Grabby front brakes, what to check first?

[HotWheelsBurban]

Hello all, have a brake question. Front brakes on the crew cab are getting grabby at the last part of a stop. I initially thought it was bad pavement because we're on the east side of Houston,with really crappy roads. The heat has done no favors to the old asphalt.... joints are buckling and chunks out of pavement. If you're not careful, it'll make you move enough to change lanes.....
When you ease into a stop for a light or stop sign, it doesn't do it as bad. But if you have to get on it a little harder, it's worse. Can't hear any scraping or grinding noise (like if the pads or shoes were metal to metal). It's at the very end of the stopping, right where it makes full stop, that it does this. I think it's only the fronts,but it shakes the truck. Power assist is working fine!
Going out tomorrow morning to get it on the jack and pull the front wheels off, one side at a time. Hoping it's just that the caliper slides are dirty and need cleaning and lubrication. If it needs pads, I can handle that ( they are just bigger than the half ton ones, but set up similar).
Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[xXxPARAGONxXx]

Probably one of the more neglected maintenance of disc brakes is lubrication of the caliper slide pins. Probably a good place to start and quite likely the culprit.

 

[HotrodZ06]

I would look at the calipers and the hoses to the calipers, either could cause that issue.

 

[HotWheelsBurban]

Probably one of the more neglected maintenance of disc brakes is lubrication of the caliper slide pins. Probably a good place to start and quite likely the culprit.

That's what I'm figuring. This truck has been sitting more than it's been driven for several years. And they did a decent job of cleaning the outside and interior, but nothing under the hood or underneath it. I think I got a fair bit of Atascosa County dirt in the deal.....
At least I have two days off consecutive.

 

[454cid]

You might consider replacing the rubber bushings if you do the pins.

 

[HotWheelsBurban]

Yes I'm sure they're original! I think a hardware kit shouldn't be too expensive, and well worth it to make this beast stop properly.

 

[Erik the Awful]

I'd check for leaky calipers and cylinders first. When I got WCJr running, the rear wheel cylinders were leaking, gumming up the rear brakes. It had fairly new shoes on it. I replaced the cylinders and used rubbing alcohol and a brush to clean the shoes. It's been fine ever since, and the rubbing alcohol didn't harm the shoe linings.

 

[User_name]

@HotWheelsBurban you might consider getting the rotor runout checked. My 1995 c2500 is doing this exact thing because of warped rotors. If you get the acdelco pads from rock they should come with a hardware kit(at least mine did) it came with new rubber bushings and shims

 

[Pinger]

Bosch ceramic pads I bought for my C2500 had the bushings and seals.

 

[TCBRacer77]

By grabby do you mean like when you are slowing down almost to a stop it makes you start head banging lol, like the brakes are pulsing