Who does brake shoe grinding?

Vin-tin

Vin-tin

Well-known member
Does anyone know of a place or person who does brake shoe grinding in the Lancaster / Reading Pennsylvania area?
 
check any big rig truck shop - especially the older ones. modern semi trucks still use rivited lining and they reline the shoes when they get low. id imagine they would have the setup or know who would.
 
I don't think it's to difficult , on my old Harley VL I've bonded them rivet and shape to fit the drum. I haven't had to do any yet for my model a but the principle has to be the same .
 
Mitch//pa said:
Check schwalms??
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Mitch, I just got off the phone with Schwalm's. He said he doesn't get into grinding brake shoes and doesn't know anyone locally who does. That's really odd. His website even says he does cast iron brake drum conversions which includes rebuilding of "all" related brake parts.
 
I spoke with Randy Gross a while back about doing my brakes. He's probably going to get the chance to do exactly that this winter. (nevermind the freight involved)
 
Geez, if you wanna drive 500 miles south, I will show you how to measure your drums, show you how to set my machine, and then let you do all 8 of yours. Won't cost you a dime if you do it yourself either. And, -you probably won't even need to turn off your vehicle either as you won't be here 15 minutes!! :D
 
Vin-tin said:
Mitch, I just got off the phone with Schwalm's. He said he doesn't get into grinding brake shoes and doesn't know anyone locally who does. That's really odd. His website even says he does cast iron brake drum conversions which includes rebuilding of "all" related brake parts.
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Vin
Yes that is very surprising, go figure
 
BRENT in 10-uh-C said:
Geez, if you wanna drive 500 miles south, I will show you how to measure your drums, show you how to set my machine, and then let you do all 8 of yours. Won't cost you a dime if you do it yourself either. And, -you probably won't even need to turn off your vehicle either as you won't be here 15 minutes!! :D
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Ok Brent :rolleyes:...
but only if you let me bring your machine along home with me.
 
WOW what a deal...
"Geez, if you wanna drive 500 miles south, I will show you how to measure your drums, show you how to set my machine, and then let you do all 8 of yours. Won't cost you a dime if you do it yourself either. And, -you probably won't even need to turn off your vehicle either as you won't be here 15 minutes!! :D"

Check around with some old time auto parts stores, back in the day it was a daily occurrence to arc the shoes to the drums...
 
Some of our local shops have stopped working on Model A brakes because they think the riveted linings have asbestos in them. They want some kind of documentation saying the linings are asbestos free. I gave up trying to educate them, and found a shop that knows what's what.
 
I called a few more local places. One guy advertises that he's a model A guy. The other is a second generation full restoration shop. Both said they just sand and fit the brakes "by hand" on a belt sander. Looks like that's what i'll end up doing too.
 
Thanks to the power of the internet, I was able to find this ammco safe-arc 2000 machine. Picked it up cheap and it runs and looks complete. Just needs a little clean-up.
Does anyone know if this has the proper clamping mechanism to do Model A brakes?
 

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700rpm said:
Some of our local shops have stopped working on Model A brakes because they think the riveted linings have asbestos in them. They want some kind of documentation saying the linings are asbestos free. I gave up trying to educate them, and found a shop that knows what's what.
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How do you know which linings are asbestos free? It is impossible to tell by looking at them. The shops are correct as OSHA requires all mechanics to approach all linings as if they contain asbestos. There is plenty of information available on safe handling practices. For those who don't know, asbestos is NOT BANNED from use in automotive brakes and clutches and even gaskets. It was banned for 2 years but has been legal for use again since 1991.
 
Vin-Tin:
A friend of mine has that arcing machine and works great the way it is. We just set the slide to 11", set the small adjusting knob on the right to the amount the drum is oversize slide the shoe in the clamp and slowly turn the handle in while rotating the whole clamping assembly until you get the shoe touching the sanding drum all the way from end to end of the lining. We use a shop vac with a hepa filter in place of the bag on the dust outlet.
 
bettlesr said:
Vin-Tin:
A friend of mine has that arcing machine and works great the way it is. We just set the slide to 11", set the small adjusting knob on the right to the amount the drum is oversize slide the shoe in the clamp and slowly turn the handle in while rotating the whole clamping assembly until you get the shoe touching the sanding drum all the way from end to end of the lining. We use a shop vac with a hepa filter in place of the bag on the dust outlet.
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Thanks, That's good to know. Now all I need to do is make sure all the moving parts actually move and start practicing with it and finally get my '29 chassis a "roller" again.
 
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