Twinky_Bomb

I have a 1998 3500 cab and chassis. I'm wanting to do a complete overhaul on the brakes. Front pads, shoes, hardware kit and new wheel cylinders. I was leaning towards Bendix for my shoes but it doesn't look like they make pads for the front. So if there's another quality brand that sells both shoes and pads, I'd rather go that route and get them from the same place. Just wondering what are some suggested brands and where y'all buy them from. Also, I've seen different size shoes. I think an 11 inch, 13 inch x 2.5 and 13x3.5. How can I tell which size is correct for my application? Thanks.

johnh

....remove rear wheel and drum and measure old shoes
98 1998 Dodge Ram 3500 Brake Pad Set - Brake - AC Delco, Akebono, Bendix, Bosch, Centric, EBC, Hawk, Monroe, Performance Friction, Power Stop, Top Stop, Wagner, Front - PartsGeek

patdaly

I find all kinds of options for Bendix for your truck on the front pads, where are you looking?

I went to Rock Auto.

I like Raybestos, they are a good quality old line product like Bendix.

As for your brakes, if your truck still has the sticker under the hood, the brakes should be noted, being a C&C, I would almost bet they are the 13X3.5

u2slow

With my 94-95 Dana 70/80 axles (all diesel), I found the SRW has the 13" narrow shoes, and the DRW has the 13" wide shoes. I suspect the C&C DRW uses the wide shoes too.

KATOOM

Here's a chart showing the brake sizes per model year. Dodge Ram Brake Specifications BUT.....that doesnt mean you shouldn't remove yours first and measure to be assured you're not buying the wrong parts.

And I dont use the "better stopping" brake parts either. I dont think there's anything wrong with OEM quality as long as your brakes are all working correctly. The better stopping aftermarket parts are usually more abusive to the rotors/drums as they use more friction to do the same job. And they wear out faster too.

Twinky_Bomb

I was looking there too, guess I missed it. Thanks.

Well really I'd like to get OEM shoes/pads and hardware kits/wheel cylinders from Dodge but from the looks of it Dodge isn't making them anymore? Maybe I'm wrong so please correct me if I am. That's why I was leaning towards Bendix shoes and front pads and just getting wheel cylinders and hardware kits from Autozone or somewhere similar.

KATOOM

I didnt mean I only buy only "OEM" parts but merely saying that I'm not an advocate of brake parts which increase the friction on the rotors because all that does is cause things to wear out much faster while building more heat. Then things like rotors and drums simply wear out faster. So when replacing brake parts I tend to lean towards the OEM quality parts. Although I'm not unhappy with my trucks brakes.....