62gal

My 62 wants to swerve to the right when I hit the brakes hard. The front brake cylinders have been sleeved and new seals installed, all the brake lines including the rubber hoses are new. When the car warms up it seems to do better. And I did adjust the brakes according to the manual, any ideas.

ChattanoogaJSB

Pull the drums and check all the wheel cylinders for leaks. You may be able to see brake fluid running down the inside of the backing plates and onto a tire when the car is on the ground sitting in the garage. A rear wheel cylinder will cause the pull just like the front ones. Don't discount a bad front cylinder even though you've had work done up there. You could also have an occluded or weak brake hose in the system. Others may chime in.

I am ashamed to admit I have a very slight leak in a rear wheel cylinder and new brakes waiting to install once my little boy starts to school. My car pulls on hard braking until I've used them once or twice. (For shame! NOT a good way to be running around, I have to get on this).

Plasticman

Were the shoes replaced, and drums checked for size and taper?
Was the "major" brake adjustment as outlined in the ST-12?

I was in the same situation about 10 years ago (although mine were more tempermental - it would jerk to one side, and then the other, without knowing which side would go first), and I eventually went with disc brakes on the front. Couldn't be happier with the results.

Good luck,
Plasticman

65GGvert

The only thing that will cause it to swerve right is the right brake touching the drum before the left. If the shoes and drum are clean and you're sure all the air is out of the left front lines, you're left with adjustment not being equal or left front cylinder not activating hard enough due to sticking or obstruction in line. (possibly the right front could be clamping and not releasing, but not very likely)
You need to find out why the left front shoes are not pressing against the drum at the same time or pressure as the right front. Does the fluid shoot out freely when you bleed? Make sure you have the shoes installed in the proper place and the adjustment is equal on both sides. You should be able to hear and feel the shoes brush slightly against the drum when you rotate it with the brake off.
The rear brake will cause a pull, but I disagree that it will cause a "swerve"

DucatiDon

1) Check wheel bearings (this was my issue)
2) check backing plates for grooves.
3) Check anchor pins for grooves

leif.anderson93

As simple as it may sound...check tire pressure. Low tire pressure will certainly cause pulling under braking (as well as during normal driving)

SecondGeneration

Do you drive the car regularly? My '62 did this exact thing to me a few years back because I let it sit for too long. If it has sat for a long time, drive it, very carefully, every day for a week. My issue worked itself out after about 3 days' worth of driving.

Redbird

Pics! Pics! Pics! of all four. Were all four bled properly?

Kerrmudgeon

Also check all of your front end bits like kingpins and tie-rod ends. Worn ones can cause strange handling when they are stressed, as under braking.

Jofa1963

check the left front cylinder, i had one that was improperly installed and caused the car to veer to the other side.

K2

There are many reasons why you might be getting uneven or grabby braking, some of which have already been mentioned. To eliminate possible problems systematically and efficiently we need to know if any work was performed on the brakes and did they pull before the work was performed or just after? Few mechanics are equipped to properly set up drum brakes and many are not informed when it comes to proper set up. When they are set up correctly they work very well and stop straight and true. Turning drums and arcing shoes used to be standard practice but when shoe arcing machines were outlawed, because of the asbestos dust issue, brake jobs became a process or just replacing components. Front brakes are particularly sensitive because they are part of the steering system and if everything is not right they will do what you describe. I fought this on my own vehicle for some time and finally obtained the equipment to turn my own drums and arc the shoes correctly. Now they stop straight and true with no tendany to pull. As others have mentioned, correct adjustment, wheel bearings, king pins, wheel cylinders, hoses, alignment, etc. all contribute to proper functionality of the system as well. Perhaps you can give us more information on how and when the problem arose and then we can better help you with a cure.

62gal

Thanks everyone for your replies. I will try each one and see if it helps. Every component in the braking system is new except for the shoes. They had a good thickness of pad on them. The complete steering and all suspension system are in very good condition. To the question of was it pulling before rebuilt, I'm not sure. I never hit the brakes that hard for it to pull. All wheels were bled correctly and I even rebled the leftt front to make sure there were no air bubbles and was getting a good flow of brake fluid thru the bleeder screw. I did not have the drums checked as they looked like they had already been turned, showing no wear pattern at all. I adjusted the brakes as per ST-12. It states in that article that you adjust the brake until you hear a shoe drag. Then you back off adjuster 12 clicks. After doing that There was no drag sound. Wheel bearings are the new roller type.

OC-1

some thoughts

grease or oil on the brake shoes

these days the brakes need to wear in to adjust to the concentricity of the drums, in the old days the drums and shoes were matched. So an unusual amount of dust may be initially produced.

At any rate the accumulation of brake dust can sometimes cause a problem. I occassionally remove the drum and hit the brake assembly with a garden hose to wash off the dust.

Drum might be out of round, backing plate grooved from wear hanging up shoe movement

K2

If you replaced the drums the worn shoes will have a larger radius than the new drums causing initial contact on the leading edges of the shoes which will make them grabby till they get worn in. To verify make a few hard stops and then pull the drums and look at the contact area on the shoes to see where they are making contact. Ideally the center part of the lining should contact the drum first as on drum brakes the linings should be cam ground (slightly smaller radius than drum) so the center of the lining would make contact first. If upon inspection the ends are contacting the drum and not the center, than the shoes either need to be ground to the correct radius or you have to wait for them to wear in which can take a very long time and be dangerous in the event you have to make a panic stop. That being said, all the other factors mentioned can also influence braking behavior.

Redbird

The AIM says back off 7 notches.