So I just finished replacing the shoes and drums on my burgundy '76 98 which was not as straightforward as I would have liked. I had ordered everything from my local NAPA because they gave me the best price and turnaround time.

Problems:

1) The shoes looked right so I put everything in.
2) No matter how much I backed out the adjuster and even parking brake cable, the drums would not go on. I could just barely squeeze an old (worn out) drum on but it was very tight.

The guy at NAPA told me the reman shoes for the older cars often are made with the wrong thickness and that he has seen this a lot. After closer inspection, the primary shoe was a bit thicker than the secondary. He pulled another set and they were the same as the first.

I picked up a new set from AutoZone last night, put them and and everything fit perfectly. The NAPA shoes are going back tonight.

Has anybody had this problem before?

 

No, but it makes sense. Factory errors do happen and it does not take much clearance for the drums to not want to fit.
As for it happening often? I kinda doubt it. All depends on the factory and maybe if they were made on a Monday or Friday...
I have changed about 7 sets of shoes and never had an issue.

 

Did you put the shoes in the proper locations there is a leading and trailing shoe. I made this mistake and had the same issue. in the past I got lucky but once it was explained to me here everything fit fine. I belive the wider shoe went towards the front and the thinner one went towards the back. I have had good luck with the autozone shoes in the past and napa.

 

Definitely not. Thanks for the heads-up, though!



Nope, sorry:



- Eric

 

AHHH I stand corrected which is why I questioned my self lol. it has been sometime since I did my drums but I know I installed em right. I had a thread on the issue but I never knew for years. I assume I just got lucky all those times but up until this last time I always used autozone shoes this past time I used napa and finally realized I was doing it wrong. Thanks for clearing that up eric.

 

I dug it up here is the thread. Perhaps the autozone shoes are equal size ?


https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...-question.html

 

The tough part is that the primary shoe is also the smaller shoe. Confuses the whole darned thing.

- Eric

 

The NAPA Auto Zone thing is exactly backwards of what I would expect. I would have bet on NAPA to fit properly.

 

I had a problem with a NAPA shoe being too thick. Not the friction pad but the center support rib. Normally they are around 3/16 inch but this one shoe was closer to 1/4 inch and the center bar with the slots on either end and the wheel cylinder piston ends would not fit around it it was so thick. Never seen that before.

 

The only time i have had problems getting the rear drums back on after a brake job was caused by stuck or sticking parking brake cables.It's been a while so i can't speak for inferior parts.Nick

 

I havent encountered this but I usually use carquest first or NAPA. I stay away from autozone, the counter folks dont like to look up the older stuff..

Lefty loosey
Righty tighty
Big shoe to the back
always made it easier for me to remember

 

I have always used NAPA, but recent problems with quality of remanufactured calipers may change my mind. First set I ordered as loaded (without pads) came as bare calipers. Probably a counterman ordering incorrectly. But even at that, one of the calipers wasn't rebuilt, it was a used one. It was painter silver with brush strokes over the piston boot and old fluid seeping from the inlet hole.


The replacement calipers came in and both leaked at the hose connect hole, after 3 different new copper washers and excessive torque. Plus, one caliper wouldn't slide, even after repeated application of Sil-Glide to the rubber parts.


The third set of calipers came yesterday. Check out the pictures I took of the inlet mounting boss. The left caliper boss looks like it should, with distinct rings like the hoses to seal against the washers. The right one is bad. I reluctantly took it and just as I suspected, it too leaked. I returned it later in the day and they ordered another, but have no way to check if it is any good before it is shipped.


I have never had problems before with NAPA parts, but I am certainly questioning their quality control now. I emailed NAPA on their website, but haven't heard any reply yet. I sure hope they are not sacrificing quality to lower prices. The wasted time and effort to save a couple of bucks is definitely not worth it.


ARE YOU LISTENING NAPA?

 

Wow, this post got a lot of response. The shoes were definitely installed correctly but the added thickness of the NAPA shoes was preventing the drums from going on. After I installed the AZ ones, they slid right on.

I tend to go to a local store that caters well to the older cars and has a local warehouse so getting parts is usually not a problem. The problem is that they are always the most expensive. NAPA is usually my 2nd choice as their prices are typically better but then I've had issues like this. Stores like AZ are usually lower on my list b/c they're more like an overgrown auto section of Wal-Mart to me. Maybe it's just me but that's the impression I get from stores like that. Ordering these shoes was actually a good experience though because I spoke with a manager who actually knew what he was talking about. He also was not confused by me asking for parts for a '76 98. I can't tell you how many times people at auto parts stores have asked me if the car is a 1998!

 

Had they built a Ninety Eight in 1998, people would wonder if we had a stutter...