tires and brakes on my four winds chevy 3500 chassis

[wpatters1229]

Just to follow up on an old subject. All about tires. I bought 4 new tires for our class c rears from firestone. Inflated them to 80 and the fronts to 75. Ran over 8000 miles this last summer from west coast to east and back. Not one bit of trouble and only had to top off once after half way through the trip. Great tires and the 80/75 psi seems ideal for all the altitude changes, heat and rough roads.
Now my concern is with brakes. Does this rig have disk brakes in the back axle? It is a 2005/2006 Chevy Express 3500 chassis. On real steep down grades as much as I try with down shifting etc. the brakes sometimes get hot to the point where they really start to shimmy...I mean the rotors are warping bad...they seem to straighten out after they cool. Has anyone replaced the fronts with drilled and slotted rotors? I did that with a jeep and it really made a difference.
Let me know your thoughts on the brakes.

Thanks

[wpatters1229]

I just wonder if a large lock washer would be better than all that force. Who has a 221 lb torque wrench and can get in that area to apply that kind of force. Does anyone out there think a lesser torque is dangerous?

[scroller95969]

Didn't quite remember correctly - was off by a couple of pounds. In my Haynes repair manual it says that the caliper mounting bracket bolts for the 2500/3500 are supposed to torque at 221 Ft-lbs. Not sure how accurate the Haynes manual is.

[wpatters1229]

scroller95969 wrote:
Like I said in an earlier post I think that those bolts are supposed to torque at 225#'s. After applying locktite I torqued them with my torque wrench to 180#'s and then used a 1/2" breaker bar with a pipe on it and turned the bolts another 1/8 turn.

225!!! That is crazy for something like this....what could the reason be to have it that high. I have a 1 ton truck chassis 15 passenger van with some pretty big brakes and they have not ever gotten that tight. Oh well I will see if they come off....I certainly will feel if those bolts start to loosen up as it would shake the hell out of the front end. I have a local RV repair place and might just ask them what they think....just curious now. Do you have the place where you found that spec?

[wpatters1229]

The torque is not that high but they use locktite as you can see it on the threads as grey color on the threads. I have never used locktite on any brake mounting bolts and have driven for 50 years and never had anything come loose. In the old days did not even use a torque wrench. I think all is fine at around 100 ft lbs. I could not even find anything that gave me the torque for those bolts. They are I believe a 13/16 socket. They are much easier once they are removed and put back. I really do not believe these where ever removed but I may be wrong since I am the second owner and it has 123,000 miles.

[scroller95969]

Like I said in an earlier post I think that those bolts are supposed to torque at 225#'s. After applying locktite I torqued them with my torque wrench to 180#'s and then used a 1/2" breaker bar with a pipe on it and turned the bolts another 1/8 turn.

[j-d]

The big bolts that hold the Caliper Mounting Brackets onto the rest of the Spindle Knuckle? On Ford they're probably metric around maybe 16mm, 21mm socket. I couldn't get ours off when I replaced a caliper during a trip. Even 1/2" drive breaker bar was difficult. I have a 3/4" drive set and used a reducer to 1/2" for my socket. As I recall the torque for those is more than the wheels.

[wpatters1229]

Final update....got both fronts done....***** of a time with the locktite on the caliper bolts...not the slider ones but the main bolts. Had to use a breaker bar, 4lb hammer and then a air torque drive to finally get them out. Did not put them back with locktite but just torqued them to 110 lbs. Used the slotted and dimpled rotors with semi-metalic pads. Took it out to break the pads in to the rotors and it is as smooth as can be. Break Performance did me right and I recommend them. Price is right and they know what to use. http://brakeperformance.com/

[j-d]

If the wheels stay on there any extended period of time...at least in a humid area like FL with salt added in beachfront camping...you'll find out how close that fit is. I was able to kick and shake the fronts off the hubs. Sitting beside it and kicking with both feet got the rear outers off. Rear inners? Couldn't budge by hand or foot. Ended up using a piece of 4x6 fence post I had, about 4-ft long, like a battering ram. Our wheels have an extra 7/16" hole between two of the stud holes. I threaded them 1/2 NF (20-thread) and use an old boat trailer lug bolt to force stuck wheels loose. I had to install the rears so the valves are one hole away from directly opposite. Othewise those "now-puller-holes" would line up. I'd be screwing the wheels together instead of pushing them apart.
That Hub-Piloted is a good system. You'll like it. Many of us put Never-Seez in that area before mounting the wheels. I've heard of loosening the nuts and moving the coach a little to loosen the wheels. Only the rear inners seem to be the sticking problem.

[wpatters1229]

Yep sounds like the same engineer. Lug nuts with built in washers and some slop in the difference between wheel stud hole and lug bolt. Torque is the same. I guess if they came loose you sure would know it as it bangs back and forth inside that hole. Hope to never hear it!

[j-d]

If you Chevy is like the current Fords, the wheels are HUB Piloted. Close fit between round hole at wheel center and a raised surface on the hub. The holes the studs pass through are larger than the studs, and the Nuts have a built-in Washer. For Ford, the studs are around 9/16" diameter and torque spec is 140.

[wpatters1229]

UPdate. Did one side of the rig today...too hot to work all day. Easy to take apart except I believe this is the first time the whole assembly has been removed as the locktite was a ***** to loosen up. Got the slotted and dimpled rotors with semi-metallic pads. Pretty nice. Now the only question I have is after putting the hub back on when I put on the wheel I see that the lug bolts are not centered in the holes. The wheel is centered but the lug nuts to not have any centering piece like on most of my cars. Is this normal? I know the lug nut torque is 140 ft lbs so I do not think it is a problem but it is just curious that they do not center left to right in the holes...hope that makes sense.

[IAMICHABOD]

I and a few friends use the Cenric brand Posi-Quiet Severe Duty Brake Pad.

No squeaking, no dust and quick sure stops,the Semi Metallic, Do Not get the ceramic ones.

Here is the link for mine
I use These on my Yukon

[wpatters1229]

Just went out to read the 8 pg previous posts and my question in all of this is why folks do not describe what MH (motorhome) they have? I have a four winds 2005 Chevy chassis 28ft. It has rear disk brakes and it appears to have sealed front bearings as there is no dust cap inside the hub, just a round disk. Guess the Chevy 3500 for this year is all disk. I do not see any rust on the calipers not to say that the slides are not sticking....everything you guys talk about on the other closed forum back in 2012 is stuff that I have had happen on various trucks and vans....they actually make a tool for adjusting drum brakes. Used to have a 56 Chevy and that was how you kept the brakes right. Surprises me the comments about people not knowing to back up for automatic adjusting of rear brakes....that has been that way for years...guess too many youngsters out there! I think the only thing I need to be concerned with is getting things apart. Not having done this rig before I always like to ask tons of questions. I am pretty sure I will replace the rotors with slotted and dimpled since they give the best results for getting rid of the hot gasses even when fully stopped. Also semi-metallic pads as they seem the best for large rigs. Just need to replace glide slides and make sure the caliper pistons are working right. I had a dodge van years ago with a sticking piston and the replacement was a metal piston...it was a B^%$H to get in. I would just replace the whole caliper. Brakes are nothing to mess with and money is not worth the disaster that can occur if they fail. Do you notice that you can not buy rebuilt kits for brake cylinders anymore? That is because too many people used them and did not do a proper job...result was brake failure and people died. New parts are worth the money and if they do fail you have someone to go after. Just my 3 cents worth (inflation)...love these forums. Will update when I get this done.
Almost forgot...brake fluid...should be changed when it gets dark and no longer honey colored. Always use fresh and you can flush it yourself if you have a partner but those machines do make for an easier job....just costs $$$ for the shops time. I have had a jeep done for $100. CA might be more expensive than other parts of the country.

[scroller95969]

wpatters1229 wrote:
Did much more research and actually the industry states that semi-metalic pads are far better for heavy vehicles than ceramic and they stop better in high heat. That is why most kits containing a rotor and pads use these. That is what I am going with and heavy inspection of the calibers....I have had sticking calibers before on other vehicles along with bad and worn guides. Thanks Will look at the link Rolin sends.

That's why I went with semi-metallics when I replaced rotors and pads a couple of years ago. Also my reasoning was that the semi-metallics wouldn't wear on my $400.00 rotors as bad. Figured I would just replace the pads every couple of years. Just replaced pads last Sunday and the rotors look great. Pads still had about 1/3 wear left on them. When I tried to buy semi-metallic at O'Reilly's last week they only had the ceramic that they sell for the 3500 express. Had to go to Autozone to get the semi-metallic.