Rotated tires and adjusted rear brakes today PICS

[auxmike]

I decided to rotate the tires today after 7,600miles on the clock. I have the factory Goodyear Eagles with a treadwear of 360. I went front to back when rotating. Used floor jacks, two at once.
Decided to adjust the rears while I was at it, they both seemed a bit loose and the handbrake lever was going up real high when pulled. Blew off all the dust with compressed air, which is NOT a good idea because the dust that comes off is nasty!:eek: Lots of dust came off though. I then adjusted each star wheel 12 "clicks" on each side. I do it from the front, not from the hole in the rear of the drums backing plate. This way I can see exactly what's happening and go little by little. The driver's rear drum was already seized on, but I did get it off carefully. The handbrake does'nt pull up as high anymore. Seems like self adjusting brakes don't do a very good job of adjusting themselves....:cool:

[auxmike]

More pics....

[jamal1984]

i'm totaally new at this, can you point it out where you adjust it at? because my hand brake are up to my forehead now. thanks

[auxmike]

i'm totaally new at this, can you point it out where you adjust it at? because my hand brake are up to my forehead now. thanks

Last pic in first post shows the "star" wheel you can rotate up with a flatblade screwdriveragainst it's teeth.It looks like a cowboy's spur.
If you've never played with brakes before, I don't recommend doing it yourself.

[jkuchta]

Part of the loose handbrake is the adjuster, but most of the initial slack in the E-brake is due to cable stretch. There's almost no wear on your shoes. I just changed mine out for the carbotech shoes, and did an adjustment (with 37,xxx miles on the car), and my pads showed pretty much no wear either.

[auxmike]

Little wear to the rear shoes can also indicate that they are'nt doing much to stop the car. You'll eat up pads and rotors because the're doing all the work.... :frown:

[jkuchta]

My front pads were pretty much new-looking as well.

[earljail]

Wow, I had no idea that the rear brakes weren't self adjusting.

[PetersRedYaris]

...but most of the initial slack in the E-brake is due to cable stretch...

Good point. This is also much easier for the non-mechanically inclined...

[YarisSedan]

Rear brakes are really not that self adjusting. My shop we have a oil change special for 29.95 where we rotate the tires with the oil change. And we always adjust the rear shoes of cars that are equipt with them. I would say uhmmmm 100% of all cars need adjusting Some way more than others. It makes a world of a difference in brake pedal feel as well as parking brake feel. They are self adjusting but to a point. Sometimes they need a little help.

[nemelek]

Blew off all the dust with compressed air, which is NOT a good idea because the dust that comes off is nasty!:eek: Lots of dust came off though.

What would be a better way to remove the dust?

[1stToyota]

What would be a better way to remove the dust?

A brake system washer would be the best way.