Drum Adjuster Not Touching Star Adjuster

I had new wheel bearings put on, which requires disassembling the drums. The mechanic put new pads on, while everything was apart. Braking was not good when I got it back..

The drums needed to be adjusted, which helped. But they aren't auto-adjusting w/ the parking brake. And more concerning is the drivers side adjustment lever does not touch the star adjuster.. I can spin the adjustment wheel freely in both directions, so it might be able to loosen itself.. I took the drum off to look. It all looks OK. It's assembled correctly. And I noticed if I push the front shoe up, or rear shoe down, the adjuster lever does make contact w/ the wheel. But when I get it all re-assembled, it no longer contacts.

Anyone have any ideas? It's all held loosely together w/ springs, so I can't figure out how to keep it all aligned. I guess I should take it back to the shop... But they didn't get it right the first time, so if I can fix it... I'd like to. (and I do almost all the work on my truck.. Pressing the bearings on was a bit more than I wanted to try, though, so took it to a shop)

My guesses are maybe it needs new springs.. (they weren't replaced.. only the shoes were). Or the aftermarket shoes they used might have an issue.

Thanks for any advice.

 

While my case wasn’t exactly like yours.
Mine was due to misshapen aftermarket springs. The spring was bent in the wrong location. Which was pushing the lock bar off of the star adjuster.

 

Ive seen this happen with aftermarket parts. Sometimes you can bend the lever slightly to get it to work. It’s pretty easy to get the reassembly incorrect. Find a pic of how it’s supposed to be assembled, compare to yours.

 

Aftermarket adjuster arms won’t work, you’ll need oem.

 

IMO adjusters are voodoo magic that dont work no matter who makes them or how much you lube them. Obviously the arm should at least hit the star wheel though. Id find pics of how its supposed to be as Washeem said or compare to the other side.

 

Thanks for the replies..
It all looks fine.. It's definitely assembled correctly. But each side can shift up and down.. And when it shifts, it's off again.
I can get it all aligned w/ the drum off. I can adjust it, with it clicking properly, as I repeatedly put the drum on, adjust the shoes wider, put the drum on, repeat.. Until it's a tight fit.
I put a couple lug nuts on it, to hold the drum in place.
I give it a few more clicks of adjustment from the back, so there's a slight drag.. Everything still working properly w/ the adjuster clicking/only spinning in one direction..
Then I apply the brakes, apply the parking brake. It all feels OK as far as pedal pressure and number of parking brake clicks.
But then I check the adjuster again, and it's freely spinning either direction.. The lever thing has moved again.

I really want to just buy new shoes and springs and do it all over myself... But then I'm throwing way a bit of money.
I guess I could spend the $30 on a spring kit, though, and try that w/ the shoes they sold me.... (I'm not liking the looks of the shoes they sold me, though... urg.. Hate mechanics.. I think he's lying to me about the parts brands, too.. He said he'd use OEM wheel bearings, but they are not. (The outer housing which is visible externally is machined differently to OEM ones). He said these are PFC shoes, costing $90, but I cannot find any such product.. And this shop came highly recommended....)
(I know PFC is a real company.. I have their pads in my front calipers.. But I can't find any rear shoes from them)

 

If the star doesn’t touch the arm, you shouldn’t hear clicking. Or maybe you’re just referring to, if I adjust the star this much it WOULD click?

I would be concerned too. Don’t leave it like that for long. The star could potentially loosen, causing less braking force or worse, blown wheel cylinders. Now you have brake fluid everywhere, contaminated shoes.

 

At that point it is clicking properly.. It's aligned properly.. Until I give it full braking force. Then things shift around, I guess.

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/2013-rear-drum-shoe-replacement-adjustment.819157/#post-29377533

Look at the above post for the correct adjustment procedure.

I'm trying to follow. You’re making an adjustment, stepping on the brake pedal, pulling the drum off to look and see the lever not touching the star? You have pictures to post?

 

Classic symptom of a "stretched" cable. The one that holds the metal piece that clicks (ratchets) the self adjuster. It's a very common issue on older drum brakes. I've worked on drum brakes going back into the 70's and seen this issue a hundred times. A brake parts kit at any good auto parts house with a new cable will do it. You can even bend (tweek) the metal.part of the cable where the eyelet crimps the cable. This in essence shorten the cable to eliminate the excess stretch.

BTW make sure you have the shoe with the shorter brake material on the forward facing position. These are "self energizing" brakes. Its a common mistake to mix the shoes position.
And a new brake "hardware" or spring and misc. kit is cheap and always a good idea.
Not thoughly cleaning/white lubing the adjuster is also common. That will hinder proper self adjusting

 

Thanks for the replies.. I rebuilt it all again, and so far.. seems OK.

(and I guess I'll mention, I don't "hate mechanics", like I said a few posts ago. All the mechanics I know are awesome, problem solving, fun people. I guess I hate shop owners, though... Just be honest!! WTF.. If they need to make more on a job, say it took longer than expected so we need to charge more labor.. Don't make up a fake part you can charge 3x the normal rate for.. urg..)

 

The self adjusting rear drum brakes is the one topic this forum has not figured out yet, imo.