Just finished a front wheel bearing and rear parking brake overhaul. Typical NY winter roads have made everything on this truck harder to unbolt and look like it was recovered from under the ocean at some point.
Two tips: order new brake dust shields ahead of time. Mine were shot and delayed the job getting new ones. Also, get a 36mm impact socket on loan from an auto parts chain for the axle nut.
Xtra credit tip: do NOT rotate your axles when the pin is out or your slider gears will fall out and add an avoidable complication to the job. Ask me how I know.

 

I can feel your pain on the corrosion from winder road salt! I hope you also changed the front brake pads while you had everything apart, those are looking pretty thin. The fresh rear parking brake looks fantastic. I never look forward to working on that style of parking brake and they always seem to fail in the same manner - friction material comes free from a shoe.

What is the pin and slider gears you are referring to? Does that pertain to the rear axle - oh, I bet you meant spider gears and the pin so you could remove the axle?

-Rod

 

Yes sir. Not only was the shoe lining gone, the levers that the parking brake cables move were crusty as hell and didn’t allow the assembly to retract. So my cable was sagging like 6” and visible below the running boards.

And yes, spider gears not slider gears. I wasn’t careful enough to not move anything and at some point my spider gears fell out and the two half crescent things that hold the anti-slip clutch packs fell out. Then it becomes a 2 man job while lining things back up and twisting the driveshaft and axles etc to catch the pin. Be forewarned. And I hate the smell of diff fluid.

I like the EBC green pads and rotors for most of my vehicles… these were yellow and didn’t bite as well initially but I bought them b/c I was doing a fair amount of towing. This 5.7 with the 3.92 gears tows nicely but the brakes are not super great under load.

 

As soon as you started mentioning the differential, I could smell the diff fluid. That is a very distinct, and rather unpleasant, smell. At least you shouldn't have to deal with that again for several more years. Thank you for the tips!

-Rod