K2500 Suburban Brake Drum Issue

kf4zht · Jun 20, 2024

Trying to do the rear brakes on my 96 K2500 Suburban (8 lug full float). Issues with the drums I got

Old brakes - 13x2.5 Shoes
3-1/8" Drum braking surface
Drum is about 5" tall. Studs were pressed in from the back, thru the drum and into the hub

New Drums (Autozone PN 8945C - Desc Says for 13x2.57 brakes)
3-1/4" braking surface
Longer outer lip
Drum is about 6-5/8" tall

I pressed the studs into the drums as before and thats when I noticed that when installed on the spindle there are only a couple threads showing on the spindle nut. Are these the wrong drums? Meant to go over the hubs maybe?

Help greatly appreciated. About over this project...

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termite · Jun 20, 2024

You've got the wrong replacement drums. For my 95 suburban k2500, 3.5" shoes are used and there were two options for rear brakes (2.5" and 3.5" shoes), at least in 95.

What's wrong with the original drums? Cracked? Grooved? Worn to the point of being outside of service diameter?

kf4zht · Jun 21, 2024

termite said:
You've got the wrong replacement drums. For my 95 suburban k2500, 3.5" shoes are used and there were two options for rear brakes (2.5" and 3.5" shoes), at least in 95.

What's wrong with the original drums? Cracked? Grooved? Worn to the point of being outside of service diameter?

Yeah, after doing a bunch of looking there are 3 sizes of shoes and 4 sizes of drums. But on another site several people think this is a truck axle that was swapped at some point

Old drums were way past service diameter about 2 shoe swaps ago, the cracks were limited to the front discs -

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From what I could feel on my first decent trip with it (after front brake replacement) the back brakes were doing nothing. No parking brake, very limited braking from the pedal. Adjusters were almost all the way out, one was coated in diff lube, shoe material loose on the other side.

GoToGuy · Jun 22, 2024

You were not referencing the FSM while doing this? This would have helped.

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kf4zht · Jul 11, 2024

So as an update on this, finally got the right drums, its finally sorted and brakes are working.

After talking it over with some chevy guys on irate4x4 it seems pretty likely that this is not the OE rear axle for this and was a truck rear end swapped in. The lack of slide on drums, the width is wrong (wheel spaces were install prior to make it match the front). Its got 290k on the ODO and little history from the PO, who took it in lieu of money owed for work.

GoToGuy said:
You were not referencing the FSM while doing this? This would have helped.

Maybe not, since the brakes do not match what was standard for the suburban options for this year. Per the FSM this would have slide on drums

GoToGuy · Jul 12, 2024

Exactly, your axle is not a factory axle. The axles for given years are illustrated and identified in the FSM , the part number locations, and other data stamped on axle housing.
Just a using a photo of the differential cover then matching it, will get you builder and type.

K2500 Suburban Brake Drum Issue

kf4zht

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termite

Definitely NOT Awesome

kf4zht

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GoToGuy

I'm Awesome

kf4zht

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GoToGuy

I'm Awesome

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