

As said, if everything is fine and adjusted properly, then back off a click on the left and add a click to the right. Its common.

If you can find a gravel or dirt road, you'll get them set quickly.

[rotorwrench]

Type of brake drums and shoe linings can have an effect. If a person has pressed steel drums with no band and others then having a press on band to help limit distortion can also have an effect. If you have cast iron drums on one side and a pressed steel drum on the other than that can have an effect.

Too much lining or drum wear can have an effect too. If everything matches and improvements like Flathead Ted's floater kit is installed, model A mechanical brakes can almost match any other type of drum brake in stopping power. If parts are worn and mechanisms don't move like they should then no amount of adjustment will make a big difference.

[ETAModel]

20 odd years ago I went to a 4 day emergency vehicle operation class put on by Texas A&M.
The first day the instructors used model cars on an elevated surface . They first blocked the front axle, then the rear axle, and let the cars slide down the inclined plane.
IIRC, with the rear tires locked the models lost control to a greater degree than when front tires locked.
This was before ABS became common.
The point they were making was if your rear tires locked you were in more trouble then front tires locked.
After the first day in class we spent the remainder pushing our patrol cars and ourselves to our limits. Probably the best class I took in 23 years.
We must remember Andrew's book and others used 1930s info. We were taught if the rear brakes do lock during emergency situations to back off the pedal, then reapply when they stop skidding, as counter-intuitive as it sounds.
IMHO, if the rear tires lock up first they're too tight

[nkaminar]

The rear wheels locking up first is a carry over from the Model T, which were rear wheel brakes only, if you could call them brakes. I put the longer brake levers from the rear on my front brakes to get more brake force there. As you brake more downward force is put on the front. (Sometimes erroneously called weight transfer.) To put the longer levers on the front you need to make collars to reduce the hole diameter. The rear brake levers are canted inward for the rods. You can cold bend the ends of the levers to get a straight shot for the rods in the front. The levers are also offset and this allows the rods to move out slightly to clear the shock absorbers. The rears are left and right. You also have to reduce the width at the holes where they mount to the shafts. You must put new rivets in.

[ETAModel]

The rear tire only brakes on the T are a Carryover from the horse drawn wagon, but I'm not sure that is important.
I'm aware that something has to lock up first, but the rear axle should lock up slightly before the front. Otherwise the rear of your A will attempt to do the Toyko Drift.

[Patrick L.]

This was Fords first attempt at 4 wheel brakes. So he decided he wanted the rears to do more work than the fronts. We all know today that the fronts do more work than the rears. But you still want the rear to lock up before the front, so, we need to learn how to juggle.

[clifforddward]

Pretty common to have a Model A pull to one side or the other after a "full mechanical brake reset" is done...I think that the typical cause is wear in some component more within the linkage. Easy enough to offset with the "one click tighter/one click looser" suggestion from others in this thread. If you find it taking more than a click or two to even things out then you should probably look at updating some of the linkage points where holes are probably worn oval in an uneven way.

[dansluck]

Rick
There are a lot of good utubes on adjusting Model A brakes. Different opinions that work.
Good Luck and have fun.
Dan