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Mod | | | Forums66 Topics128,118 Posts1,056,646 Members48,450 | | Most Online14,466 Apr 26th, 2026 | | AD Chevy Trucks Over 6,000 pictures Brad Allen has an awesome collection of Chevrolet factory pictures that he has set up from film strips. Check them out!
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on the Internet for over 30 years! and not clogged down with Ads! Again, thanks! | | | | Joined: Jan 2006 Posts: 72 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: Jan 2006 Posts: 72 | Does anyone use dry lube spray to lubricate brake pivot points and where the brake shoes contact the backing plates? Seem like it would be better than introducing grease to the brake system. Not sure if there was any downside to this. Thanks. Larry
Larry
46 Chevy 1/2 ton stake - family truck for 78 years USAF 75-81
| | | | | Joined: Sep 2001 Posts: 29,270 Bubba - Curmudgeon | | Bubba - Curmudgeon Joined: Sep 2001 Posts: 29,270 | If anyone has used a dry lube spray, would you please let us know:
What composition of spray? What brand name? | | | | | Joined: Oct 2012 Posts: 233 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: Oct 2012 Posts: 233 | decades ago i used powdered graphaite. dont know where you could purchase it now
1953 Chevy 3100 261 and SM420 53Chevy 31001953 Mack Firetruck 1972 Porsche 911 1986 Honda Goldwing
| | | | | Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 29,836 Kettle Custodian (pot stirrer) | | Kettle Custodian (pot stirrer) Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 29,836 | On drum brakes we used to use small dabs of white Lubriplate grease on the backing plates where the brake shoes would rub to prevent a squeak as the brakes were applied. A little goes a LONG way, however, and I wonder how many rainstorms and/or puddles it took to wash it off.
Spray silicone lube might be a good alternative to petroleum-based grease. Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
| | | | | Joined: Sep 2001 Posts: 29,270 Bubba - Curmudgeon | | Bubba - Curmudgeon Joined: Sep 2001 Posts: 29,270 | another vote for lubriplate
spray silicone - you might not want to use that in a room that might be used for metal painting/prep | | | | | Joined: Jan 2017 Posts: 308 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: Jan 2017 Posts: 308 | Larry, What year truck, I have a 49 with Huck brakes, and I have graphite that I use on the powder bar of my 12 Gauge reloader. Do we have a backing plate with Huck brakes? | | | | | Joined: Aug 2000 Posts: 1,438 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: Aug 2000 Posts: 1,438 | What is the advantage of Lubriplate over chassis grease?
Dennis
40 Chevy 1/2 ton
| | | | | Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 29,836 Kettle Custodian (pot stirrer) | | Kettle Custodian (pot stirrer) Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 29,836 | It tends to stay put longer. Disc brake wheel bearing grease might be a good alternative, as it's got a MUCH higher melting point than chassis grease and the brakes get very hot at times. Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
| | | | | Joined: Aug 2000 Posts: 1,438 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: Aug 2000 Posts: 1,438 | Got it, thanks HR. Timely topic for me. I screwed up my rear shoes. I put too much on the backing plate and it got onto the lining. Not sure I ever got it hot but I can see where that would just aggravate the situation. Looks like it wicked into the lining. I've got a new set on the way. Won't do that again!
Dennis
40 Chevy 1/2 ton
| | | | | Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 29,836 Kettle Custodian (pot stirrer) | | Kettle Custodian (pot stirrer) Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 29,836 | On an average-size vehicle, a moderately brisk stop from 60 MPH generates enough heat to MELT a 9" cast iron skillet. That's why it's important to keep the brakes well-ventilated to dissipate the heat as quickly as the drums absorb it. When 57 Chevy cars went to 14" wheels without cooling slots between the wheel centers and the barrel part of the wheel, brake fade and rapid wear problems started showing up pretty regularly. Full-diameter wheel covers on the Bel Air instead of the small dog dish hubcaps on the economy models really made the problems noticeable. 55 and 56 cars with 15" wheels and exactly the same brake systems didn't have the problems the 57's did. The only real difference was the wheel diameter! Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
| | | | | Joined: Sep 2001 Posts: 29,270 Bubba - Curmudgeon | | Bubba - Curmudgeon Joined: Sep 2001 Posts: 29,270 | "On an average-size vehicle, a moderately brisk stop from 60 MPH generates enough heat to MELT a 9" cast iron skillet." No doubt it gets quite hot, and brakes could fade/fail, but are you mixing degrees C and degrees F? examples of brake drum temperatures. It looks like drum brake would totally fail at around 1,250 degrees F? Wikipedia: " . . . the melting temperatures [of various cast iron . . .] usually range from 1,150 to 1,200 °C ( 2,100 to 2,190 °F), . . . " | | | | | Joined: Jan 2006 Posts: 72 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: Jan 2006 Posts: 72 | 49 3100, my truck is a 46 1/2 ton stake. Believe we have the same brake system. Yes, for wear surfaces there is a backing plate with pads where the shoes make contact and an anchor pin which connects the shoes.
Larry
Larry
46 Chevy 1/2 ton stake - family truck for 78 years USAF 75-81
| | | | | Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 29,836 Kettle Custodian (pot stirrer) | | Kettle Custodian (pot stirrer) Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 29,836 | I'm talking about total thermal energy. If you could catch and concentrate the energy the brakes dissipate during a highway-speed stop, you could melt that skillet, or a corresponding weight of cast iron. Brakes MUST dissipate heat as fast as it's applied to the drums and/or discs or a condition called brake "fade" happens- - - -lots of pedal height but no stopping effect because the brake can't absorb any more heat. I experienced that during a 120 MPH ride down Grapevine hill in California in an 18 wheeler that weighed 79K pounds. Talk about mega pucker factor! Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
| | | | | Joined: Mar 2017 Posts: 326 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: Mar 2017 Posts: 326 | As per the conversation regarding lube on brake shoes, I never used any lube on my 69 Mustang and did not put any on my 56 Chevy when I redid the brakes a couple of months ago, and have never had a noise issue. Not sure if it is because of a difference in the set up of the 56 as compared to the older models?
1956 Chevy 3200, 235 w/3 speed
| | | | | Joined: Dec 2001 Posts: 14,522 Moderator: Welcome Centre, Southern Bolters, Legion Hall | | Moderator: Welcome Centre, Southern Bolters, Legion Hall Joined: Dec 2001 Posts: 14,522 | Over my many years I have done brake jobs and never lubed the points. .....didn't have the money to buy the grease but could have gotten some from a ball joint. LOL Anyway, I think the key is for the system to work as "slick" and smooth as possible to "prevent" any possible problems. ....but now that I have a little change left in the pocket I do it every time. Amazing how things change isn't it? | | |
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