horselady

Still going through the newly acquired 97....
Finding more and more evidence of stupidity and shade tree mechanic work. we're going to take a look at the front brakes tonight, we know one of the caliper lines was twisted when the last brake job was done, also the rubber boots are gone. brakes and rotors are fairly new, I just don't think the truck stops as good as it could. We were thinking of replacing the calipers just due to the age of the truck to see if it would make a difference. Are stock calipers a waste of $$$, or is there a later model that works with little or no modification?? Right now taking care of the safety items, front end fixed, truck serviced from one end to the other. I ended up going with a stock track bar with a one year warranty for $88, just to last me a year then do the upgrade. Just the service items and safety fixes are costing a small fortune. But I tow horses, so better safe than sorry. this truck was not as well maintained as it was supposed to have been. At least I have proof they changed the oil....
Just wondering if the factory setup is healthy enough for towing up to 9k, i can always upgrade later for more weight. It does have a HD brake option listed on the window sticker.

1-2-3

I have a factory 99 and tow an 8000 pound trailer all over the sate. Never had an issue yet. It can depend on the condition and adjustment of the trailer brakes too. The trailer should stop itself and the truck stop itself.

rockwithjason

i am not sure if the 30mm wheel cylinder upgrade applies to a 97 but if it does it's one of the best upgrades you can do for little $$

infidel

The larger rear cylinders certainly will work and you'll be impressed with the braking improvement.
Napa #4637337 at about $13 each and an hour of your time.

CmminsBeast

Can you explain a little more about the 30mm cylinder upgrade, are there any cons to it?

Dave Miller

I have a 97 dually that my wife uses for towing a horses in a tandem axle stock trailer. The factory setup seems to work fine. I just had a problem with front end "death wobble" which occurred anytime the brakes were hit. All this time before they got fixed and brakes got worse the brakes were fine...even with cracked and warped rotors. I found the rotors were cracked bad and warped and replaced them with NAPA drilled and slotted rotors and NAPA heavy Duty pads. Now the braking is really good. The rotors were pricy at $135 apiece but they were not made in China either.

I'm jusy saying the stock brakes worked fine but I upgraded the rotors to the new drilled/slotted kind. If money is tight you can get stock replacement rotors around $50 at rockauto.com. Taking the front rotors/hubs off is a real chore and I'd just replace them while your there so your done with it....my .02 cents.

I have hydroboost brakes on mine and I replaced that 2 years ago because it was leaking. If you have hydroboost (I suspect you do) instead of vacuumn boost then the brakes are must better at stopping. If you have a power steering leak then your brakes will suck because the power steering pump in a hydroboost is your "Power Assit" for braking. If it don't work right your brakes will suck as will your power steering.

I'd drain all the brake fluid by bleeding the brakes and transferring the fluid to a newer synthetic fluid. Replace all those bad brake lines and get enough brake fluid to replace it with synthetic.

Mine has RWAL ABS and I don't know how that can effect you. I do know the rear brakes need to be good and emergency brake adjusted well to have good braking.

Are good brakes well worth the $$$.....Darn right they are. I would not skimp on the brakes. Its money well spent. An exhaust brake would save on brake wear and someday I'm going there but that is a lot of money....bigger exhaust springs etc...
Dave

torquefan

Good advice here. I work on and inspect trailers daily, and it is rare for me to see one with brakes that are operating and adjusted correctly. I don't know how some people expect to survive if they ever have to stop in a hurry.
I have also seen brand new trailers with one or more brakes not working. A good quality brake controller helps too.