wait a min. i thought we are fixing the problem ??? if your master cylcinder is leaking wouldnt be best to fix the problem before spend money on rotors ??? so you spend the money on these rotors and pads will this fix your problem.. LOL.

 

Yeah man, I'll agree you need new brake pads, but if there's nothing wrong with your current rotors, save the money on the new ones and buy a new master cylinder. or depending on the damage fix the one you have. That's definetly more important toward your stopping power than any rotors are going to be.

 

I would also check the master cylinder on your 1995
like others have said.

Keep in mind that on a 1995 Ram the brakes are made by Delco
and similar to the GM pickups.

Below are two older posts with some info that might be of use.

Although the Bendix front pads have been good on my '95, based on what
others have tried I think perhaps the Hawk Performance pads might
be a bit better although the dust on the wheels might be more.
Good luck on your brake work.
Check for rusted lines too.
=====

Over the past 3 weeks I have been changing out the brakes on my 1995 model
year 1500 Ram ClubCab 2wd.

The original factory front pads and rear shoes were changed out on this truck
back at 61,000 miles. Chrysler instruction sheet K6855323AB says these
original brake parts were a "Delco 243EE" set, although the front pads had
markings that said:

DM 128FE 7259/0 2/1 on the outboard pad
DM 128FE 8154 7259-1 1/1 on the inboard pad
Delco243EE**Delco243EE on rear shoes

I changed these original brake parts to 'improved' Mopar Replacements that
were recommended by Dodge in 1998 to improve brake performance in 1994-BR/BE
1996 Ram Truck 1500 Series.

This was a $156 kit bought at the dealer, part number 05013447AA.
I wrote up a report to DiRT on this Thu Apr 08 07:27:13 1999.

The instruction sheet K6855323AB included with the kit says that the improved
brake parts are a "Delco 224 FF" set of front pads BXH3EEE9278127E matched
with special rear shoes that are indeed marked Delco224FF.

These brake parts lasted on my truck from 61,000 miles to 140,000 miles, at
which time the front pads still had 3/16 inch thickness, but the rear shoe
thickness had worn away enough that the rivets had scored the brake drum
surface. I have to admit both styles of Delco parts lasted for a very good
life.

Prior to taking off the Delco 224FF brake parts I did 5 full stops with the
truck from 60 mph on a level asphalt road in dry 60-70 degree weather. I
would accelerate up to 60 mph then hit the brake pedal when I felt the front
tires hit an expansion joint in the road. I measured from the expansion joint
to where the nose of the truck stopped with a tape measure.
Results were:

219 feet
223 feet
204 feet
228 feet
197 feet
Average = 214 feet

When I had Bridgestone Dueler HL 245 75 R16 tires on this truck the tire tread
had so much dry traction that I could not cause the tires to skid in a panic
stop from 60 mph no matter how hard or quickly I hit the pedal.

In the above 5 tests I found that with Michelin LTX MS 245 75 R16 tire tread
pattern and rubber the truck would skid easily.

I have the standard Rear Wheel Anti-Lock (RWAL) system built by Kelsey Hayes,
not the optional ABS system.

Much of the variation from the worst 223 feet to the best 197 foot stop I feel
was due to skidding causing me to release the pedal momentarily. Even so, I
developed a flat spot on one of the rear wheels and there is now a slight
vibration - or maybe the Bendix drums aren't balanced properly.

I put Bendix AF462 shoes ($32.99) on the rear
with new Bendix #140660 drums ($54)
{both the above drums had 2 disturbing big balance weights welded to them}
replaced star wheel adjusters on both sides:
1531/F73182S USA Brake Parts ($12)
1530/F73181S, "Made in USA"
{the two sides have different left/right threads}
and replaced the original 1500 series
15/16 inch dia wheel cylinders with
1 and 1/16 inch diameter wheel cylinders:
TruTorque W79767/Raybestos WC37290 ($11) "Made in Italy"
that are standard equipment on 3500 series Rams.

The larger wheel cylinders
with their 28% greater piston area
bolted right in with no modifications needed.

With just the rear shoes changed to Bendix,
and wheel cylinders changed out to the larger diameter,
I did 5 more 60-0 stops:

199 feet
208
220
195
210
Average = 206 feet

I then:
changed the front pads to Bendix MKD369FM ($54.39),
polished the 4 rusty caliper sliding surfaces with a abrasive rubber wheel on
a Dremel tool,
lubed these 4 surfaces with a coating of NeverSieze the thickness of a
cigarette paper,
lubed the caliper bolts and sleeves with 10 drops of "BreakFree",
flushed and bled the brake fluid using two large bottles of Valvoline SynPower
Dot 3/4 brake fluid,
-- and then did 6 more 60-0 stops:

176 feet
191
177
200
167
192
Average = 184 feet

On these 6 stops the brake pedal had a good 'progressive' feel that allowed me
to stop with less skidding, but I think the pedal is not as firm as it should
be if all the air bubbles were out of the lines. I intend to bleed the 4
brakes again.

{Why did Dodge put a different size brake bleeder fitting on the rear versus
the front? Why is the front bleeder a metric wrench size, and the rear one
English?}

It is possible that I am feeling more brake pedal movement because it takes
28% more brake fluid to move the larger rear cylinders the same distance.

The above numbers are not as precise as I would like,
but my best guess is that these changes improved the
rear brakes about 4%,
and the front brakes improved about another 6%.

I feel better knowing I can stop about 30 feet shorter now.

My best two stops from 60 mph were 167 ft and 176 feet.

The best sports cars stop in 110-120 feet from 60 mph - at least according to
magazine reviews.

I guess we should all leave an extra 60-70 feet between our trucks and a
sports car in front of us - because they can stop shorter than we can. I have
seen a lot of Rams on the road with front bumper damage indicating they could
not stop in time.
===========
Subject: 97 Delco Brake Mas.Cyl. fix for 95-96 Rams?

In 'Mopar Muscle Magazine' there is a letter to the editor from a guy that
claims to be a product engineer for Raybestos Brakes. He says that he
bought a used '95 1500 Ram from a friend - likes the truck - but he (and
the previous owner) were unhappy with the slow stopping brakes.

He said that he noticed at his work spec'ing brake equipment that the 95-97
Rams have Delco brake parts, and that in 97 Dodge started equiping the
1500's with a Delco 1.25 inch diameter piston in the brake master cylinder,
whereas in 95 and 96 the brake cylinder piston had been a smaller 1.125
diameter.

(Going from 1.125 to 1.25 would give you 23% more fluid volume in the stroke for
the same foot pedal travel)

He said that he installed the 1997's larger 1.25 diameter master cylinder
on his '95 Ram and that it made a big difference in braking performance and
pedal firmness. He recommends that other 95-96 Ram owners make this
upgrade because, and I quote, he "sees a lot of Ram's on the road with
front end damage."