I'm trying to rebuild the front drums on my '69 Firebird. I bought the spring kit from Firebird Central but some of the springs don't fit. Does anyone have a photo of how this is supposed to look? Which color springs go where? There's no color left on my original springs but they don't all match those in the kit by size.

Also, I'm missing the rod shown in the top right. The one that goes from the top of the adjuster to the anchor bolt. Is it possible to get one. It's not in the kit.

I found the answer to my second question. The rod I'm missing is part of the brake adjuster kit, which is available at the local auto parts store. Now to figure out why my springs don't fit...

the two return springs in your pic should be the same. I would make sure you have the front spring kit, as they are different from the rear.
Also make sure you have the right hold down pins that hold the small springs to hold the shoes to the backing plate, there should be a number stamped on the head of the pin, use a pin with the same number.

This is good information! On my car the 2 top springs seem to be the same but in the kit there is 1 green one that is the right size and one blue one that is too large. I got a kit for the left and one for the right and both came with one each, but I guess I need all 4 to be like the green one.

Thanks for the tip about the numbers. I discovered the pins were different lengths but I wasn't sure which ones to use where. Hopefully I can still read the numbers on my old pins.

Every kit I have seen and used, had all the springs for both sides left and right, Just a different kit for the front and one for the rear. Sounds like you didn't get the right kit. I would go to a local parts store close by and look at the kits they have. I know it's harder to find the front kits. Post a pic of the kits you got. Also not sure if you know , in your pic above there is a spring missing that goes under the self adjusting bar.

here is what your spring kit should have in it
https://www.oreillyauto.com/detail/...tomotive-car-1969-pontiac-firebird?pos=1

If the springs in your kit looks like this , then it is for the rear
https://www.oreillyauto.com/detail/...tomotive-car-1969-pontiac-firebird?pos=1

My kit looks like the one for the rear except the white springs are green. I called Firebird Central today and they are going to send me a couple more green springs.

There are only 2 pins per side, right? I don't need all of those?

The best front drum rebuild kit is a disc brake conversion kit!

No doubt, you won't be sorry!

Yes 2 pins per side, as long as they have the same number. The front brakes and rear brakes use different length pins, as the brake shoes for the front are wider than the rear brake shoes..

Also, not sure how much you know about drum brakes, but remember that the brake shoe that has the longer brake lining goes to the rear and the shorter one goes to the front, if you look at the pic you posted you can see the difference in the lengths, I can tell that is the drivers side, and put some brake grease on the small flat pads on the backing plate where the shoes ride, and unscrew the adjuster and put a little grease on the threads and the end that rotates.

This brake job is going to kill me. I'm still on the first wheel. 3 more to go.

I called Firebird Central and explained the kit didn't have the right springs, so they sent me one green spring. That will do one side. I guess I didn't make it clear that I was doing both sides and both kits I bought were wrong. So I bought another kit from a local auto part store for 1/3 the price, but I had to wait on it.

Now I see that the rod that connects the adjuster to the bracket at the top is also wrong. I got new ones in the adjuster kit but they don't match the old ones. I'd re-use the old ones but one of them is missing. So I still can't put this together, even if I reuse the old parts.

If anyone knows where to get that rod, let me know. I'm searching online, but everyone has the one I already have, which is longer and has more bends in it.

Unbelievable. You’d think buying it from a Firebird store would simplify the install. When I did mine I ordered the cheapest kits from Rockauto and had no issues.

I just now checked Rock Auto. They're brake adjuster kits all show the same rod as came in my kit, but as you can see in my first photo above, that's not the one I need. I think this will be impossible to find. Does everyone have the rod shown in the kit, or do you have one like mine?

I give up. I've ordered a disc brake kit from Summit. I spent a lot of money on new drums, pads, etc. It's all a waste. Is there anyone in North East Florida that wants this stuff before I throw it out?

Dennis in the other post you commented on , offered to send you any part you needed , just for the shipping cost. Scroll down to the last post. Also you can run without the self adjusters, you will just have to adjust them manually every once in awhile.
https://firstgenfirebird.org/forums...73/2/front-drum-brake-self-adjuster.html

I didn't see that offer in time. My fault.