Brake Shake....

[Diver88]

A lot of the time you can get away without bedding pads, but you've found an exception. My bedding process isn't extreme, but I do it with every brake job. I drive through the neighborhood to the main road, doing some moderate braking to warm the brakes up a bit. I get up to speed on the main road and jam on the brakes once firmly for the slow-down to turn back into the other entrance to the neighborhood. I then drive back to the house using moderate braking. That's a minimalist bedding.

I'd take your brakes back apart. Get a brown roloc pad and scuff both rotors front and back to remove brake material embedded in the rotor. Replace your pads, because the old ones are glazed and new quality pads are cheap. https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=298290&cc=1031500&pt=1684&jsn=975

Clean the brakes and pads with brake cleaner. Reinstall and use a thorough bedding procedure. As Schurkey said, don't ride your brakes.

This is what I was thinking of doing next since nothing else was making sense. All of my brake work was done by mechanics on this truck, I've done all this when I was a kid but not lately. I assume the rotors have to be removed to "roloc" both sides to clean off any brake pad residue because of the backing plates? I have read about "bedding procedures" and will for sure do that once the rotors are cleared. Would it make any sense to use ceramic pads, is that an upgrade? Thanks for your help.

 

[Diver88]

how old are all 3 brake hoses? especially rear

They are all original, I'm having them replaced along with the master cylinder because it has a slight bypass feel and the fluid although flushed 2 years ago is really dark. That's happening next week but my mechanic says rotors run out fine and pads are even and almost 5mm so he suggests that's all fine and not worth changing.
I wanted the hoses changed because of age, might that cause the pulsing (bouncing in the front) somehow? Thanks

 

[Keeper]

if rear hose is pulsing, it would affect the whole front suspension. I don't know what else would cause the whole front end to bounce only while braking. IMO

 

[Carlaisle]

OK, no I don't really feel it in the steering wheel or the pedal (pedal hard to tell with it bouncing), no ABS light, ABS does work well... it activates fine, DFW drivers.
Seems like it takes a few thousand to start up, not just changed. The front of the truck just bounces up and down coming to a stop. All stock suspension with new stock replacement premium Gabriel shocks 6K miles ago, Michelin LTX M/S tires. Thanks

"Gabriel" and "premium" are really mutually exclusive. Did this issue you are attempting to resolve exist before the shocks were replaced? Did the issue in question change in any way after the shocks were changed?

 

[Diver88]

"Gabriel" and "premium" are really mutually exclusive. Did this issue you are attempting to resolve exist before the shocks were replaced? Did the issue in question change in any way after the shocks were changed?

Well I wondered about Gabriel Shocks but the guy on the phone at Summit Racing Parts said they were better than the KYB set that was $100 more expensive. One of the rears leaking oil and if I can get them to replace all of them will switch to something better. The bouncing has been going on for years, the new shocks didn't change anything except it rode a little smoother at first. Thanks,

 

[Carlaisle]

When you replaced the shocks did you replace all 4 at the same time? KYB's worst product is better than Gabriel's best. A lot of people really like Bilstein shocks on the half ton trucks. The shocks on your truck are pretty easy to change out. Can be done in the driveway without even removing the wheels if you are so inclined.

 

[Diver88]

When you replaced the shocks did you replace all 4 at the same time? KYB's worst product is better than Gabriel's best. A lot of people really like Bilstein shocks on the half ton trucks. The shocks on your truck are pretty easy to change out. Can be done in the driveway without even removing the wheels if you are so inclined.

yes, all 4 at the same time. I looked it up, Gabriel Ultra Shocks. I have to see what I can get them to do, I'd rather do all 4 KYB's, not sure about Bilstein at nearly $90 each for the 4600's series.

 

[Erik the Awful]

My current mechanic say none of this makes sense
and he say's the "bedding" of new pads is nonsense.

my mechanic says rotors run out fine and pads are even and almost 5mm so he suggests that's all fine and not worth changing.

Find a new mechanic. He's refusing to admit you have a problem when you are adamant that you do. Odds are his lazy practices caused the problem.

The pads I linked are probably the best pads you can buy, and they're only $26! I'm pretty sure you paid more for his markup on the cheapest pads on the shelf. DIY and eliminate your mechanic from the equation.

As far as using a roloc on the rotor, it's probably easier to remove the rotor to clean it. You want to evenly scuff the entire surface on both sides of the rotor. If you don't have a roloc holder and a bin of pads, you can always sandpaper it, but that's a lot of elbow grease. Or if you're made of money you can just throw down another $90 for rotors, but I'd clean the old ones.

 

[Diver88]

Find a new mechanic. He's refusing to admit you have a problem when you are adamant that you do. Odds are his lazy practices caused the problem.

The pads I linked are probably the best pads you can buy, and they're only $26! I'm pretty sure you paid more for his markup on the cheapest pads on the shelf. DIY and eliminate your mechanic from the equation.

As far as using a roloc on the rotor, it's probably easier to remove the rotor to clean it. You want to evenly scuff the entire surface on both sides of the rotor. If you don't have a roloc holder and a bin of pads, you can always sandpaper it, but that's a lot of elbow grease. Or if you're made of money you can just throw down another $90 for rotors, but I'd clean the old ones.

Thanks, this mechanic hasn't touched the brakes yet and he's sort of a family friend, the other four mechanics that worked on the brakes are either dead or out of the business.
I think he's just taking it one step at a time , replacing the Master Cylinder, Booster, and rubber hoses and flushing the fluid. I think I'll clean up the rotors and install new pads once he's done with taking away the extra complication of the soft pedal and a little bypass. Thanks for your help !

 

[CK99]

Hi, just joined because I'm looking for answers.. I have a 1996 C-1500 regular cab, long bed, bought it brand new and for the first 90K miles it had fantastic overall braking,
no complaints or issues. I had the rotors turned and pads installed by a shop, 3K and the front end is bouncing up and down coming to a stop. When it needed new pads I asked the shop
to replace the rotors and pads, a few thousand miles and the same situation occurred. I have 227K miles on her and not counting the original brakes the rotors and pads have been replaced
6 times and I still have the same problem. I'm getting even pad wear side to side and it stops well but the front end bounces up and down very noticeably still today. It was suggested I didn't "bed"
the pads in, which I have never done on any vehicle including this one and I have never had this problem on any other vehicle I have driven or owned. So, I tried overheating the brakes stopping
from a high speed several times in a row and, no more bouncing coming to a stop..... until I drove around another hour and the bouncing came back. My current mechanic say none of this makes sense
and he say's the "bedding" of new pads is nonsense. I've taken care of this vehicle meticulously although age is catching up and a few things need to be done
but I'd really like to solve this brake problem, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

I've worked for three different brake manufacturers including the current one over the last 50 years and have seen this countless times. What you are experiencing is "material transfer". Many brakes today are designed for the pad material to transfer a layer of material to the rotor face. That's part of the "bedding" process frequently discussed. Different materials require different bedding processes from no bedding at all to somewhat complicated processes that include several stops and cool downs from different speeds and pedal pressures. That being said, the material transfer process goes on throughout the life of the pad. Material is constantly being added to the face of the rotor then worn off during stops. Cheaper materials often do not have compounds in them that allow for consistent transfer. When brakes get hot or if the rotor is not perfectly true, these materials tend to build up in certain spots on the rotor face. This causes a "bump" of material to form on the rotor. When that bump comes around and hits the pad face during a stop, it causes a shudder. This can be temporarily fixed by doing a couple of really hard stops from high speed. This "knocks off" the bump of material on the rotor face and your brakes work fine for a while. But as you found, the material starts again to build up and the shudder comes back. So....how do you fix this. First...DO NOT BUY CHEAP BRAKE PADS!! There's a very good reason some pads cost more than others. I'm always amazed at how much people are willing to pay for a new car only to cheap out when maintaining it. BUY GOOD STUFF! Secondly, make sure the rotor face is as smooth as possible. Lots of shops will turn a rotor as quickly as possible without attention to rotor surface. If you can't find a shop that will do it right, buy new rotors. Again....don't buy cheap rotors. Not all rotors are machined the same way. They may look the same, but believe me, they're not. Good luck with your truck. I just bought my 95 SLT a couple of days ago and decided to join this forum. Looking forward to learning from all of you.