5 years is long enough
We played in the mud for just about an entire day at the 2006 National FE. It was at a place called Wheelin in the Country in southern TN. Here is a picture Doug or Will got of me playing:
It was a very chalky mud and stuck to everything. I tried to wash it out by going through a pond.
However, the truck was covered with the stuff. I brought it into my class and we took the axles all apart, cleaned them and put them back together. Brakes got cleaned too. Everything looked good and the brake pads were fat.
That was in the summer of 2006. The M715 was my only MV at the time. I spent until November of that year returning the truck to all stock in every way except engine/transmission, painted it and then, that December. M35 Gassers entered my life. The M715 got driven less and less.
We had the Colorado FE in 2008, but besides checking fluids. Nothing really was done to prep the M715. Then, the M35A2 Whistler entered my life, M105 and M101 trailers and the most time consuming thing I have ever come across. Boy Scouts.
The M35 Gasser got a frame up redo and was done by the fall of 2008. The Whistler got all my attention. Then, along came the M1009 in 2010. Then, another M1009, a USAF Suburban and even more Scouts now that I am the Scoutmaster.
All the above leads up to this. The Texas FE was scheduled to be next weekend. I was going to drive the M1009 the 250 miles out and maybe drag a M101 along to camp in. Kwai asked that I bring the M715. I have spent most of the summer prepping to paint a M1010 (not mine, but part of the deal to get the second M1009). Those ambulances are big and take lots of sanding. The M715 wasn't ready to drive 500 miles plus another 100 miles or so of the planned convoy around the hill country.
I had the USAF 6.2 suburban in my class until Wednesday doing upgrades to it. It still needs 4 tires the same size before I can drive it on a long trip. So, it trailering the M715 was out. Even though that is one of the reasons I got it. Hauling Boy Scouts is the other. The M715 had to be prepped.
I brought it into school to let my students learn while helping me get ready. We pulled a front drum off this morning. (Thread lube really does work on the 3 drum screws. 5 years later and a student used a regular screw driver to get them out. I highly recommend it.) The rear shoe was down to the rivets rubbing and the front was about there. The shoes were very, very fat the last time we had it apart.
I first thought it was because of the WITC mud. However, the drum was cleaned along with the shoes back in 2006. No mud residue inside today either. Then I looked at my mileage book to see how many miles I have gone since 2006. Almost 9,000 miles. Not that bad. Then I started reading my notes.
600 miles pulling Pistolnuts M715 on my trailer, over 100 miles pulling a M35, The Colorado FE where the brakes were used for long, long times coming down mountains, 300 miles bringing the USAF suburban home, multiple 180 mile parts runs to Sermis and a bunch of other trailer entries. Almost 6,000 miles pulling something. Normally, something very heavy. Not always with trailer brakes either. Now I can see why my fronts are gone.
We will get to the rears this afternoon, maybe. depends on if the parts for Sermis truck got prepped or not. I just wanted to pass along that if you drive your M715 a lot. Take the time to pull your drums at least every 5,000 miles or so. I was shocked by how low the pads were. I could have really torn something up or gotten myself killed on some of the switchbacks out where the FE is.
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