Brake wedge wear. How much is too much

[Scott F.]

My first forray into mechanical brakes. These are actually 1932 brakes and i am rebuilding for a project. I need to get the shoes relined I know that. Is ths brake wedge worn too much to use? Do the rollers on the shoes wear? Mine dont look too bad but i dont know how they look when brand new. Does the wedge bolt routinely need replacing and what about the piece under the bolt that the wedge slides on? I would assume that should be replaced as it seems like a wear item. Any info and guidance would be helpful. I have read as many threads about the mechanicals as i could find but there is very little mentioned about the real basics that I have mentioned above.
Thanks,
Scott

Sorry, photo is giving me troubles right now

[Scott F.]

Here is a pic. Thanks, Scott

[Scott F.]

Heres another shot from the side

[bettlesr]

Rochester Clutch and Brake Address: 35 Niagara St, Rochester, NY 14605

Phone: (585) 232-3717

can reline them for you. I had them reline the '32 brakes on the front of my '30. These are 12" diameter.

[Scott F.]

Thanks for the reply. Did you have the shoes arched to the drums?

[Kurt in NJ]

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From what I see the wedge looks very good, better than a repro

look all around the rollers for flat spots---if none use them

on the backing plate is a track that guides the shoes, the head of the roller pin rides on it, this is what centers the shoes, look for flat spots on the pins, and wear in the track

[Kevin in NJ]

It gets more complicated then you might think.

First off, at a quick glance your wedges look decent as they are, but look closer to check them.

Stuff to consider when looking at wedges.
The popular guidance before good repro's were available was to take a file and dress up the wear area on the wedges.

The problem is you are altering the wedge shape. Ya, you might think it not much, but if the angles are off then you make get the rate of application off between the wheels. Then consider some wedges may have been filed several times, how do you know???

I base my thoughts on a discussion with someone who looked up some brake prints for me at the reasearch center. He was amazed what was in the brake prints. Ford detailed shoe positions with .001" accuracy. There was a lot of engineering into the brake system so you need to take some time to get it right.

For the sake of insurance there is a lot of merit to putting on known matched pairs, like good quality modern repros.

On the other hand, you need to look at what you have close. Does it look like the wear is not much beyond the original machining marks? Are there file marks?

It is only $30 for a pair of new ones. Kind of cheap for brake parts if there is any question.

[Scott F.]

Could i get prints for these components? I have the ability to have them layed out and then i can check against the prints.

[Scott F.]

Kurt, thanks for the reply. I will check those components also. may post a pic in a little bit. Thanks,
scott.

[Scott F.]

I do see some wear on the first one I checked. This plate is riveted to the backing plate right? I need to drill this one out and rivet on a new one?

[SeaSlugs]

Originally Posted by Scott F.

I do see some wear on the first one I checked. This plate is riveted to the backing plate right? I need to drill this one out and rivet on a new one?

or weld it up and grind it down - much easier IMO

[bettlesr]

Originally Posted by Scott F.

Thanks for the reply. Did you have the shoes arched to the drums?

Scott:
A friend has an arcing machine so I did them myself. I also have the Flathead Teds upgrades which covers the original lower mounting plates.