Slick 60's

I have installed new brake shoes, drums, and related hardware all the way around. My problem is, the rear drums won't go over the shoes without really forcing them on. When I do get them on, I'm not able to turn them by hand. All this stuff came from NAPA and I think the guys there know what they're doing when ordering. I don't know if I have the wrong shoes, wrong drums, or something else. I have the adjusters all the way in, the cylinders are all the way in, everything looks centered. Looking closer at each side I do notice that the shoes on the left side of the axle seem to be longer than the shoes on the right side. Is there supposed to be a long AND short shoe per side? Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks
Ken
P.S. Sorry for the big pictures, but I wanted as much detail as possible.

Be sure the adjuster (at the bottom) is backed all the way off so the shoes can move in while you replace the drums.

those are incorrect
1 long and 1 short per side
short goes on the front or forward end.

Thanks guys for the quick response!

those are incorrect
1 long and 1 short per side
short goes on the front or forward end.

Iceman, according to the diagram you posted, the shoes for the front of the truck are set up just like the rear? A short AND long shoe per side, short going towards front end? Cause I bet I have those wrong also.
Thanks
Ken

yes front is the same way.

Yup, same for the fronts.

Dang!!! Reckon I gotta take em all back off!
Thanks everybody!

Good practice, Put on....take off.....repeat.

Ken.
You're probably asking yourself how we all knew what the problem was.
The answer is simple.
Yes.
We all had to take them all back off too.
Happy New Year.
Uncle Skip

I might be missing something, but why will two secondary shoes prevent the drum from going on? It seems like something else is at play.
I've been trying to replace my rear shoes. So far all of the stuff from local sources is incorrect. It's about like getting a clutch. Haven't tried Napa yet, though.
Just out of curiosity, where are the Napa shoes made? A set of Wearever from Advance was made in the USA, but were incorrect.

Here is something I have run across in the past. The flat areas where the back edge of the shoe rubs against the backing plates can get a groove worn in it. The problem is it was worn when the old shoes with very thin material was on there. With new shoes, the brake shoe will fit into that groove and can't slide out easily. Then it appears the shoes are too large for the drum.

It looks like your shoes (from the top view) are not sitting flat against the backing plate as the inner side of the shoe appears to be held out towards the drum a bit. SOMETHING is causing that, as that is not a natural position for the shoes.

IF the backing plates are grooved, just weld the area and grind it flat again. A little disc brake grease on that point will keep it from squeaking. The the shoes will be able to retract to their normal static position.

TxSlick66 wrote: It looks like your shoes (from the top view) are not sitting flat against the backing plate as the inner side of the shoe appears to be held out towards the drum a bit. SOMETHING is causing that, as that is not a natural position for the shoes.

This is exactly what I'm running into with the replacement shoes. They don't sit square with the backing plate. In my case it is not grooving. It appears simply that the shoe is incorrect. On one set of shoes, either the arch is wrong, or the upper notch is in the wrong position. On another set of shoes, the metal upper portion of the shoe is too wide to allow it to sit square.

If you have a set of known to be correct shoes, use those to compare with the new ones and look very closely for any differences. I'm wishing I had a known to be correct set.

MAybe it has the correect DIAMETER shoes but incorrect WIDTH.

Had the same problem with Dave R s truck. It5 was the parking brake had to be loosened up. It does not look like it affects it but it does.
Loosen the cable adjuster on the parking brake and see how they go on.

I'm with Taylor on this one looks like the HB is engaged a bit. Nother trick once you get them off, lay them in the drum to see if the width and arch are correct. One of the best tools I have is a brake spring pliers. This tool makes all dissasembly and re-assembly a breeze. If you don't have one ya oughtta git one!

I had the same problem years ago with the drums not going back on and after two days of scraching my head I thougft about backing off on the hand brake adjuster and that was the problem.

I had the same problem years ago with the drums not going back on and after two days of scraching my head I thougft about backing off on the hand brake adjuster and that was the problem.

Has this been resolved?

Where do you guys get these detailed diagrams from? I can never seem to find them.

According to the diagram above; I'm missing part # 2035 from my front brakes. It's that wide double spring that stretches across from shoe to shoe. I have a '66 1/2 ton 4x2. Is this part necessary? It's funny that it stopped fine without that part.
Thanks!
Eric