Easy steps to fixing your own brakes on Blazer.
1.Front brake locking up.
2.Tear a part and diagnose.
3. Not the caliper, not the slides.
4. Collapsed brake line is diagnosed.
5. Notice Brake fluid running out of back drivers side wheel.
6. Blown wheel cylinder
7. Purchase New front rubber Brake line, and new wheel cylinder.
8. Take rear wheel and drum off. Notice it looks bad in there.
9. Call up town for price on parts. 2 drums, shoes, new spring set and one more wheel cylinder. $249 up town.
10. Call Mount pleasant. $111 there. All in stock.
11. Drive to M.P. Friday and get parts.
12. Drive to M.P. Saturday. Right part numbers. wrong boxes. Wrong Drums. Get the right drums.
13. Tear down drivers side.
14. Bust up most of my knuckles and acquire several cuts trying to remove wheel cylinder circlip.
15. Bust up the rest of them installing the new circlip on new wheel cylinder.
16. Spend most of the day trying to figure out the right way to install the auto adjuster. turns out it is the wrong one and never did work.
17. Call and order new adjuster kits for both sides. won't be in until Monday.
18. Go to pick up parts Monday. Supplier sent one right side part, and one wrong left side part. Re order left side adjuster. Won't be here until Tuesday.
19. Come home, actually get the right rear together.
20. Tear drivers side apart.
21. Re-open knuckle wounds.
22. First wheel cylinder purchased won't fit.
23. Return to parts store. they swear it is the right one. I have the old one. They swear its the same.
24. I swear.
25. I ask for a different one insisting that the casting must be bad.
26. Guy rolls his eyes and entertains my request.
27. Go back home.
28. Call bak to auto parts store to say, nana nana na na. I was right. The casting was bad, new part fits.
29. Here I am, now waiting until Tuesday for the replacement adjuster kit for the driver side. What next?
30. Thinking about taking advantage of my newly discovered supply of Detroit Tiger bandaids and watching opening day game.
I hope the metal brake lines are ok ? and good catch on collapsed brake hose.
Jeff,
Are you sure I wasn't there trying to help you. Most of my brake/wheel bearing jobs go like that. ::) ::) ::) ::) ::) ::) ::) ::) The front wheel bearing job on my diesel F250.......got the wrong set of bearings/hubs three times from 3 different stores. Had to go to Ford to get the right ones.
Bruce
I thought I was the only one who had days like that. I feel your pain.
I would have saved the "nana nana na na" untill you got all the right
parts... They still might have the last laugh...
I plum wore out a blazer . It had disc brakes all around. The first time i changed them i found one of the rear calipers on upside down ! Someone had put 2 left side calipers on it and made it work ! :o
The only difference between a rite and left caliper is the bleeder screw. You can bleed it at the hose if needed. It will work just fine
Well how about that. I always thought only Fords did steps 1-30. ;D
Shore is Monday HUH boss?
PC
Having a good, honest mechanic available to leave it with, priceless :D.
Sounds like any brake job I have done.
I feel your pain.
UPDATE!
31. MY PART DID NOT C O M E I N!! ARGH...
So, now, the beat goes on for the 5th day, tomorrow being the 6th, when supposedly it will be here. At that time I should find out what the next step is in the FIASCO! :D
32. Cut holes in the floor and change my name to FRED.
Quote from: Kbeitz on April 03, 2017, 06:55:31 PM
I would have saved the "nana nana na na" untill you got all the right
parts... They still might have the last laugh...
I'm dealing with 3 different part stores. The one that sold me the defected cylinder, is all that they sold me. I got a new working one from them, and they are now dead to me. They are also the ones that gave me a quote $130 higher than the place I bought the rest of the parts. The local NAPA is where they can't get the adjuster part right.
33. Parts arrived again.
34. Assemble.
35. adjust rears and bleed brakes.
36. Test drive. Pulls hard left, front right doesn't seem to be working.
37. Back into the barn.
38. Pull front right wheel that I never had off.
39. Has new pads just like front left has.
40. Go inside and ruminate. Thinking the right brake line may be collapsed as well.
41. Contemplating nap.
Try taking the fuse out for the anti lock brakeep. If everything works as it should then there is a problem in the anti lock valve
Nothing like a good nap to make problems go away. I had a brand new 89 chevy truck the brake lines separated and were shot at 2k miles. The ball joints lasted 4k miles. :)
Quote from: snowstorm on April 05, 2017, 03:10:19 PM
Try taking the fuse out for the anti lock brakeep. If everything works as it should then there is a problem in the anti lock valve
no abs on this 84
Can you crack the bleeder on that one while having wifey stand on the brake pedal to verify that fluid is being pumped over there properly?
Got round to working on the brakes again this morning. One of the caliper bolts is stripped. Pads cracked from twisting in the slides, and caliper chewed up from what looks like someones crooked c-clamp, plus the line is partially obstructed. So, I'm not going to do just one side. Calipers and pads for everybody! :-\
Jeff, at least you can do the work, or at least that's the bright side I see with everything I own ;). I do wish for "nicer things" from time to time but don't mind a little elbow grease either. My parts man and I have become very good friends :D
The saga continues. Tammy picked up the parts on her way home from work. I went out to put them on. They gave her all wrong parts.
i buy a lot of my parts from the dealer be it ford or volvo or ih. give them the last 8 of the vin and they know what that truck was built with. the quality is better and most of the time the price is less than napa and the others
I just had a shouting match with a parts guy in Mt. pleasant auto-zone. I called yesterday to have the parts ready for Tammy. We took them all back this morning. There was 6 guys behind the counter. I went to the one on the end. Put the parts up there and said "We need to find out why these were wrong. Last night I called and ordered these for an S10 Blazer and..." At that moment, thesecond guy from the other end, who is dealing with his own customer pipes up. "You never said S10! You just said Blazer" I said, um... Yes I did. The guy starts to argue with me, and he's not even waiting on me. I asked him how many custemers he delat with yesterday. He says "hundreds!" I said, "well I only dealt with one parts guy and I know exactly what I ordered." It went back and forth and I AM *pithed! Not about the wrong parts, but because this guy is i d-head. Tammy knew I was about to really lose it and laid her hand on my side when I said give me my flippin money back and I'll go get my parts from another flippin parts place. I did not say flippin. The guy I was working with, calmly asked if I really wanted to do that or just buy the parts as he already had them on the counter through this. I told him he needed to get that other guy out of my flippin sight first. The d-head turned around and took off somewhere and was gone up until Tammy and I left. Tammy told me that when she got there last night, the parts had not been pulled, and the note the girl had that pulled the parts, said "S10 blazer written on it.
I hadn't been that angry in a long time. There were other customers in ther and they all just shut up. tammy thought I was going to go down and drag that guy over the counter. I was thinking about it.
I'm lucky in that the local Car Quest I do business with is very good. We farm out 99.99% of our auto repair to a local shop so most of what they get for is heavy equipment related. The shop we use is very good, fair and good friends now as well. They get a lot of their parts from Car Quest too. All that said has anyone ever used http://www.rockauto.com/ ? ???
Good luck Jeff. I don't have the patience to work vehicles anymore.
I don't mind the working part. I actually enjoy the wrenching. Its the parts fools that are giving me the attitude!
There are counter guys at Car Quest that I won't go to. I'll wait for a good one I know. One kid didn't give me a long receipt with my company name and no tax. I've got an account there. I called him on it and he told me I should have told him in a snippy tone. I said "listen here you little f####r I'm in here all the time. You need to pay attention". He was going to say something else but one of the owners cut him off and straightened things out ;) ;D He takes a wide berth when I come in the store now.
I have had my best luck buying the parts online from my local NAPA and then pick them up at the store. NAPA gives you a 10% discount and I always get the right parts.
Quote from: Corley5 on April 07, 2017, 01:47:23 PM
All that said has anyone ever used http://www.rockauto.com/ ? ???
Being a Yooper I don't get ta choose between too many parts stores. :D That being said I have gotten parts from Rock Auto many times. They have a lot more choices when looking at brands, and usually much better prices. And I have yet to get the wrong part shipped.
The local supplier usually don't have the part I need, and I would have to wait for it anyway.
Corley5 - you asked about rockauto. I've ordered through them quite a few times and I'm very happy with them. Just don't forget to tally up the shipping as well as the super cheap prices available there. When I need parts I check them, Amazon and Ebay. Between all three I've saved thousands of dollars from buying at the stores uptown.
The last for instance is knock sensors and wire harness for v6 Toyota engine. Somewhere between 4 and 5 hundred at stores and under 100 through ebay and this is for denso parts which is toyota oem supplier and top of the line. The original parts lasted 17 years in the Florida heat.
Some people never make a mistake. ::)
I work in a hardware store. I send people out the door a few times with the wrong part. But in my defense,it is hard to understand how some plumbing items are put together too. :D When I see that person an hour later,I do try to tell them I am sorry. But they understand because most times the way they explain and the way I understand it,is two diffeant things. ;D
I had no problem with getting the wrong part. It happens, and it happens to me a lot. My problem was this fool this morning that somehow needed to run his trap. I had to go back this afternoon to turn in my calipers to get my core charge back. As soon as I walked in I got an apology from the man that was waiting on me. He said that other guy was out of line and he knew it. I somehow think the only way he knew, was it was pointed out when I left.
That person that had the trap problem should of been the one to apology.
I forgot,some people never make a mistake. ::)
I apologized back as I was loud and I was angry, and there were other customers in there. The good counter guy told me He thought i handled myself well and had nothing to apologize for. I was pretty steamed. I had my Forestry Forum hat and coat on too, and I always try to set a good example when I am representing the Forestry Forum. This was one time I did not.
Big Blazer was a K5 in parts books, S10 also meant the pickup truck. To avoid confusion GM switched to Tahoe 2 dr and 4 dr. Sounds like communications are good now .
I work at the local salebarn so I'm not only trying to please the buyer but also the seller, that can get tricky and I've had to bite my tongue many times with both. I don't think your apology was needed but like you said when you're representing a business it should be professional so that's what I try to do, our last sale was really a challenge for me :D. I hope you get the brakes going (or stopping) soon.
The Brakes are complete! Stops quick and stops straight. Now on to the next issue. Whoever put the lift kit in it, never aligned anything. The wheel camber is horrible on the front, so it steers hard in turns. Add in the positive traction and you can imagine. They have the torsion bars cranked up to get the front even with the back, so, it rides pretty rough. I need to get an alignment before I turn Tammy lose with it. :)
We did take it up town to get an extra set of keys made and some gas in the tank. It does real well in a straight line. You have to be careful though. With the positive traction and the shift kit, yer squalling the tires unintentionally. Get on the gas at all when taking off and it chirps the tires when it shifts out of first, and the outside tires when turning a corner.
I'm thinking you might better get a wrench on every single new thing added for the lift. There are a few safety things that weren't taken care of so who knows what else was skipped over. All the bolts and nuts and clamps, etc. I would check for tight. Just sayin'. I don't trust folks who take shortcuts on safety items like brakes and alignments. :)
Did it. :)
Actually, I don't think anything was skipped over per say. I think they just were not got to yet. :)
Gotcha. Good news then, everything's just about done and ready. Always a good feeling. Just about there with a "new" car for wifey here as well. Gotta keep momma happy or else ain't nobody happy!
Not really. We just needed another vehicle is all... :laugh:
I've enjoyed this thread for the main reason that it takes me back to my youth when I was doing all the truck stuff. Good memories of a better and simpler time in my life. Probably in everyone's life for that matter...
S10 came with a steering box but there is a performance rack and pinion available for only $1,000.
Holy crap. Guess I'd find a junked car and do some cobbing rather than pay that. A couple days and a little welding and everything would be better for awhile. Big tires are kinda vague anyways with road feel so a rack probly wouldn't help a whole lot anyways, do ya think?
Everything is $1,000 any more . Maybe there is a chance it has a rack already?
Also the 1991 GMC Syclone was all wheel drive to reduce tire spin . 35% to front wheels 65% to back wheels. It would be nice to know what transfer case they put in your S10 Blazer.