The need for a car at present is needless to say. Almost everyone owns at least one car. A car increases travel convenience and save the most valuable thing, which is time. But it’s not just about buying a car. It is also very important to maintain your car regularly. You need to check your car regularly if there is any defect, enough air in the wheels, enough fuel in the tank, etc.
Its brakes are very important for driving. The brake shoes are worn out while driving. Then you have to change these. But before changing, you need to know how to measure the brake shoes of the car. So, how to measure brake shoes? In today’s article, we will learn how to measure the brake shoes of a car and what tools are needed.
What Is A Brake Shoe?
Brake shoes are a part of the braking system of a car. One pair of Brake shoes can be seen in the drum brake system. These look a lot like a half-moon. It has a rough surface on one side that works to hold the brakes due to friction. Better said, when you press the brake pedal of your car, you force the brake shoes to extend outwards.
Then the outer part of the brake shoe presses on the inner part of the brake drum, and friction occurs. As a result, the speed of your car decreases. Brake shoes are commonly found on cars, buses, trucks, etc., using the brake drum system.
Brake Shoes Measurement Tools
There are several notable brake shoes measurement tools on the market. These are pretty useful things. You can easily measure your car’s brake shoes using these tools. Another good aspect of these tools is that they are very cheap. You can easily buy these tools from online or outlet stores.
Brake Lining Gauge Set
The brake lining gauge sets are designed so that you can measure your brake shoes without opening the wheels of your car. These are designed to check both straight and 90-degree angles. The brake lining gauge set is durable and flexible enough.
Using these, you can easily measure the thickness of the brake lining gauges. The gauge has yellow, green, and red coding so you can measure and understand the condition of your brake shoes.
Disc Brake Lining Wear Gauge
A disc brake lining wear gauge is a tool made of aluminum. As with the previous tool, it allows you to measure without opening the wheel or caliper. Because the tool is analog-style, it is relatively easy to measure, and accurate sizes are available. According to graduation, a disc brake lining wear gauge can be measured from 1/16 inches to 5/8 inches to 1/32 inches.
Brake Resetting Gauge
The brake resetting gauge is another analog brake shoe measuring instrument. Using this device, you can set the correct adjustment between the brake lining of your car and the drum. The included knurled knob lock allows you to fix the exact measurements.
Brake Shoe Retaining Spring Tool
The brake shoe retaining spring tool allows you to insert and remove the retaining springs of drum brakes of any size car. It is a double-ended tool. The best thing about this tool is that it is a universal brake shoe retaining spring tool. That means you can use them in any brand of car.
However, when using the brake shoe retaining spring tool, you must be careful about the eyes because these are spring-related and can inadvertently slip and hit your eye.
Vernier Scale
The Vernier scale allows you to measure brake shows. Vernier scale is currently available in both analog and digital versions. Interestingly, you can measure both the inside and outside of the brake shows or drum brakes with the Vernier scale.
How To Measure Brake Shoes – Amazing Technique
The more you drive your car, the more your car’s brake shoes will wear out. If the car’s brake shoes are worn out, it becomes very dangerous. As the car’s brake shoes wear out, they gradually move away from the inner diameter of the brake drum.
More simply, the distance between the brake shoes and the inner diameter of the brake drum increases. As a result, the braking capacity of your car decreases. Accordingly, you will not apply the brakes properly during an emergency and face an accident.
Regularly check the brake shoes of the car for the reasons mentioned and change them if necessary. So let us know how to measure the brake shoes of the car and the parts associated with it.
Brake Shoe Adjustment Measurement
First, we will know how to measure if you want to adjust the brake shoes. For adjustment measurement of brake shoes, you will need a Vernier scale or caliper. You can do this with any digital or analog version of the Vernier caliper. But yes, if you have a digital Vernier caliper, you will get the exact measurement.
- Firstly, you need to measure the inner diameter of the brake interior. Then you need to measure the outside of it. No reason to worry. A Vernier caliper has two advantages. That is, measure the inside of the drum with the inner measuring side of the Vernier caliper and the outer side of the brake drum with the outer measuring side. Be sure to write down the measure at the end of each measurement.
- Secondly, you have to adjust the external measuring part of the Vernier caliper manually and reduce the size to 0.024 inches.
- Finally, hold the two outer ends of the Vernier caliper on both ends of the brake shoe in such a way that the two bars are well attached to the brake shoe. Manually decrease or increase with the adjuster if necessary.
By following the steps above, you can install the brake shoe on the drum with the help of a Vernier caliper.
Measuring Shoe Lining Thickness
You need to know about shoe lining thickness when checking the quality of brake shoes. For this, you must know how to measure shoe lining thickness. So let’s learn how to measure the lining thickness of brake shoes.
- Before measuring shoe lining thickness, make sure the rivets are clean. It is because the materials for which friction is caused may erode and get stuck in reverse. Checking the lining thickness of brake shoes for them may be the wrong measurement. So, clean the rivets with a tool like a screwdriver.
- Then insert it into each rivet using a tire tread depth gauge. A brake shoe has a total of eight rivets. Then insert it into each rivet using a tire tread depth gauge. A brake shoe has a total of eight rivets. You need to check each of them well by tire tread depth gauge. It is very important to determine even or uneven brake shoe wear. And for this, measure each rivet comparatively at 1/32 inch.
- Measure the bonded shoe using a brake lining gauge. The bonded shoe is glued to the shoe plate, and it is not attached to the rivets. To measure these types of shoes, you have to measure from the very edge of the brake shoe lining. To understand the difference between even and uneven shoe wear, measure more than once from the edge of the shoe lining.
Each vehicle may have different types of brake lining gauges. The method of measuring them is also different. Some measure using scissors, while others use the method mentioned. It is worth mentioning here that the measurement is done by pinching on the actual lining with the help of scissors.
How To Measure A Brake Pad?
Some cars have disc pads instead of brake shoes. In that case, it is very important to be able to identify and change the disk pad. So in this article, we will discuss in detail how to measure brake shoes and disc pads.
Why do we measure disc pads? Disc pads are usually measured to identify the pads and check the wear of the pads. Be it brake shoes or disk pads; it is important to know about anything commonly related to brakes if you own a car.
Measure To Identify Brake Pad
When identifying a good brake pad, you should consider its size, length, width, and thickness. You can measure those to identify the brake pads. The components included in the friction, including the backing plate, are calculated within the measurements of a brake pad.
That means you have to measure the brake pad by togethering the mentioned parts. The full length from the backing plate’s outer surface to the friction plate’s outer surface is called the thickness of a brake pad. With the help of a Vernier caliper, you can easily measure the thickness of the brake pad.
Measure Brake Pad Wear
When you put your foot on the brake pedal of your car, the car slows down. The braking material produces a lot of heat and friction when the car brakes. As a result, the braking material gradually decays.
It is true of both brake shoes and brake pads. Experts advise that everyone should replace braking materials once the thickness is three millimeters.
Before changing the brake pads, you must measure them, and you need to know how to measure them. When you open the wheel to measure the brake pads, there are several things to keep in mind, such as:
- Observe the position of the pads when removing them from the brake caliper.
- Make sure the springs and shims on the brake pads are OK.
- Measure the brake pads from all sides. Vernier calipers are best suited as measuring tools.
- Thickness may vary across the length and width of the pad. Check them out properly.
Last Comment
There are several things to look for to maintain your car. Materials related to brakes are particularly significant. Brake materials decay very quickly.
It would be best if you were careful about both the brake shoes and the brake pads. Check your car’s brake systems regularly by following the steps outlined above. Above all, drive carefully, be safe. I hope now you know about how to measure brake shoes.
