'49 Pulls Hard When Braking

Posted by shore72 On 2019/5/4 21:54:06

I'm not sure that this is a uniquely Packard problem, but I've never had it happen before & this group has proven its metal before:

The brakes on my 2362 had been working well until about a month ago when it started pulling hard to the left. I noticed on loose gravel that the left front wheel was locking up. Most online searches bring answers geared to disc setups but generally folks say it's either a bad wheel cylinder (sticking) or hose (collapsing). Made sense to me, so I called up Max Merritt and ordered a pair of both. I decided to start with the left: no change. Today I did the right; again, no change, better or worse. Well, it wasn't all in vain: the hoses were starting to crack & the cylinders had plenty of age as well. So, what next?

The previous owner installed a new master cylinder; steel lines were not changed. Nothing looked out of order when I pulled the drums. The shoes aren't new but not down to the rivets, either. When jacked up both sides were adjusted to spin free with no brakes applied; this afternoon I had my wife apply the brakes while the right front was in the air and they sure seemed to be doing their job.

Steer me straight, fellas!