How do you replace brake shoes on a 1997 F-250?

Answer 1

The drums slid off easy as long as you have the E brake off and the shoes are not so worn that they groved themselves into the drum.

Buy a spring kit and new wheel cylinders

fist thing is to remove the top nut (TOP CENTER OF BACKING PLATE) to remove the emerg. brake mechinisim.

NOTE: Only do one side of the truck at a time

Remove both drums so you can reference the other side if you get confused when reinstalling the new shoes and springs.

Replace the wheel cyl too because it is not worth the pain of a leak after this job.

Crack loose the brake fluid line to the wheel cylinder

remove the two bolts behind the backing plate that hold the wheel cyl.

the two spring to spring connection is not too bad to get apart, you can twist a screwdriver between them and it will pop loose.. once you do these steps they the shoes will come off . be sure not to damage the self adjuster cable and adjuster.

there may be a special tool to put the spring to spring thing back together, I was able to do it be anchoring the butt of the screw driver to my chest and then grabing each side of the backing plate and with my left finger to move the pin around until just the position where the spring when expanded would grab it.. It takes some time and in my case a bit of chest pain.

Be sure the Front shoe and Rear shoes configuration is correct.. you don't want to get them together and then find out you got it wrong..