Strange front brakes dragging
 

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to stop this?
Jonathan Womack

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

Jonathan -

Dad and I experienced this same exact problem on the Cavalier he bought last year except that his would lock up and not release. We ended up completely disassembling the calipers, cleaning them and replacing the o-rings. We also did everything we could to make sure they were aligned properly with spacers and such. He ended up buying brand new calipers, pads and master cylinder and it corrected the problem. Some design change had been made since the calipers he had on the car. The new ones are black now and his were a chrome color.

I replaced my brakes 2 winters ago and went with Mark Williams. I would never put another brake on my car other than Mark Williams or Lamb. The quality of their products in unbelieveable when compared to the other brands out there. You can really tell it when comparing the other brands to theirs side by side.

If you have any questions, please give my dad Mike a call at 800-268-5915. We fought those brakes for weeks before finally fixing them. He would be more than happy to anwer any of your questions.

Michael

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

Jon,
I'm having the same problem with new Strange brakes I installed on my car. I called Strange about a week ago and was told that normally when they drag it is due to the line lock not fully releasing pressure and if it's not that then something is wrong with the calipers. I changed my line lock and they still drag. I should have listened and bought the Lamb brakes.

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

Jon, before tossing out the Strange brakes, replace your braided line to the caliper. A small crack or piece of debris can cause this too. We know from past experience. Been there and done that. Ty

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

Might want to double-check that the master cylinder pushrod is retracting all the way - if the spool valve is in the wrong position it will not release pressure.

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

Check to see if your pads are wearing evenly. I have seen issues on some cheaper calipers (Aerospace) where once the pads have worn significantly (and unevenly) the the piston cocks in the bore making the brakes lock. Especially in the ones with the composite pistons.

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

x's-2 for the win. the pads wear tapered from hard braking. that's what cuases it.

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

The newer Strange Calipers have two different size pistons on their 4 piston calipers. The new calipers solve the problem that wears the pad into a wedge shape. Good Product !!

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

We put Lamb Brakes (and later Struts) on our car back in 98. Other than putting one new set of shoes on ,we have not touched them. The front of the car happens to be up as we are changing engines. I just went down( just for the heck of it) and gave the front tire a spin.It spun...and coasted, for 24 seconds, before coming to a stop. This car has been setting all winter in a cold garage. Lambs are pricey ,but this is one product, that is worth the extra bucks.

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

Recently purchased used Strange brakes, found a small piece of red plastic inside the fitting on caliper.---Trevor

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

I have the exact brakes on both my SS car and my sons bracket bomber, never had an issue with either. Both are fairly heavy cars of course the kid loves to "park it" @ times near the stripe. The first thing we need to figure out, is the issue hydraulic or mechanical? Personally I would put car on stands, remove frt. wheels, put a couple lug nuts on to retain the rotors then have someone apply the brakes and release them while you check for pad release, the rotors should turn freely immediately after pedal release. If the seem to be dragging, loosen one of the bleeders and see if that frees them up, if so then you're dealing with an hydraulic issue.If you find loosening the bleeder doesn't help, you need to check for caliper alignment, both centered and for being square to the rotor, if the caliper is "tilted" in relation to the rotor it will cause issues. Another thing that can cause problems is the pads being hung up in the caliper, they should move freely. As Strange eluded to, their calipers are not designed to "retract" they use an Oring in their calipers VS a sqare cut seal, the square seals tend to "pull back" more on the piston. Please try some of these things and let us know what you find. Joe

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

X2 on the pushrod adj.
make sure there is some freeplay on the pedal.
Try cracking the bleeder open when the brakes are draging , if it frees up, the problem is not in the brake caliper.
If the brakes still drag , check the rotors for "belling" and make sure the caliper bracket has been mounted correctly and are not bent .
Severely tapered pads indicate either a missaligned caliper , or belled rotor.
Check what you have thoroughly before spending $ thousands on something that is easily repaired.

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

Joe, were we reading each others minds?

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

Tom, yeah we must be on the same page. Of course my post is "long winded" have a hard time trying to abbreviate my thoughts as simple as they are. Joe

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

They are right about Lamb and Mark Willams, but we have sucessfully used aerospace brakes, put springs between the calipers, and eliminated all drag. They were an issue on one front brake when we first got them, but now as free as a pro stock car, I think.

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

A friend of mine told me he had this problem and it was because he had just a bit too much brake fluid in the master. Drained a little and fixed. Im not no Texas Ranger :rolleyes: but I sure hope this helps. Pedal adjustment would be my second guess. I always make sure to check the clearance. I like to have just a little play in the rod.

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

Just out of curiousity, how bad are they dragging? With the tires off the ground, you should be able to spin the tires by hand. They should continue to rotate if shimmed correctly, and the rotors are not warped. Like others have suggested if you remove the hydraulic pressure and they still do not free up, then I would pull the caliper, and spin the wheel? This will eliminate the brakes as the issue all together. Are the wheel bearings so loose that the rotor is rubbing the brake pads as it turns?

My Strange brakes have been trouble free, it is a good idea to check the fastener hardware, and caliper alignment before the start of each season though.

Sean

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

X3 on the push-rod

Ed M.

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

Jon, you may PM or call Dean and Dennis Oliver. They had the exact same trouble and fought it for weeks.

Wade O

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

My Drag Pak came with Mark Williams brake/rotors mounted on stock hubs. We had a consistent front brake wobble on shutdown and braking. We measured everything, and couldn't figure it. When I finally decided it was becoming a safety issue, we got Strange Hubs, brakes and Rotors.

The first thing we noticed is that they dragged..We called, and talked to Strange, and they said, the pads are not broken in. We went through the suggested break in procedure. And they still dragged. We checked fluid levels, bled lines, checked everything. And after a couple of more races, apparently they seated, or something ?else? happened, and now they no longer drag.

I guess my point is that it was a mystery, and remains one. But since it isn't a problem right now. We will just take it, and be happy.

David
The New Hemi Guy

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

I added some springs to apply force at the top of the pads to keep the pads parallel which prevents the light dragging. I used some old TH400 direct drum return springs which seem to work well. This will only work if there is nothing else wrong in your brake system.


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Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

The springs are good. I did the same thing last summer. Got some springs at the local hardware store.

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

Thanks for all the suggestions. I think I'm going to try the springs after I double check everything else.. One side rolls ok.. The other side has a tight spot.. ( maybe warped rotor) . How free can a strange setup get? I know lambs stuff will roll for 30 seconds or more.... Crazy! So with the car on jack stands and the front wheel on, can I get it close to lambs stuff or will I be doing good to get a few revolutions out of it?

Jonathan Womack

Re: Strange front brakes dragging
 

Any idea how much the front brakes dragging affects e.t.?