Help!! with dragging brakes

[Thudman]

Day One of a two month getaway; noticed increasing need for more power; xmission started downshifting. NOT in mountains; NO excessive braking!! Pulled into gas station (N of Greenville, SC) as tranny shifted into 2nd gear & engine working hard. Thought it could be my Toad (w/Brake Buddy). Not so. DEFINITELY dragging brake(s). Checked LF brake: smoking. Called Workhorse to find a shop to work on rig. Nobody home in the shops (Sunday, July 1). Call back Mon. Called USAA for tow svc. They said about three hrs; no deal. Called lcl tow guy; came in about 45 min. Disconnected drive shaft. Towed me to nice RV park 4 miles away (Valley Park Resort). Paid tow driver $396; USAA says they'll reimburse. As I began to set up in the CG, dark clouds overhead & rain began to fall............

Question: Why dragging brakes? Less than 600 mi ago I had all the caliper pins & slides lubed (Lithium grease(?)---white, in a tube). Correct grease? Front wheels removed and Pads & Rotors were SPOTLESS (I have pix). 26500 mi. When the guy put the calipers back on, is there an adjustment? If so, too tight? When tow truck lifted the front end, both front wheels spun easily & freely. Sorry this is so long, but I'm trying to get info for when I take my rig to a shop (tomorrow?). Am not a mechanic (but wish I were).

I plan on driving the rig to a Greenville area shop (about 25 miles), since the front wheels spin freely.

Any thoughts muchly appreciated.

Thudman

PS: This is the second tow for me. Is there a Frequent Towing Program?

[Thudman]

Day One of a two month getaway; noticed increasing need for more power; xmission started downshifting. NOT in mountains; NO excessive braking!! Pulled into gas station (N of Greenville, SC) as tranny shifted into 2nd gear & engine working hard. Thought it could be my Toad (w/Brake Buddy). Not so. DEFINITELY dragging brake(s). Checked LF brake: smoking. Called Workhorse to find a shop to work on rig. Nobody home in the shops (Sunday, July 1). Call back Mon. Called USAA for tow svc. They said about three hrs; no deal. Called lcl tow guy; came in about 45 min. Disconnected drive shaft. Towed me to nice RV park 4 miles away (Valley Park Resort). Paid tow driver $396; USAA says they'll reimburse. As I began to set up in the CG, dark clouds overhead & rain began to fall............

Question: Why dragging brakes? Less than 600 mi ago I had all the caliper pins & slides lubed (Lithium grease(?)---white, in a tube). Correct grease? Front wheels removed and Pads & Rotors were SPOTLESS (I have pix). 26500 mi. When the guy put the calipers back on, is there an adjustment? If so, too tight? When tow truck lifted the front end, both front wheels spun easily & freely. Sorry this is so long, but I'm trying to get info for when I take my rig to a shop (tomorrow?). Am not a mechanic (but wish I were).

I plan on driving the rig to a Greenville area shop (about 25 miles), since the front wheels spin freely.

Any thoughts muchly appreciated.

Thudman

PS: This is the second tow for me. Is there a Frequent Towing Program?

[DriVer]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Thudman:
I plan on driving the rig to a Greenville area shop (about 25 miles), since the front wheels spin freely. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>You should be able to proceed to the repair center. Go light on the brakes and use as much compression braking as possible.

[paz]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Thudman:
Question: Why dragging brakes? Less than 600 mi ago I had all the caliper pins & slides lubed (Lithium grease(?)---white, in a tube). Correct grease? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I'm no expert here and I couldn't find anything in the Chassis Guide (it may be there, but I couldn't find it), but I think you need a high-temperature lube for the caliper pins. I use lithium grease for the door hinges and hood release on my toad. I think the lithium grease (if that's what it was) probably boiled off the first time you applied the brakes.

[rvjer]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Thudman:
Question: Why dragging brakes? Less than 600 mi ago I had all the caliper pins & slides lubed
Any thoughts muchly appreciated.
Thudman </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I just had my brakes replaced because they were dragging. The fix from Workhorse was to add a zerk fitting to the brake bell crank to grease it and keep it from sticking. This is on a TSB from workhorse I was told.

[paz]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by rvjer:
I just had my brakes replaced because they were dragging. The fix from Workhorse was to add a zerk fitting to the brake bell crank to grease it and keep it from sticking. This is on a TSB from workhorse I was told. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Good point. According to the 2006 Chassis Guide the fitting is standard on W-series chassis built after June of 2004 so neither you nor Thudman would have had the fitting unless someone added it later.

[John-D]

There is a known problem on some Workhorse rigs (And not just Workhorse I might add) where the brake hose turns into something resembling a check valve. It lets brake fluid into the cylinder but won't let it out. Now: Odds are I can show you exactly what is happening inside the brake hose (later in the post)

I have not had this problem on my Workhorese.

I did, however, just have to replace a brake caliper, rotor pads and hoses on my 1992 Lumina as it had the problme. Since this is a brake hose problem I have to assume the problem is not limited in any way to GM.


What happens: The hose is like an onion, layer over layer over layer, The inner layer is a type of "Rubber" (I suspect synthetic) and if it separates from the next layer up it can form kind of a "Spitter" valve. There is one of these valves in your RV shower, On mine it's at the faucet end of the hose, if you take the hose off and the washer stays with the faucet you see the valve, if the washer stays with the hose pull it out and you will see the valve.

And it is that simple. You will need to replace the hose, and perhaps the rest of the assoicated hardware.

What can you do to prevent secondary damage?

There are several tire pressure monitoring systems on the market. I use Dorian Pressure Pro and highly recommend it. It won't help here though.

There is a system called "Smart Tire" it monitors not only pressure but TEMPERATURE as well, if the brake starts dragging it will alarm HIGH TEMP.