The thing is alot of people Think they know how to do brakes themselves but the really don't. Like bench bleeding Masters , Installing drum brake springs etc.etc. Plus alot of parts that are sold are Chinese/Mexican/Brazilian crap which quality control is a distant dream. If you were to buy all the parts from Ford , and Pay a fortune for them , I guarantee that your problems would be less. I only buy quality brake parts now. It's cheaper in the long run. I also make ALL my own steel lines myself. The flex lines I ussually buy Bendix or OEM.

 

So, everything is new from the brake hose at the caliper to the pads. Proportioning valve has nothing to do with the front brakes.....replacing the brake master isn't the solutions (which I haven't done, but others have with no success). Are the brake lines from the master to the brake hoses at the calipers steel? Poor design that is simply prone to this issue?

 

No , the proportioning valve only controls amount of fluid pressure to rear according to load in truck . I would bleed system with synthetic fliud and if it still persists change the caliper.

 

I've been battling this gremlin as well! I replaced my rotors, calipers, pads and the brake hoses that go directly to the calipers. This time, upon installing the calipers, I put anti-seize on the slides. It's been fine for a few months but now have one caliper hanging up every so often.

Is there a proportioning valve they may be at fault here?

 

resolved

while I was putting on new calipers, I noticed a mismatch on the brake pads this afternoon. The pads are supposed to be exactly the same so they mirror each other. One of the pads that came in the set was not the same as the other 3. I bought a new set this evening at Autozone and installed them along with the new calipers. I flushed and re-bled the brake system with prestone hydraulic brake fluid and am happy to report that all is well. I plan on taking back those pads I bought last winter and demanding my money back. They were purchased at my local Knecht's autoparts store. I strongly recommend that everyone avoid doing business with them.

 

If you do not adjust the rear brakes periodically , I do it every 2000-3000 kms or so , You will get a low pedal, forcing the Fronts to do more work basically. It takes 5 minutes. The hardest Part is Jacking up the truck and putting it in neutral . . . You will need a flat head screwdriver and a good Floor Jack .

 

guys, I appreciate all the responses, but I fail to see how the rear brakes could affect the front ones. I could see it if it randomly started happening, but happening after front pads and new rotors were installed tells me it has nothing to do with the rear brakes. It did not do this before the fronts were replaced. AAR, I purchased reman calipers this evening and some synthetic brake fluid and plan to change them out and re-bleed this weekend. I'll report back my findings.

 

guys, I appreciate all the responses, but I fail to see how the rear brakes could affect the front ones. I could see it if it randomly started happening, but happening after front pads and new rotors were installed tells me it has nothing to do with the rear brakes. It did not do this before the fronts were replaced. AAR, I purchased reman calipers this evening and some synthetic brake fluid and plan to change them out and re-bleed this weekend. I'll report back my findings.

I agree it probably has something to do with your front brakes, since you had been working on them.

Did you let the calipers hang from the hoses when you had them off? If so, they are probably damaged and not letting the pressure in the calipers back into the master cylinder. New front hoses might be a good idea along with those new calipers.

 

I did my front brakes .had trouble with brake pedel fade and overheating front brakes.so I replaced my calipers and master cyl.and still had problems.I found that some V.I. installed the self adjuster backwards on left side rear .I turned it around and that fixed the problem.I would change the calipers and check the rears to make shure there right.also I have a 68 cuda and rear brakes did not work.the rear brake hose was blocked replaced hose now its all good .hope this helps

 

I would adjust the rear brakes and flush the system with new synthetic brake fluid. And if that doesn't work , then I would consider replacing the calipers.

 

Have you looked at the rear brakes lately? I could imagine that if they weren't pulling their weight it would cause the front brakes to get extra toasty.

 

I bet the caliper pistons are freezing on you.

Time for some new calipers.

 

I lubed the caliper slide pins with grease. I could freely move them by hand.
It does not matter which way you install them. My calipers have boots on both sides and the pins are the same on both ends. Only thing I tried was spinning the rotors with everything installed and they are snug. I could spin them, but it took some effort.

 

Sure sounds like the pads are rubbing on the rotors. Is it on both sides or just one? When you "compress" the pistons and reinstall the pads, have another person press on the brakes and watch the pads/caliper. After they make contact have the other person press again and then as you look real close have them "let off" and see if the caliper retracts a little. Did you apply any lube to the caliper pins when you assembled , and are they "oriented" the right way.