So a bunch of stuff is 'bout to get done to Bonnie and idk know much about it...I need to overhaul the axle, brakes, and front hubs. Seem like I should do all of this at the same time, so I wanna make sure I get everything I need.

The brake components I need is pretty straight forward...
Master Cyl. (taking suggestions on brand and where to buy...I think Ebay)
Hoses
Wheel Cyl.'s
Pads/Shoes (taking suggestions)
Caliper (idk maybe rebuild)
Drums (prolly not)
Rotors (maybe if I upgrade...idk the deal with aftermarket/ebay-drilled-blah)
That's all, right?

The axle seals and wheel bearings procedure is more daunting...tools (or harbor freight) and skill is there, but experience is not...not sure what All I need or if I should just get this stuff at the auto parts store or try and find stuff on ebay.

As a whole I don't really know where to start; axle seals and bearings (and whatever else that job involves), front wheel bearings and whatever else (idk), master cyl., soft lines, wheel cyl., pads/shoes, turn rotors/drums...I wanna make sure that I don't get new components dirty, so should I flush out the hardline before I put the new stuff on? Is that the best order to do these things?

Any suggestions on what to look for, and how to go about...what parts to get or what not to get, or any bone you can throw at me would be much appreciated! Don't want to learn as I go, I want to feel confident before I dig in to it. I want to know I have everything and know what I'm doing. Chiltons is not confidences inspiring, but, when I know more it's not hard to follow.

P.S. this post sux, but I'm intimidated and don't want the truck down for days or to have to redo anything...I'm grateful for any help, even tho my post is boring/confusing/stupid/lame (any response will be a surprise cuz I don't even want to hit submit)

 

I posted a write up last year about replacing the rear axle bearing. It requires a special service tool ($200+ and hard to find) I made out of cheap plumbing parts from a hardware store. Hope it'll help:

http://www.toyotaminis.com/forum/engine-drivetrain-59/rear-axle-bearing-replacement-16462/

By the way, I would only replace the rotors if they're worn out too much or if they're warped. It is relatively easy and they are cheap enough at your local napa. No need to get any special "performance" ones in my opinion. The one thing you need to pay extra attention to is tightening the hub to it, do it in small steps in a cross pattern as you do with a wheel, but taking even better care. The reason is that the rotor may warp quickly if you do it wrong. You may not need new bearings if you repack them and they don't have too much play. But it won't hurt to get new seals.

I don't use my brakes a lot so they last about 100k miles, just get a generic reputable brand brake pad. I don't believe in "performance" brake pads. You may want to replace the flexible brake hoses near the wheels.

Make sure to break in brakes and rotors. Some people suggest a few hard stopds to make them smoke. I don't do that, I just try to brake gently and not overheat the rotors. When the rotors are new it's easy to warp them, once they've broken in overheating will not warp them that easily anymore. You know when they've broken in when braking has improved (or in a week or so of driving), some of the brake pad material has transfered to the rotor surface which improves stopping power. The pads I believe have tiny air chambers that get filled with burnt brake pad material, I see how a few hard stops will do that, however it messes up new rotors.

General rule, with new rotors avoid hard stops for a week or so, brake very gently.

Drum brakes last even longer, if the pads are not worn out I would leave it the way it is. They're much harder to replace, a special tool to tighten and release the springs may come in handy. Replacing the drums is really easy though, and rather cheap as well, I did it once, not sure it was necessary but the old ones were original from 1987 as far as I know.

One last thing, avoid drilled brake rotors. It's totally unnecessary and undermines the strength of the rotors and wears out pads faster. It may have (questionable) benefits in performance cars, but not in toyota trucks.

 

Whether you "believe in" performance pads or not they have their benefits. Cheap organic pads will stop great when cold but once they are hot they are shot until they get cooled off again. A decent metallic performance pad will stop well when cold and get better than the cheap pad once it warms up. Same goes for ceramic, they are good cold but fantastic when they get hot.

Performance rotors are not all that wonderful especially cross drilled, they tend to crack. Slotted rotors let the gases built up under hard braking escape through the slots and don't crack under hard use.



Some of us treat our trucks as performance cars. There are some here that run auto cross with them, some drag race them too. Good brakes are essential on any rig, especially one that gets beat hard. I run stainless braided flex lines, a large dual diaphragm booster and 1" master cylinder along with stock rotors, calipers and drums. I've installed metallic pads and shoes and my brakes are absolutely awesome for what they are. Rear discs are on the list for this winter so I can get rid of the hear prone drums.

 

If you don't have a press, just get the axle/drum assembly removed and take it to a good machine shop- $40.

That's what I had to do, since I live in a apartment.

Easy breezy!

 

" A decent metallic performance pad will stop well when cold and get better than the cheap pad once it warms up."

Yes you're right, also when you race or something upgraded brakes are important, especially those other upgrades you mentioned. I actually don't view metallic pads as a performance item, since it's a pretty generic part. I mean if you go to your local parts store they tend to offer the el cheapo one and an "upgraded" metallic pad for about $10-$20 more.

What I meant was brake pads from brands that promise more, above and beyond what a "regular" metallic pad would offer. Which I think mostly are empty claims.

A substantial performance boost in braking would come from ceramic brake pads, however my knowledge about that is heresay at best.

 

Oh dam! That's where I put that, this is dat one..idk whateven this page says but that's the truck in my profile pic

 

Oh wow, I didn't really get into it but, they really knew how to thread jack back in the day..like not all the way bacc butt...yeesh