Leaf spring rear

[67gmcclassic]

I have a 1967 GMC c1500 2wd with a dana 44 rear axle with leaf springs. I am having a hard time trying to find replacement brake parts for the rear. All the listings are for a gm 12 bolt rear-end, with coils springs. Are they the same rear brake assemblies for the dana 44 and the 12 bolt chevy rear end. I didnt think it would be hard to find parts for this truck, but i am having trouble with these rear drum brakes for the dana. Has anybody run into this before ( im sure someone has). Any help is appreciated, and part #s would be even better. Thanks

[JimKshortstep4x4]

The rear brakes in the 12 bolts for our years are all the same. If your rear end is the original 12 bolt rear end then it will have the same brakes whether it is leaf springs or not.

A quick way to verify the brakes is to measure the width of the brake shoes. The width should be 2".

Jim

[67gmcclassic]

the rear end that i have is the 10 bolt dana 44. it does have 2" wide drum brakes on there, but the brake shoe itself looks different than the 12 bolt rear shoes. i took them up to the local part store, and we could not find a set of shoes that were the same. i called LMC truck and classic parts, and they both told me they did not stock brake parts for the dana 44 leaf spring rear end. somebody told me it might be the same style rear end as the earlier model trucks? just a little stumped at this time.

[68gmsee]

Definitely need to compare them like you're doing. These days it's almost a crapshoot with parts for these old trucks.

I did a complete brake job on my 68 GMC with dana rear axle couple of years ago and I didn't have any parts problem except for a minor defect on the brake shoes I bought at NAPA. The slot for the adjuster was too narrow and had to file the slot to widen it some.

I recommend going to them or even CarQuest if you have them in you area. You can also look the parts up on the net at http://www.napaonline.com/Catalog/Ca...280_0319350792

[67gmcclassic]

awesome, thanks. looks like it will be a good solid start for me. thanks again. love this website.

[chewychevy67]

I have a 67 Dana rear leaf and on my truck everything brake related is the same except the e brake spreader bar and the drum. The ebrake cable mounts different to the backing plate from leat to coil rear as well. The spreader bar is the same dimentions it is just notched to go around the wheel bearing retainer and the drums have an offset of 1/2" as the 12 bolt drums are flat. I'll post some pics for you this afternoon.

[67gmcclassic]

that would be great. thanks. so did you buy brake parts for the gm 12 bolt, and it worked for the dana 10 bolt?

[68gmsee]

Originally Posted by 67gmcclassic

that would be great. thanks. so did you buy brake parts for the gm 12 bolt, and it worked for the dana 10 bolt?

As mentioned above all 2" brake shoes and brake related parts including drums, etc. are the same regardless of rear axle. Only difference is if you have a 2.75 inch shoe width and corresponding drums.

[67gmcclassic]

now i can finally get my truck back on the road. Thanks everyone

[chewychevy67]

here are the pics of my dana backing plate and 2" brakes. The drum on the left is for a dana 44 rear and the one on the right is for a 12 bolt rear. The dana has 1/2" offset as you can see. the e brake bar is also curved to clear the bearing retainer plate and the 12 bolt ones are pretty much straight.

[67gmcclassic]

awesome, pics are the best. thanks again.

[quick60]

I have a Dana 60 and the only one that I have been able to get correct brake parts from so far is NAPA.

LMC trucks some wrong parts some correct, AutoZone cant get the pass side parts, Advance deer in the headlight stare from the counter guy, NAPA had all my parts in two days and they were correct.

[quick60]

Chewychey67 if I may aske where did you get your parts from?

[chewychevy67]

Its all original equip except the shoes and springs. I just reconditioned everything.

[quick60]

Looks awasome what finish did you use? Looks like electroplating on the gold parts. Nice job.

[chewychevy67]

yep electroplating and the black is powder coated.

[54blackhornet]

I just love it when people work on their trucks in the living room !

[Lees68GMC]

Probably not a lot of help at this point, but here's my experience.

Mine is a 1968 GMC SWB with Leaf Springs and a 10 bolt corporate rear-end. 6-lug wheels. After I made the decision to lower front with drop spindles, I found a 1974 1/2 ton Chevy in the Wrecking yard and got Rotors, Calipers upfront and the complete 12 bolt rear-end, drum to drum for a total of $150.00. I could see just trying to freshen up the old 10 bolt and really limited parts availability Today and into the future, this would be a cheaper way to go.

The 1974 12 Bolt was 2" wider with identical, bolt up spring perch locations. The wider rear worked better because with stock off set 15 X 8 wheels and 275-60-15 BFGs moved the tire sidewalls away from inner fender wells, outboard where there is plenty of room. Shock mounts had to be cut off the 74 as that was the first year for the asymmetric rear shock mounts. Also gave me 5 on 5 lugs to match the 5 on 5s up front, sold my 6-lug wheels.

Parts every where, reasonable for GM 12 bolt rears.