I had a wheel cylinder leak on my Corvair, and now there is brake fluid all over the shoes. I hate to get new ones as these only have like a hundred miles on them. Is there some kind of solvent that won't destroy the friction material? I know that if there is a way, somebody on here knows what it is.
The best way is to throw them away and replace. Your solvent fear? Already happened, just with brake fluid.
It is not uncommon for brake fluid soaked shoes to disbond from the backing. Chuck'em and start over or you make end up buying a drum too.
Best thing is to replace them with new. "If you really have to because you're broke" then try putting them in the oven for a few hours, or until they stop smoking. Best to do this when momma ain't around.
We used to used K2R spot lifter to get soaked-in castor oil out of balsa+plywood model airplanes so glue would stick for repairs.
Hose 'em down with some, brush off, heat, cool, install.
Or buy new ones. That's what I did on the Sprite. Then I popped for new drums and wheel cylinders too...
Bear in mind what can happen when the friction material departs the backing plate, had this happen on my e150 after re-using a pair of gear oil soaked shoes. I like going sideways, I do not like going sideways in a 2 ton van in the snow on a double parked street.
My Samurai dripped oil from the back of the head, down an inspection port and onto the clutch.
Slippage occured.
44Dwarf suggested filling a garden sprayer with Dawn dish detergent and hot hot hot water, spray it down.
It worked. 
If you're going to toss the shoes anyway, try this.
Dan
914Driver wrote: My Samurai dripped oil from the back of the head, down an inspection port and onto the clutch. Slippage occured. 44Dwarf suggested filling a garden sprayer with Dawn dish detergent and hot hot hot water, spray it down. It worked.
Hmmm, if the clutch comes apart under heavy load, you're stranded. if brake shoes come apart under heavy load, you may be dead.
having said that, i'm going to go out on a limb and ponder that perhaps brake shoes are tested to be structurally impervious to brake fluid, and that of all the available solvents, Dawn dishwashing detergent and hot water is pretty benign.
now i'm going to come back off that limb because if you're talking about aftermarket parts, all bets are off. they might not even do dimensional checks before shipping. and since you're talking about a Corvair, you're definitely talking aftermarket shoes.
i'm older and wiser and make more money than i used to. as such, i'd buy new.
Datsun1500 wrote:Dr. Hess wrote: Best thing is to replace them with new. "If you really have to because you're broke"....Sometimes it's not a matter of being broke. It could just mean you are 6 hours from home and driving a 45 year old Japanese car..... I think the best part was when someone said "looks like you blew a seal" and you reponded "Just fix the damn thing and leave my private life out of it, OK pal."
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