Front brakes STILL locking up!!! Help!!!

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Franksdodge96

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My front brake pads were very worn on my 1996 Dodge Ram 1500 so I replaced them. After brake pad replacement my front brakes locked up on me on got very hot. After this happened I read all of the causes for brakes locking up so I went ahead and replaced my master cylinder, brake booster, both front calipers, and both front rubber brake hoses. I also got new brake pads and rotors because the previous ones got very hot. Everything is brand new, brake slides are factory oiled, brand new hoses have airflow both ways, and I bled the system properly. After all of this my front brakes are STILL LOCKING UP!! I don't know what to replace at this point. Any advice at all would be much appreciated!!!
 

dudeman2009

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Did you put anti-seize on the slide pins and on the edges of the pads where they slide on the calipers? Also, are the slide plates that should've came with the pads installed correctly?

Are the brakes actually locking up or dragging badly? or are the rotors just getting hot to the touch? Are you using vented or solid rotors? Pad type?
 

dapepper9

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Are the brakes locking up and staying locked up or do they lock up on a hard stop then go back to normal.

4 wheel abs is very rare on these trucks so one if these situations is normal and one is not.

Also what do you mean by "factory oiled". Slide pins require silicone paste/brake specific grease not any kind of oil. If you're not doing that there's your issue
 

dudeman2009

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Dapepper makes a point. Most of these trucks are only rear wheel antilock brakes. In my area the chances of finding one with 4wheel ABS is 1 in 100.

As he also mentioned, and I asked, the slide pins come from the factory with an anti-rusting coating, usually a type of oil. This is not used for anything except preventing corrosion before installation. Proper Anti Seize or high temperature grease is required when installing.
 
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Franksdodge96

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Did you put anti-seize on the slide pins and on the edges of the pads where they slide on the calipers? Also, are the slide plates that should've came with the pads installed correctly?

Are the brakes actually locking up or dragging badly? or are the rotors just getting hot to the touch? Are you using vented or solid rotors? Pad type?

On my brand new calipers the slide pins were covered in some sort of grease so I assumed that they already had anti seize on them. I did apply a grease to the edge of the pad for sliding. I am using solid rotors and yes the brakes are grabbing so hard that they start smoking. I can drive my truck for about ten minutes before the brakes really start to grab.
 
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Franksdodge96

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Franks dodge

On my brand new calipers the slide pins were covered in some sort of grease so I assumed that they already had anti seize on them. I did apply a grease to the edge of the pad for sliding. I am using solid rotors and yes the brakes are grabbing so hard that they start smoking. I can drive my truck for about ten minutes before the brakes really start to grab.
 
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Franksdodge96

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Did you put anti-seize on the slide pins and on the edges of the pads where they slide on the calipers? Also, are the slide plates that should've came with the pads installed correctly?

Are the brakes actually locking up or dragging badly? or are the rotors just getting hot to the touch? Are you using vented or solid rotors? Pad type?

The brand new calipers had some sort of grease on the pins so I assumed they had anti seize grease on them. I am using solid rotors and my brakes are grabbing so hard that they start to smoke. I can drive for about ten minutes before my brakes are dragging very hard.
 
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Franksdodge96

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Are the brakes locking up and staying locked up or do they lock up on a hard stop then go back to normal.

4 wheel abs is very rare on these trucks so one if these situations is normal and one is not.

Also what do you mean by "factory oiled". Slide pins require silicone paste/brake specific grease not any kind of oil. If you're not doing that there's your issue

They lock up after driving for about ten minutes. Whenever I start my truck and can press on the brakes very hard and still drive without my brakes locking up but after driving for about ten minutes my brakes lock up so hard every time that they start to smoke.

By factory oiled I meant that the brand new calipers that I bought came with grease on the slide pins so I guess I meant factory greased.
 
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Franksdodge96

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Dapepper makes a point. Most of these trucks are only rear wheel antilock brakes. In my area the chances of finding one with 4wheel ABS is 1 in 100.

As he also mentioned, and I asked, the slide pins come from the factory with an anti-rusting coating, usually a type of oil. This is not used for anything except preventing corrosion before installation. Proper Anti Seize or high temperature grease is required when installing.

Ok thanks for the help maybe I need to apply my own grease. But why is it that I can start my truck, apply brake pressure multiple times and still drive without any dragging until about ten or fifteen minutes and then my brakes drag. Is this an issue with my proportion valve?
 

dapepper9

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Anti-seize bad, brake specific grease good. For the slide pins anyways. Hi- temp anti-seize is fine for the surface the pad slides on. Start there
 

dudeman2009

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Ok thanks for the help maybe I need to apply my own grease. But why is it that I can start my truck, apply brake pressure multiple times and still drive without any dragging until about ten or fifteen minutes and then my brakes drag. Is this an issue with my proportion valve?

When cool the pads won't start 'melting' and grabbing right away, only once they get hot do things start to get sticky. The pins need the proper lubricant to slide freely, there isn't just side to side forces on them, there is a rotational force as well.

I should have been more specific about the anti-sieze, do not use straight anti-sieze on the caliper slide pins, it will dry out and stick. I should have said to use Anti-seize lubricant, I just call it anti-sieze. I personally use Permatex branded high temp anti-sieze lubricant, i've been using it on caliper slide pins for years without any issue. However, technically Dapepper is right, only brake grease or caliper grease should be used.
 

Yeret

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On a related note, my brakes have always "locked" during the first few pumps whenever it has recently rained. Two different sets of calipers, new hoses and hours of bleeding across a few years and they still do it. Every once in a while, I'll get off work, be tired as hell and forget about this. So I brake as normal leaving the parking lot and nearly plant my teeth in the steering wheel, LOL.
 

CostaRam

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On a related note, my brakes have always "locked" during the first few pumps whenever it has recently rained.
MY old, ****** Dakota does the same thing, dry weather, humid weather, raining,
the brake either almost blocks or is free.
The only way to brake is to drive barefoot and use only one toe to brake ....
Fortunately the way from the dive shop to the beach is about 300 yards!
I never investigated what it is, it's just like it is, i don't always have to know everything :shocked:
Chris
 

alanack6795

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The problem is very clear here. Your rubber lines of the calipers have collapsed internally.

Replace the soft lines, they often fail internally causing the brakes to stick.

I would change all 3

That's why your problem is intermittent. A seized caliper will drag all the time. Forgetting to grease the slides won't cause an issue for quite some time
 
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Franksdodge96

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I lost track of this thread a while back but I'll update now that everything is working well. Originally my bad calipers were locking up so I replaced them and the brake booster at the same time. It turned out that I put in a brake booster that didn't have an adjustable push rod so the rod was too long in length causing the brakes to compress too tight. I returned the brake booster for one with an adjustable push rod and everything was all good after adjusting. I think the shop originally sold me the wrong booster to begin with because it was necessary to adjust the rod.
 
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