Ford 860 Brake Pedals too low

I am working on my 1955 860 and cannot figure out the brake pedals. Both are nearly to the footrest so I only have 4? or so of play. I opened up the drums dismantled
the brakes to check springs etc... Everything looked good. Plenty of pad left, all three springs were very tight...they were a bear to get back on. I did notice play in the
lever actuator (the end of the arm that is in the drum from the pedal itself that twists when the pedal is pushed down). What am I missing? How do I adjust the pedals
to gain more travel and more brake?
 
Assuming nothing is broken, the only thing that controls pedal height is the brake adjuster. It is adjusted through a slot in the bottom of the backing plate. Jack up the wheel you're adjusting and tighten the adjustment until the wheel is difficult to turn, then back off a little. You want the brakes to drag; they'll loosen up as the shoes wear to match the brake drum.

Did it look like the adjuster was already all the way out when you dismantled the brakes? You say there's plenty of material left on the shoes, which means they've probably been replaced at least once. It's quite possible whoever replaced the shoes didn't replace the drums as well. Maybe they were turned but not replaced.
 


The brake drums are supposed to require two days of struggle to remove them. If they came off easily that means that the shoes have been recently replaced and that the adjusters were not taken up.
 
The tractor is how old? All joints have gotten loose with ware. The left brake system has an adjustable rod on the left side of the transmission, towards the back. Shorten the linkage using the turn buckle until the brake pedal arm almost hits the right step plate bracket. Now you can get your toe caught under the brake !!! To get the right pedal to match takes a "blue wrench" to bend the right brake arm up to the left pedal. There's already a kink in it, so with a little paint ,no one will notice.
 

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