Driving with bad brakes is a surefire way to make any drive more exciting. I knew the brakes needed some work, but found that they were safe up until very recently. Yesterday marks the first time since I bought the truck in 2015 that I've had to do anything with the brakes. I find that very impressive, considering the vast amount of driving I've done with the poor thing.

Having replaced both disc and drum brakes multiple times in my life, and with the experience I have gained in my past life as a metal fabricator, I figured I could handle this job. I was right, but as always, things went weird. As the brakes had started grinding, and constantly, I assumed the caliper on the driver front wheel was seized, so I bought a replacement. I was correct, and the back brake pad had been worn down to the bare steel. The rotor is severely gouged as well. I went to replace the rotor and found that it didn't come with a bearing installed in the back. I suspect they are not actually press fit in like I first thought, so I will double check. I had replaced and repacked the bearings before, so I remembered how that goes. With the nice cold Ohio rain pouring down on myself and my tools, I decided to just replace the caliper and pads, so I could at least move on with my life. Yes, I am aware that the ruined rotor will destroy the new pads, but the brakes are far better and safer now, and I can at least make the few short drives I need to while I await the new parts. Instead of replacing both front rotors, pads, flex hoses, and a caliper, I replaced a single set of pads and a caliper. I did upgrade the one bleeder screw to a self sealing bleeder so I could bleed the line without help. It has a little check ball and spring inside that allows the air and fluid to come out, but stops air from getting back into the line. The other option is to have someone push the brake pedal slowly down, with the bleeder screw loosened, then tighten it while the pedal is still being pressed down. I have done this before, and it's a pain right in the cheeks. I highly recommend these bleeder screws to anyone who has to do brake work. I also highly recommend paying a professional to do brake work, if at all possible. My budget has never allowed for me to do this, and I'm quite mechanically inclined, so it hasn't been a problem for me. Just an annoyance. Oh yeah, and before I forget: NEVER use regular copper lines for brakes. It will work harden over time and split under heavy braking, when you need it most. Someone recommended this to me a while back and I knew better, just based on the properties of copper. I will be running copper-nickel lines at some point as I enjoy copper and love the fact that those lines won't rust out like the damn steel lines I have. Mine are in decent shape, but it's only a matter of time now.

I have plans to redo the entire brake system properly, but that must wait. I start my new ob soon, which will allow me to get far more done on this project. More o that later.