water crossings

[90volts]

so is it normal to have brakes pull real bad right after going through a water crossing? can it be minimized? hit one the other day and pulled to one side real hard. dried out after a few hundred feet i guess and back to normal. don't have much experience with it but kinda surprised me as i came out the other side and tried to slow down!

[jsturtlebuggy]

Yes it is normal with drum brakes. Do not set the Ebrake with them wet or shoes will rust to drums. Only way I now to elimanate it is using disc brakes. At Bishop this year we ran thru many water crossings that where over 2 feet deep. Had same problem you had. Just rode brakes until dried off.

[shaihulud]

That's quite normal after a water crossing. What you need to do is to rest your foot lightly on the brake pedal until the heat dries the brakes out, otherwise you will not get good braking if you need it in an emergency. In the 1960s I crossed the Nullarbor Plain in Australia in a Beetle, when there was about 700 miles of gravel road which was ankle to calf deep in water after heavy rains. We had barely dried out the brakes after one puddle before we had to negotiate anouther 1/2 mile long puddle. There was about one puddle per mile. A Hillman Imp that was with us had serious trouble with the long deep puddles and the grease was washed out of its front wheel bearings. As we approached our first puddle from the Western Australian side, we stopped some cars that were completely covered in mud and asked them how many puddles were there. When they discoverd thet this was our first puddle and therefore their last, they danced with joy. One of them told us that the day before his son had stopped counting the puddles at 300. The road is now sealed all the way.

[fubar]

You could drill the drums so that they clean out easier. It would also let more water in, but mud and sand would clear out quickly.