I'm in the process of re-doing my rear brakes...

Thanks to storm101s help......and some xanax....I'm slowly making some progress..

A couple of questions....

In looking over the hardware kit I bought at AAP...it doesn't appear that it includes a parking break link spring.... Mine was so corroded it broke in half while taking everything apart.. Being that it seems to be the wimpiest of all the springs...why isn't it included in the kit?...Can I buy it separately?..

Next...the little pin that needs to be pressed into the shoe... I've tried banging it in....squeezing it in with a large C clamp and a nut on the other side...and the friggin thing will not seat all the way in.... Anyone else have this problem before?...I was going to try reaming out the hole it fits in but I'm afraid that it won't fit tight enough if I do ...Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated...Thanks

 

not sure what spring you're talking about, but they do make a few different kits, and I remember at napa you could get more separate parts...a pic could help me help you there, and that pin....get it in a bench vice with a small socket on the other side....those are fun lol...just continue being sane while doing so!

 

It's the spring that fits on the left end of the bar that goes between the top of the shoes...labeled at about 10 o'clock in this picture...





As for the pin.... I'll try using the vice we have at work....Hope you're keeping track of how much I owe you for all your advice.......Seriously thanks again..

 

lol I was thinking that was the spring, I just don't like technical names lol, as another tip on that shoe, position it carefully as to only have pressure on the pin and socket, it's vital for the slide in and I'm not sure how much those shoes will hold pressure wise if it happens to be misaligned.

haha and you don't owe anything, these xjs and cf have become a passion since my first fix, and I'm a strong believer in diy....plus why not save someone else the headaches I've had with some things, such as drum brakes...so it's not a problem!

back the spring, I'll try to hunt you one down when I've got a few, it's kiddos bedtime

 

https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f51/ho...kes-d35-45100/
This is the page that I found that convinced me to join the forum. Before I found this page I was having the same problems you describe and the stupid Haynes manual was steering me wrong. Hope this guides you through. Oh yeah I remember the pins. I got a c-clamp and pushed em in, after an hour or two of other failed attempts. LOL, was about ready to ream them with a drill also.

 

Thanks for the link....The pictures are great...

Now about the those little pins...This is getting ridiculous...

I brought the shoe and pin to work and tried to press it in using a vice..
Now granted it's not a huge vice...but big enough to seem like it should have no problem pushing the pin thru... Well it didn't work...as a matter of fact the vice broke...One of the "jaws" snapped off...

There can be no good reason to make this stupid little pin so hard to push in...The brand of brakes I bought from AAP is Wearever.... Maybe their quality control is crap?... I will next attempt to drill the hole bigger or try honing the pin down..

At this point I don't care if I screw it up and have to buy another set of shoes... These are useless to me if I can't get the pin in anyway...

Due to proper medication.. I'm still maintaining a positive attitude that I'll someday be able to drive my Jeep again

 

The pins are crazy close tolerance, could be that your pads are out of spec. Mine came from Autozone. Duralast Golds or something like that. I'm no expert but, I think the first thing to try is to go after the pad holes, try to ream them out just a little and then add a little lube to the pin then press it in

 

Success!...Well 50% success anyway...maybe 45%.... still gotta bleed them after I do the other side..

Finally got the pin in... reamed out the hole a little and sanded the finish off the pin with 220...Still was a mother to get in...

Went back to AAP in search of the wimpy spring... Not in any of the hardware kits... Didn't come with a new bar... Wasn't listed as a separate part.. Was about to give up but one of the older guys there went in back and brought out a bunch of different link springs.. We matched up my broken one until we found one that was almost an exact match... Seemed to seat the way it's suppose to..
Everything else went pretty easy.. only had to run in and check the pictures a few times..

Got the other side marinading in Pblaster and going to hit it in the morning... Thanks AGAIN to storm101 and nielsenml.... hopefully I won't have any more questions...for now anyway..