K10 14bolt swap now rear brakes lock up before the front

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

Darty03

Junior Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2015
Posts
14
Reaction score
6
Location
TX
First Name
Darty03
Truck Year
1983
Truck Model
K10
Engine Size
468bbc 4L80E NP205
Did you read through that link sent you on post 9??

I looked through the brake pads shown and looked at their ratings. The wagner should be about like the raybestos performance pads. I just found them for 2 bucks more though so I might go with them instead. I'm trying to keep it under 50 bucks, preferably 40 or under. This is a trail rig and these parts should be getting replaced again in a year or so. One thing I didnt understand about the ratings on that list was that some pads had near maxed out performance but then only one notch for performance above stock. How can they be rated so high on one and low on the other for the same pad?
 
Joined
Jul 20, 2021
Posts
925
Reaction score
3,372
Location
Tennessee
First Name
Matt
Truck Year
1979
Truck Model
C10
Engine Size
6.17775926 liters, 3L80, 228.6mm axle
When I put the big C30 brakes under my Suburban, I considered using the load sensing valve that came with the axle. But I eventually chose not to. I never had any issues with rear lockup, even when braking down steep, muddy or gravel roads.

Oddly enough, my old '86 C20 Burb with 13" brakes, the load valve evidently cut too much line pressure to the rear. The front brakes had a tendency to lock up in a panic stop on pavement.
Probably because theres couple hundred pounds of steel and glass over the rear vs a truck?
 

bucket

Super Moderator
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Aug 3, 2010
Posts
35,095
Reaction score
43,613
Location
Usually not in Ohio
First Name
Andy
Truck Year
'77, '78, '79, '84, '88
Truck Model
K5 thru K30
Engine Size
350-454
Probably because theres couple hundred pounds of steel and glass over the rear vs a truck?

Could be. I made sure to mention that fact in my earlier post. But GM installed the load sensing valves on the Burbs too.
 

Blue Ox

Turning Diesel Fuel Into Fun
Joined
Mar 27, 2018
Posts
5,874
Reaction score
14,629
Location
LI-NY
First Name
Derek
Truck Year
MCMLXXXV
Truck Model
K20HD
Engine Size
6.2L
I've had both. The pickup had the JD7 brakes from the factory, and I duplicated the same specs when I upgraded the axles on the Suburban. Both trucks had the same issue. When the LSPV malfunctioned on the pickup, and since I hadn't initially installed it when I did the Suburban. Violent, premature rear lockup. Both corrected by a properly functioning LSPV. Maybe it's different for a 4WD. Maybe I'm just the lucky one. I know others have said it's a non-issue. Don't know what else to say except YMMV.

BTW, I didn't initially install it on the Suburban because someone else with a similar pickup said "that valve doesn't do anything." Well, it turns out it does. We tried changing the shoe adjustments and smaller wheel cylinders and it made zero difference. Added the LSPV and they turned back into civilized, drivable trucks.
 

squaredeal91

Full Access Member
Joined
Mar 10, 2023
Posts
3,119
Reaction score
5,891
Location
Cave junction Oregon
First Name
Greg bush
Truck Year
1991 SB
Truck Model
K30
Engine Size
5.9 Cummins 12 valve
I put a 14 bolt out of a 1995 k2500 suburban in my 78 k10 with no issues like this. A few months before I did the axle swap i replaced my master cylinder with the 3/4 ton master. That being said. If you rears lock up its probably because the shoes are out of adjustment, ive had that issue before on something else. That's my 2 cents lol
 

48hd

Junior Member
Joined
Nov 22, 2021
Posts
11
Reaction score
4
Location
arkansas
First Name
scott
Truck Year
1986
Truck Model
c10
Engine Size
350
Make sure you have the correct size wheel cylinder and pins.
 

chevdude

Supporting Member
Joined
Sep 9, 2021
Posts
74
Reaction score
70
Location
60542
First Name
jeff
Truck Year
1977
Truck Model
k10
Engine Size
400
You didn't say what diameter the rear wheel cylinders are.
I believe that they come in 1" and 1 1/8".
The larger bore will give you more braking pressure than the smaller one.
So if you have the 1 1/8" rear cylinders, try the 1"
 

Ricko1966

Full Access Member
Joined
Apr 11, 2017
Posts
9,940
Reaction score
19,069
Location
kansas
First Name
Rick
Truck Year
1975
Truck Model
c20
Engine Size
350
I looked through the brake pads shown and looked at their ratings. The wagner should be about like the raybestos performance pads. I just found them for 2 bucks more though so I might go with them instead. I'm trying to keep it under 50 bucks, preferably 40 or under. This is a trail rig and these parts should be getting replaced again in a year or so. One thing I didnt understand about the ratings on that list was that some pads had near maxed out performance but then only one notch for performance above stock. How can they be rated so high on one and low on the other for the same pad?
All gm combination valves are not the same. In 1985 alone there were 4 different combination valves with different settings for brake bias. I've put all this up on another thread including the part numbers and people put some interesting work around. The aftermarket combination valves must be a generic works okay in most applications kinda deal since they only sell 2 to cover everything instead of dozens like original. That said see if anything had your combination of parts and try to find a used OE. combination valve. I'll look for the other thread and link it. BIAB.
 

Darty03

Junior Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2015
Posts
14
Reaction score
6
Location
TX
First Name
Darty03
Truck Year
1983
Truck Model
K10
Engine Size
468bbc 4L80E NP205
You didn't say what diameter the rear wheel cylinders are.
I believe that they come in 1" and 1 1/8".
The larger bore will give you more braking pressure than the smaller one.
So if you have the 1 1/8" rear cylinders, try the 1"

They are the 1 1/8". I tried to find a definitive part number for the 1" that would fit and if the pins were the same, but I didn't find much so I went with the 1 1/8" again. I really didn't feel like they would make enough of a difference to fix the issue after reading about them. I need a lot less strength and from what I saw a lot of people were saying it made minimal change.

All gm combination valves are not the same. In 1985 alone there were 4 different combination valves with different settings for brake bias. I've put all this up on another thread including the part numbers and people put some interesting work around. The aftermarket combination valves must be a generic works okay in most applications kinda deal since they only sell 2 to cover everything instead of dozens like original. That said see if anything had your combination of parts and try to find a used OE. combination valve. I'll look for the other thread and link it. BIAB.

I actually saw your post the other day and it got me back on the proportion valve being the issue. This is what I initially felt like was the solution but wasn't sure. I think I mentioned adding a manual adjustable valve early but that was going to be my "bandaid" fix before I made this post. I decided to just make the post and see what others thought first. I was going to add it after the factory valve along the rear frame rail. I figured that would let the factory valve still work correctly and not limit flow to it. This being an offroad only vehicle now it might be the most simple solution.
 

Latest posts

Forum statistics

Threads
48,401
Posts
1,066,562
Members
42,779
Latest member
blue10
Top