Ultimate Brake Shoes Buying Guide
If your car has brake drums, brake shoes are an essential part of the drum braking system that makes it stop. To help our customers understand brake shoes, we've created a comprehensive guide to read before buying a fitment-checked part through Parts Avenue.
We'll cover:
- What are brake shoes?
- How do brake shoes work?
- How are brake shoes different from brake pads?
- Why do they matter?
- How to tell if your brake shoes need changing
- The types of brake shoes available online
- The best brake shoe brands and options
- How to choose the right brake shoe parts
- Frequently asked questions about brake shoe parts
What Are Brake Shoes?
Brake shoes form an essential part of the drum brake system. They're a long, crescent-shaped component with a friction material, known as a brake shoe liner, on one side that generates friction to slow a car down when it's pressed against the brake drum.
Standard brake drum designs have two brake shoes on opposite sides of each other. We'll go more into the common brake types online, but the most common design has a primary and secondary brake shoe. The primary brake shoe applies more force to the side against the direction of drum rotation, and the secondary goes in favor of the rotation, creating less friction.
How Do Brake Shoes Work?
As you press the brake pedal down, hydraulic brake fluid travels from the master cylinder into the hydraulic wheel cylinders and pistons that push the brake shoe liners against the rotating brake drum. That motion creates the friction needed to slow your moving car down. And because it's more of a wedging motion than a squeezing, like a brake rotor system, the pistons are far smaller.
We will say that drum brakes and shoes are more of an older braking system that isn't necessarily as common on modern cars. However, it's common for cars, especially light vehicles, to have a brake disc system on the front axle and a brake drum system at the rear.
70% of the stopping force happens at the front of your car. That's why, because brake rotor systems generate more stopping force, it's common to find rotors at the front and drums at the back. Or, with modern cars, it's even more common to only see brake rotor systems.
How Are Brake Shoes Different From Brake Pads?
Some people confuse brake shoes with brake pads because they do have a similar function. Both are pushing against a rotating braking component through a hydraulic system to produce the friction needed to slow a car down. So, yes, they might perform similar functions, but they're unique in both design and the braking system they work with.
As we stated, brake shoes are designed in a crescent shape. Brake pads are more of a rectangular, flat brake component hidden behind the brake calipers. Brake pads are squeezed against the spinning brake rotor by the calipers to bring the car to a stop, whereas brake shoes are pushed outwards by pistons. It's more of a wedging action than a squeezing action.
So, again, yes, the motion seems similar, but brake pads are different in design and work with additional braking components to bring a car to a stop. That said, some cars do use both brake pads and shoes.
Many vehicles still use a small internal drum brake built inside the rear disc rotor. That's why, if you search for brake shoes online at Parts Avenue, you'll notice some of our brake kits might look something like this:
- 1x Front Semi-Metallic Brake Pad Set (Hardware Included)
- 1x Rear Semi-Metallic Brake Pad Set (Hardware Included)
- 1x Rear Parking Brake Shoe
Brake shoes also last longer than brake pads. The actual lifespan of either component depends on driving style, usage, and the material. But, as a general rule, brake pads do wear out faster than brake shoes. It's recommended to change brake pads every 50,000 km (although they can last longer than that) and brake shoes every 80,000 km.
Why Do They Matter?
Without brake shoes, there isn't the necessary friction to slow your car down. When the brake shoes make contact with the drum, the wedging action we mentioned presses the shoes into the drum with force.
Without the friction material lining of the brake shoe, that action would force the steel backing against the rotating drum, and the metal-on-metal contact would create extreme temperatures and not friction to bring the car to a stop.
How to Tell if Your Brake Shoes Need Changing
If your brake shoes need changing, you'll likely notice the following:
- A high-pitched squeal
- A loud grinding noise under braking
- Feel vibrations through the brake pedal.
- Reduced braking performance
The Types of Brake Shoes Available Online
There are three ways to define the types of brake shoes: by construction, brake shoe assembly, and adjustments.
By Construction
Leading-Trailing (or Single Leading) Brake Shoes
Leading and trailing shoe brakes refer to one shoe that moves in the same direction as the rotation of the drum wheel, and the other moves in the same direction but with less force and in the opposite direction.
The movement creates a dragging action that pulls the shoe, with force, into the friction surface. And rather than being dragged into the friction surface, the trailing shoe is almost pushed away, hence the much weaker braking force from that brake shoe.
The leading-trailing brake shoe design is by far the most common that you'll find online.
Twin Leading Brake Shoes
Twin leading drum brake shoe types within a drum braking system feature a pair of cylinders sitting in opposite directions. On these wheel cylinders are the brake shoes. When you press the brake, both wheel cylinders press one of the shoes in the direction of the rotating brake drum.
Because this motion happens in unison and there are two cylinders and two brake shoes, both act as the leading force (hence the name twin leading) to bring the car to a stop.
Duo-Servo Brake Shoes
A duo-servo brake shoe setup includes a structure with a primary and secondary fitted shoe connected by an adjuster. When you brake, a strong pressure from either the servo effect or a self-boosting effect from the primary shoe travels to the secondary shoes through the adjuster.
They essentially self-energize each other. The result is one of the most powerful braking forces compared to the other two types of brake shoes.
Non-Servo Brake Shoes
Non-servo brake shoes are the simplest in design of every brake shoe type we've mentioned. There are still two brake shoes, but they're forced equally against the drum by the wheel cylinder. Instead of the duo-servo self-energizing mechanism, the non-servo uses hydraulic braking pressure. It's less powerful, but the simple design means it's one of the more budget-friendly options.
By assembly and friction lining
Riveting Type Brake Shoes
Brake shoes fitted with a riveted brake liner were the original design of brake shoes and their lining. Six to eight holes (how many depending on the brake shoe size) are drilled into the liner at specific points where the lining needs to be positioned. The same holes then go into the brake liner in the correct position to ensure a secure fit between the metal of the brake shoe and the friction lining.
Once precision alignment is confirmed, metal rivets slot into the drilled holes to bring the lining and the metal together.
Best for: performance driving, heavy vehicles, heavy towing, or racing.
Bonded-Type Brake Shoes
Bonded-type brake shoes are typically only found in two-wheeled motorbikes but are sometimes installed on cars and trucks. In this design, a specially formulated and extremely strong adhesive glue is applied to the inner and outer sides of the brake shoe. A pressing machine then brings the two sides together.
Best for: everyday drivers who need consistent and long-lasting brake shoes.
The Best Brake Shoe Brands and Options
At Parts Avenue, we sell either rear parking brake shoes or rear drum brake shoes.
We pride ourselves on working with industry-leading brands to deliver the highest quality brake shoe parts in Canada. For our brake shoes, our go-to provider is Top Quality.
Top Quality
The Top Quality shoes offer the most optimal braking component on the market, surpassing any competition. They're designed with an exclusive MetalliX Low Resin Semi-Metallic compound that provides unmatched braking performance. That type of high-quality material brings abrasive friction, high temperature tolerance, and rapid compound warming.
They're also manufactured with a High Carbon Steel RX alloy. It's far more pressure-resistant and thermally conductive than any original equipment-level part on the market. We also find the Top Quality brake shoes last longer because they're coated with an anti-rust black paint and use One-Piece Integral Molding Technology.
All the top-quality brake shoes we sell are bonded or riveted per original equipment specifications.
How to Choose the Right Brake Shoe Parts
Individual brake shoes or brake kit
As we stated, at Parts Avenue, you either have the option to buy individual brake shoes (rear only) or to buy the brake shoes as a set.
Note: We only sell individual drum brake shoes, so you will need to purchase two.
If you decide to go for one of our brake kit options, we have hundreds of brake part combinations to suit the needs of all of our customers. Because most cars now have the design of rotor brakes and pads at the front and drum brakes and shoes at the rear, most of our brake kits will combine the two to give you a complete package.
We're confident you'll find the brake shoe you need either as a standalone part or as part of a brake kit bundle.
Parts Avenue Fitment Check tool
To ensure our customers order the correct car part and to prevent the need for returns or refunds, we've designed the Parts Avenue Fitment check tool. When you click on the part you're interested in, you'll notice a button to edit the model of your vehicle under the part title. Input your vehicle's year, make, and model, and it will automatically tell you whether the part you're interested in will fit your car.
There's also a fitment table on all of our product pages that tells you what cars the part is suitable for. We would, however, recommend double-checking with the Fitment Checker to be 100% sure.
Frequently Asked Questions About Brake Shoe Parts
How do I know which brake shoes will fit my car before buying online?
You can use our free Fitment Check tool on the Parts Avenue website. If you require further confirmation or have any doubts, you can contact one of our team members at info@partsavenue.ca.
What’s the difference between bonded and riveted brake shoes when it comes to performance and durability?
It's common for bonded brake shoes to have a longer lining life and better heat dissipation. The contact is also smoother. That said, riveted shoes are superior for durability and performance in high-stress conditions such as heavy towing or racing.
How often should I replace my brake shoes compared to my brake pads?
Your front brake shoes will need replacing more quickly than your rear brake shoes because they're taking more of the braking force (70% compared to the 30% of the rear brake shoes). It depends on your driving style, but the recommendation is every 80,000 km.
We have an almost endless list of the highest-quality brake shoes in Canada. If you need any help or advice on selecting the best brake shoe for your car, send us an email at info@partsavenue.ca.
Start your search today with Parts Avenue, the most-trusted car parts provider in Canada.