Ok, this story is for my fellow 1st genner's on here. Today, I started the process of my complete brake job (including bearings & seals) on my 93'. I got the rotors and drums off the pickup and went down to the local NAPA Auto Parts machine shop. The machine shop is avertised as M-F 9:00am-6:00pm. The door was locked and a Napa employee explained that the machinist went home for the weekend. Oh great!!! (mind you, my 93' ram is my life-blood for getting around). I was directed to another auto shop down the street, and then to another, and then to yet another!!! All of these places looked at my drums and rotors and immediately said, "whoah, those are pretty big! We can't do stuff that large on the lathe!" What in the edit???? Haven't these people ever seen a Dana 60 or 70 drum/disc? Anyway, long story short.........we finally found a place to get them turned and the employee's were very helpful (infact, they dropped half the machining price just to ease our bleak situation). Now that's service! I might actually have my 93' back on the road before Christmas!!!

Bottom line: Does anyone work on heavy duty (light duty pickup) components in an auto shop environment anymore?

 

i work on lathes everyday and you can chuck things up tn them alot bigger than a brake rotor off these trucks, those shops must have just been feeding you a bunch of edit.

 

They would probally rather see you buy new. I had sam club tell me they could not put tires on my truck because they did not have wheel wieghts. I went to discount tire and got a better price. Someday when I have more space I'll pick up a used brake lathe for a song so I can do my own.

 

Having literally grown up in a auto parts store/ machine shop (just happend to actually be a NAPA) one of the first things I learned to do as a kid was turn drums and rotors. Cars and 1/2 tons were easy, 3/4 ton up to 2 ton (school bus) were too heavy for a 10 year old to lift without possible damage to the arbor. As years went by, calls for turning drums and rotors fell off dramatically, mostly due to the price for new replacement parts, vs the down time or wait for the parts to be machined.
Today, owning a shop, I had much rather replace the parts in general (rotors espically) due to several reasons. One is time; it is more cost effecient for the line tech and customer, to get the parts on the bench and perform the replacement/repair. Two; you do not have to worry about rotors returning too thin to disapate heat quickly to avoid warping (read comebacks) and we all know our Dodge trucks arent the best for having "self adjusting" rear brakes that actually do. The front rotors have a heck of an assignment. The thicker the better.
Rear drums are a little different, full floaters usually dont need to be replaced, only turned. I like to have the machine shop hot vat the full float style drums while they are there. 1/2 ton rear drums are cheap to replace, and with a top quality job that carries a warranty, it doesnt make sense IMHO not to replace them. Expense IS a factor, and trying to watch the pocketbook is a priority.
Most of the auto parts stores "sell what they sell" meaning if they provide a machine service in the average metro area, they may only turn ricer rotors due to the fact that 99% of their customer base drives them. On the other hand, a parts house that supplies say, the local school district, SHOULD be set up to turn those HD drums and rotors as an added service to a high quantity buying customer. I've gotten to the point of strictly using an engine machine shop, beacuse the guys there are machinists, not counterpersons/stockers having to hurry thru my machine work, so they can get back to the counter and answer phones. Good machinists are a dying breed. You think a "counterman" can hear the tone of a bit and tell it's chattering? Do you think he really cares? Do you think he knows how a chatter-marked rotor will act on the truck? REAL machinists do.
Diddnt mean to rant, but your difficulty really hits home and I feel your pain!
Heck, two months ago, a GM Dealership called and wanted to know if we could rebuild a 2bbl carb for them. They diddnt have anyone in the shop old enough to have had a carb apart! Times, they are a changin'!

 

New rotors come from China today and are about 1/2 to 1/3 the price they were when you and I got used to turning them all the time. For a lot of smaller cars its now much cheaper to buy new rotors than to turn them.

I just did my brakes in october... i ended up finding a local machine shop, (my napa closed their shop in the last couple of years. ) I think Turning the fronts was about $50-$60 but new would have only been about $100/pair.

I hear your pain on HAVING to get the truck fixed fast.... i used to be in the same boat, but now I have 2 trucks and the wife's 4runner between the 2 of us, and I can FINALLY afford the luxury of fixing my trucks on my schedule. I can leave a truck torn down for a month if i want. its nice... highly recommended if you get the opportunity.

 

Thanks for the replies guys! It's interesting to know that I'm not the only one who faces this brake dilema. I first priced out brand new rotors/drums for my 93' . The front rotors were $67. ea. and the back drums were $115. ea. (NAPA prices). This seems a little steep, when a guy can just go over and get them turned for $12. per unit. I ended up paying $25.00 to get all four corners turned yesterday. The mechanic on duty who was machining them actually let me and my buddies stand by and watch. He explained the process of machining them and how he knows what to listen for (chattering). The guy was friendly, honest, and the only person in the shop that had a "CAN-DO" attitude. Everyone else we encountered said, "No way, those are too big for our machine". I am one of those folks who refuse to let others do maintenance and repairs to my vehicles. I like to have total control over my own projects.

 

Would you rather that these shops lie and tell you that they could do them then screw them up?? There is a difference in won't do and can't do. If you want total control maybe you should invest in a brake lathe. I know the pay back may take a while but then you would have the control you want.

 

many rotors cant be turned and kept in specs cars some gm trucks if they need turning they are too thin in a few more years nobody will have brake lathes they will just replace.

 

Where I work 99.99% of the stuff we turn is teeny import (Yota) stuff. As such we don`t have the necessary adapters to actually chuck the stuff up. That`ll be changing though as all the new Tundra parts are "somewhat" larger (manager darn near keeled over when the shop equpment sales dud gave him the $$$ for new cones and such)

 

Dont you love to find places like that? Whenever I find a good shop like that I try to take all my business there even if I have to drive out of the way. Very few places realize how much business they can get by truly satisfying a customer!

 

In this little rural mud-lick hole that I live in, we are blessed with no less than a dozen COMPETENT drum/rotor turning shops, all with old-timey guys operating them.

The Ford Garage even has a machine that will turn truck rotors STILL ON THE SPINDLE.

 

O'reillys turns drums and rotors for $10 a piece.

 

Funny thing is, replacement vs. resurfacing. Most discs and drums that I see in the automotive sector, and unfortunately the OTR sector as well, are built from the factory, so close to the min. thiickness or max. ID, that turning them becomes an exercise in futility.

Once you have turned them far enough to get the grooves out, they are beyond the recommended wear limits.

For that reason, most times I will merely replace a drum or rotor, rather than go to the pain of turning them. I know how to use a brake lathe just fine, and actually have some machining experience behind me, but for the time taken, and the chance of coming up out of tolerance, it is simply easier for the customer to have the parts changed out, and usually just as cheap.

In a bind, such as this situation, I have no problem with turning a set of drums or rotors to help someone out. That said, if I measure the deepest wear points, and they come in outside of min/max, I won't do it. That comes down to being a professional. I will not compromise anyone's safety, just because you cannot get the parts you need today. 1 day of your life, could mean the rest of someone else's.

When it comes to steering and brakes, always go the safest way possible.

Before this turns into a total rant. Good luck with the truck, and good to see that there are still some people out there who understand the basic turning of drums and rotors.