Right Front Brake Pads Dragging

Topic: Right Front Brake Pads Dragging (Read 3349 times) previous topic - next topic

Right Front Brake Pads Dragging

December 10, 2016, 02:40:48 pm

Well, I'm sorry to have to post this, but it must be done. We had extensive brake work done on all 4 corners at MOT the last couple days. We left NAC headed home this morning. Got to Palestine, and noticed a "hot brake" smell, but assumed it was due to new pads all the way around. Wrong. Got about 10 miles NW of Palestine on HWY 287, and saw smoke coming from right front corner, along with STRONG smell. Pulled over on side of road. RF wheel was VERY hot, but no flames. Smoke cleared immediately soon as we parked, and wheel is slowly cooling off. I looked at sight glass on hub, and oil level is good. I think the problem is brake pads dragging.

On that corner, MOT replaced the axel seal, replaced both brake pads, installed new slide pins and helper springs, greased the brake with correct grease, and adjusted slack adjuster. Somewhere in that list, something went wrong.

Question: Is there some simple way I can make a "roadside" adjustment to the brake to make it stop dragging? We want to come back to NAC to get this corrected, but obviously can't drive far in this condition. I'm afraid I have zero experience working on these brakes, but I have plenty of tools and can follow instructions, if anyone can tell me what I need to do.

We'll worry about who did what wrong later - no need to discuss that now. Just looking for technical assistance.

Thanks in advance! Cell: 432-two-one-five-93three5

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #1 – December 10, 2016, 02:56:33 pm

Had similar issue after service at TN RV. In my case it was a bad slack adjustor.
With retarder off, step hard on Brake at a slow speed. I was able to get mine to release enough to drive. Mine was intermittent, usually an issue in first 50 miles after cool down.
Pads and rotor will be toast, probably more on that corner

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #2 – December 10, 2016, 03:01:36 pm

Thanks, Tim. I'll try it.

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #3 – December 10, 2016, 03:23:43 pm

Also you can try to back up to release the pad.

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #4 – December 10, 2016, 03:25:39 pm

My guess would be that whoever did the grease on the brake didn't go through the correct purge procedure when they filled it up and it locked up.

You could crawl underneath and manually back the slack adjuster off a bit if needed. You'll likely need the The selected media item is not currently available.

if you aren't familiar with what to do.

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #5 – December 10, 2016, 03:27:32 pm

Update. A friendly truck driver stopped, and showed me how to back off the slack adjuster. He said that should get me back to NAC. If all goes well, I won't post again until I speak to MOT and see what they say.

Thank you for your attention, and special thanks to Mike (Pamela & Mike) for calling me, and Tim, John S and Robert for responding!

This Forum is PRICELESS!!!!!!!!!

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #6 – December 10, 2016, 03:46:36 pm

Chuck,just make sure they check the rotor and parts in that area for heat cracks.

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #7 – December 10, 2016, 04:20:54 pm

Suggestion for anyone having brake work done, my shop did this and recorded the temp readings on the final invoice:

Take coach on a test drive, upon return immediately read and record all 4 disk temps with an IR gun.

This will verify there are no dragging pads or sticking calipers.

Also, as mentioned, I gave the technician a copy of the Meritor manual, and reviewed the grease purge procedure with him.

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #8 – December 10, 2016, 04:45:50 pm

Peter that is a good idea, but being the work done at MOT who must surely know the proper technique due to all the FTs they work on, this "problem" sure does not look too good for them in my books. I know "things happen" but this would be a serious one in my estimation.
JohnH

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #9 – December 10, 2016, 05:18:01 pm

Agreed John.

My take is stuff happens to best of shops, what sets them apart is frequency of failure to fix right first time, and how is the correction handled from a customer experience viewpoint.
In the auto repair business, 3% is considered very good first fix failure rate, with about 50% of that number attributed to bad parts.
What happens next is where the rubber meets the road

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #10 – December 10, 2016, 06:21:44 pm

Quote from: Chuck & Jeannie – December 10, 2016, 03:27:32 pm

Update. A friendly truck driver stopped, and showed me how to back off the slack adjuster. He said that should get me back to NAC. If all goes well, I won't post again until I speak to MOT and see what they say.

When can we expect your howto on slack adjuster adjustment!

Let us know what MOT finds...

see ya
ken

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #11 – December 10, 2016, 06:45:06 pm

Update.

We're back in NAC, staying at the FOT RV Park. Slacking off the automatic adjuster did the trick - front wheel stayed cold on return leg. I could definitely feel a pull to the left when braking, since the RF brake was out of service. Took it easy stopping, so as not to stress the remaining three (freshly rebuilt) brakes.

I pretty much agree with everything posted above. I will get with MOT and see how they handle this. As said above, everybody screws up, but how they recover from the error is very important. I will report to the Forum on their response and "fix".

I have a non-contact infrared thermometer, and you can bet I will pull over and use it, frequently, the next time we take off. I'm going to be mucho paranoid about my brakes for quite a while after this interesting little episode.

Ken: I actually already had plans to post a couple photos of the very simple procedure the trucker used to relieve the pressure on the brake pads. I'll work on that tomorrow, if the weather is decent. To whet your appetite, all the tools you need are:
1. A set of chocks
2. A big screwdriver
3. A Crescent wrench

I'll post more when I know more!

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #12 – December 10, 2016, 07:25:12 pm

Chuck, we just left camp Foretravel this morning. Really sorry we missed you.

Regarding "standing behind your work" please see my latest post in Turbo Won't Boost. Bernd is a great example of standing behind a painful and expensive mistake and to do it with such grace.

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #13 – December 10, 2016, 09:38:58 pm

I went to Sears and got a set of those wrenches that have a ratchet on each end and
have found many uses in tightening and loosening nuts, bolts, etc. on the MH, but the
handiest thing was the one that fit the slack adjuster on the brakes. First use a little
cleaner/lubricant spray to get salt corrosion and road grit off the lock/safety ring. It usually
will slide up and down freely, if not as Brett says persuade it a little. Then you can tighten
or loosen the brake. The old rule of thumb used to be to tighten down tight and then back
off two clicks of the safety lock. The main variable here can be if you have wear in the slack
adjuster. If these are loose and wobbly by all means replace ASAP. I know there are many
on here that know far more about this subject than me. Hope to hear from them.

Brast of luck on your travels,

Carter Langford
Nac-

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #14 – December 10, 2016, 11:15:50 pm

Quote from: Texas Guy – December 10, 2016, 09:38:58 pm

I went to Sears and got a set of those wrenches that have a ratchet on each end and
have found many uses in tightening and loosening nuts, bolts, etc. on the MH, but the
handiest thing was the one that fit the slack adjuster on the brakes. First use a little
cleaner/lubricant spray to get salt corrosion and road grit off the lock/safety ring. It usually
will slide up and down freely, if not as Brett says persuade it a little. Then you can tighten
or loosen the brake. The old rule of thumb used to be to tighten down tight and then back
off two clicks of the safety lock. The main variable here can be if you have wear in the slack
adjuster. If these are loose and wobbly by all means replace ASAP. I know there are many
on here that know far more about this subject than me. Hope to hear from them.

Brast of luck on your travels,

Carter Langford
Nac-

It sounds like you are describing the old drum brake adjustment procedure. Not self adjusting discs

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #15 – December 11, 2016, 12:00:50 am

You are right. My coach has the drums. Please tell how it is done with the new ones,
so if I ever get into the 21st century I will know. That is why I said there were more
knowledgeable people on here.

Thanks,

Carter

Re: Right Front Brake Pads Dragging

Reply #16 – December 11, 2016, 08:16:32 am

I have revised the "Subject Title" of this thread to remove the "HELP - EMERGENCY" connotation.

Texas Guy: Thanks for your phone call yesterday, and kind offer to help. Between you and Mike Harbordt we had a great local backup team in place, in the event we had not been able to get back on the road. You NAC dwellers must stay pretty busy bailing out Forum members!

I will post a couple photos later today showing the "trick" to backing off the auto slack adjuster. Simple once someone shows you how.

Re: Right Front Brake Pads Dragging

Reply #17 – December 11, 2016, 08:44:18 am

Quote from: Kent Speers – December 10, 2016, 07:25:12 pm

Regarding "standing behind your work"

I think any shop working on brakes should "stand in front of their work."

Re: Right Front Brake Pads Dragging

Reply #18 – December 11, 2016, 08:56:53 am

Quote from: Texas Guy – December 11, 2016, 12:00:50 am

Please tell how it is done with the new ones, so if I ever get into the 21st century I will know.

Carter,

I know this is drifting off subject and may need to be split out but for any layman the 1st thing you need to do is read the Meritor manual twice before you start any repair. After reading over this print out a copy so you will be able to refer to it while you are at your coach working on the brakes. Here is a link The selected media item is not currently available.

There are several ways to adjust your slack adjusters on disc brake adjusters that will work but I recommend getting the slack adjuster guide #2297-E-4789 (the one I have is Yellow). This is the simplest way and as a bonus if you have the manual from above printed out it tells you the proper use of mentioned guide.

Pamela & Mike

Re: Right Front Brake Pads Dragging

Reply #19 – December 11, 2016, 12:13:36 pm

Again the video is for drum brakes not disc. Wait for Chuck to post the disc brake release info if you have disc brakes

Re: New Brake Dragging! Need Emergency Advice.

Reply #20 – December 11, 2016, 04:08:39 pm

Quote from: rsihnhold – December 10, 2016, 03:25:39 pm

You could crawl underneath and manually back the slack adjuster off a bit if needed. You'll likely need the if you aren't familiar with what to do.

As promised, here is what "the friendly truck driver" did to get me back on the road. It is exactly what Robert suggested in his post (above).

First, he asked me if I had chocks, because he said it was safer working under the coach with them installed. Being a well prepared owner, I did, and we put them in place at the rear wheels.

Then he asked for a screw driver and a Crescent wrench, which I was also able to provide. We both slid under the front of the coach (so I could see what he was doing). Looking at the brake (photo #1), he pointed out the auto slack adjuster (black greasy object in center of photo #2). He used the screw driver to lift up on the "pull pawl" (spring-loaded button in photo #3). Doing this disengages the gear in the slack adjuster, allowing you to adjust it. Holding up the "pull pawl" with the screw driver (I had to drop the screw driver so I could hold the wrench and my camera), he then turned the square adjuster screw in a clockwise direction with the Crescent wrench (photo #4). Doing this rotates the upper part of the slack adjuster away from the air chamber, and releases the excess pressure on the brake pads.

THAT'S ALL THERE IS TO IT.

WARNING: This procedure renders the brake inoperative, so use caution when driving, cuz you'll only have 3 brakes!

The steps for doing this procedure are all contained in the Meritor Maintenance Manual mentioned in Robert's post (above), but they are not specifically listed as a "emergency procedure". Instead, they are scattered around in various sections. If you knew nothing about these brakes (pretty much described me before this incident), it might take you a while to figure out this solution. Being shown what to do makes it simple! I owe the "friendly truck driver" a big debt of gratitude.

While waiting to get back with MOT, I have been studying the manual (link below). I now have a pretty good understanding of how these stoppers work. The next time I have a "brake emergency", I will be much better prepared.

Re: Right Front Brake Pads Dragging

Reply #21 – December 11, 2016, 04:37:28 pm

Great Pics !

Thanks,

Carter

Re: Right Front Brake Pads Dragging

Reply #22 – December 11, 2016, 05:54:03 pm

Chuck, something to think about is all the extra heat that your front tire has received. Might threw that in when you talk to MOT. Would be Big safety concern to me. Could have even damaged the valve core stem seals.

Re: Right Front Brake Pads Dragging

Reply #23 – December 11, 2016, 06:47:57 pm

Chuck, what a nice write-up and great images to "show & tell." I'm pleased to hear your saga ended safely.

Also, nice to meet you at Ft. FOT the other day. All the best. Paul

Re: Right Front Brake Pads Dragging

Reply #24 – December 11, 2016, 08:30:30 pm

I find a 5/16 wrench works well on the square drive if you don't have a square socket to fit it. You can buy a ratcheting tool made for these adjusters it comes with a handy dandy tool to hold the adjuster out.

Please if you don't know what you are doing be careful with this. Adjustment is easy once trained. I prefer to tighten the adjuster until it stops and then back off 3/8 of a turn and measure stroke on a 90 psi apply then I jack it up and make sure the wheel turns free.

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