Brake shoe grinder
- Thread starter jetmek
- Start date
Kurt in NJ
Well-known member
I bought a Barrett brake doktor, they arc the shoes to axle centerline on the car with a disc sander,the first one I paid 12$ but it only had one adapter, the second one I paid 250$, it had all the adapters and new sanding discs and I considered it a steal
Post pictures of what you are looking at.
Post pictures of what you are looking at.
1948F-1Pickup
Well-known member
Yup. We'd all like to see what you're looking at......
You may not need a shoe grinder! After turning a drum, the new shoes will likely be high at the center of the shoe ( the shoe 'rocks' in the drum). Stand the shoe up on the floor or a block of wood and whack the shoe in the center of the lining with a dead blow hammer. Check the fit in the drum and repeat as necessary. You want the shoe to still touch in the center but just rock a little bit; about 1/32"-1/16" inch gap as I remember. This is because the shoe flexes as the brakes are applied. If you setup the shoe with 100% contact, most of the braking pressure is concentrated at the ends of the shoe and the middle portion of the lining is not going to do much. Allowing for the flex of the shoe makes for better brakes, whether you re-arc with a grinder or the mallet. Just set the gap the same on all the shoes for even braking.
jetmek, I have one just like yours. It works great. You can get adhesive backed sanding disks from HF.
I don’t have a value for it. I found mine scrapped and froze up. The wiring was disconnected and I was afraid to plug it in. I used an extension cord as stood back. It is the smoothest running machine I have ever seen. When unplugged, it takes forever to quit turning. It is almost silent.
I don’t have a value for it. I found mine scrapped and froze up. The wiring was disconnected and I was afraid to plug it in. I used an extension cord as stood back. It is the smoothest running machine I have ever seen. When unplugged, it takes forever to quit turning. It is almost silent.