Never have liked them, but the ones on a F350 make me hate them with a burning passion you can only imagine. I've said more cuss words in the last three hours than I have in the last three months and I'm still not done. The wheel cylinders have apparently been leaking for a while and they are caked with a gross mix of ground up springs, shoe dust and cast iron. I could probably patent it and sell it as a indelible ink. Yuck!!!
funny thing is, just the other day i was talking to some drum brakes, and they said berkeley Toyman01!
I will have to agree with you on the drums....
The drums on my 1960 Caddy are 13" in dia. 
After you've done a few hundred drum brake jobs, they aren't that bad.
I don't mind them that much, but yeah, would rather work on disks. Only thing that really bugs me is it seems like it's impossible to get adjusters to work on any drum system more than 15 years old.
Have you done GM RWD drum brakes? They're pretty damn easy.
I second the burning hatred for drums, I won't do em. Period. I did the drums on my third gen camaro ONCE! When they wore out, it was the perfect time to install that disk rear end I hunted down right after the last brake job.
"fun" memories of old jap import cars/trucks with brakes that dug deeply into the drums causing release issues... such "fun"
AngryCorvair wrote: funny thing is, just the other day i was talking to some drum brakes, and they said berkeley Toyman01!
drum brakes... I know I've expressed my opinion about a car with that....
Lightweights !!
Anyone can do disks, it takes a Real Man to do Drums.
(Toolman Tim Arrh, Arrh, Arrh!)
Fix the leaks. Smarter people than you and I (Engineers) decided drums were enough to stop the truck. Discs aren't required, but whatever you have maintenence IS required.
The schmegma you see is a combination of brake fluid and brake dust. Clean it up, buy a kit of new brake springs, shoes and chatchkas and it will be fine.
You'll sleep better.
Don't big drums have advantages over large disks. Say like in the heavy trucking industry.
http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/grm/drum-brakes-ugh/43509/page1/
DrBoost wrote: After you've done a few hundred drum brake jobs, they aren't that bad.
Agree
They're done, as well as replacing the side window seals and changing a lower control arm on the Venture. Not a bad days work I guess.
The PO apparently ignored the leaks and the grinding noises coming from the rear axle. 
I noticed when I bought it the brake fluid in the master cylinder looked very clean for a high mileage truck and both drums were wet. Both sides were so caked with goo you almost couldn't see the springs and adjusters. They had been leaking for a while. It's isn't that they are hard to do, they are just so damn messy and everything on a F350 is heavy. The drivers side drum was almost cut through where one of the springs got caught between the shoe and drum. I guess you can't expect much better when you buy a cheap truck. At least everything wasn't rusted together. It got new shoes, new wheel cylinders, spring kits and drums. It will just about throw you through the windshield now.
It's going to be hauling a 10K pound camper to CMP next weekend, so brakes will be kind of important. I have to install the rails for a 5th wheel hitch tomorrow and fix the screwed up wiring for the trailer brakes. Should be another fun filled day.
Toyman01 wrote: everything on a F350 is heavy.
Same with my F250....Plus add in one 1k# lump of diesel propulsion between the fenders additional to mine.
One of the reasons I am seriously considering selling it, even though I absolutely still love it. 
Rust and all.
I grew up w/ drum brakes front and rear. Front discs were a berkeleying blessing. To this day drums don't bother me (much) 
Atleast the drums were seperate from the hubs on my F350. The rotor/hubs on my F450 were a pain to do without hurting the axle seal.
Other than wheel cylinders, which I can usually replace without taking the rest of the mess apart, I won't work on the damn things anymore. Too many springs and little pieces of hardware that break.
'65 F100? Swapped the front to discs.
'79 Austin Mini? Swapped the front to discs.
Impending purchase of a vintage Ford Falcon? Already priced the kits.
I'm not the wildest about any brake job but a well maintained drum setup is not that bad to work on. Even a poorly maintained system can usually be coaxed along with some PB blaster and a BMFH which is much cheaper than disk conversions, especially on certain models.
iceracer wrote:DrBoost wrote: After you've done a few hundred drum brake jobs, they aren't that bad.Agree
I wasn't going to say this, but I kinda like them. I think it's because I'm meticulous, I disassemble the adjusters and clean the threads, I clean the contact pads and apply light lube, adjust them near perfectly, stuff like that. I've had a few customers call me back to tell me specifically how the car stops like it did when it was new. Makes my cockles all warm and fuzzy.
Wally wrote: Atleast the drums were seperate from the hubs on my F350. The rotor/hubs on my F450 were a pain to do without hurting the axle seal.
I loved that about my 91 F350, much easier to do the drum brakes. Unfortunately the Dana 70 in my Dually doesn't have the drums separate from the hub. Not looking forward to that brake job.
Having owned more than one 4 wheel drum brake car, they don't bother me, especially if you have the right tools.
Second the right tools comment. Having tools that do the job correctly is probably the biggest key to relieving headaches. Biggest thing I've seen is that drum brakes get ignored until they're in horrible shape, usually metal to metal contact, and by then they've seen too much heat, brake dust, and rust. And yeah, dually drum brakes are in a different league.
Do you have the special pliers and hold down tool for dealing with drums? I never have an issue with them, do one side at a time, work slow, no problems.
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