Looks like my e-brake fianally went, I pull it out as far as it can go and it wont stop me on a hill. I tried to search for info on it and all I could really come up with was to adjust the drums. Is that what I really need to do? How would I know if I needed a new cable, or do I just adjust the nut on the brake cable by the back axle?

I looked at that online 93 manual as well and I couldent seem to find any info on how to adjust the e-brake. So I was thinking of trying to adjust my drums, but I dont know what I'm supposed to do. Can someone help me out here?

 

Drums should be self-adjusting, but that doesn't always work. Are you sure the rear brake shoes and drums aren't worn excessively? If they're OK...
1st thing to try is to find a wide open space and drive in reverse. Use the e-brake to stop you (or slow as much as it's able), release & repeat. You may have to pull the handle 20 - 30 times to get it adjusted as much as this method can.
2nd - there's a mechanism just in front of the fuel tank. There are a couple of nuts on this that will allow you to take up any slack in the cable.

 

You might also have to adjust your rear brakes a little from wear and tear.

 

The cable may need adjustment due to stretch. Check the amount of slack on the first bellcrank under the passenger seat.

The rear brakes are easy to adjust and it doesn't require any driving or tools. All you need to do climb under the truck and pull on the lever arm on the rear backing polates that the ebrake cable attaches to. Pull it all the way out until it stops, then release it. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.... etc.. until you feel the amount of the travel begin to get shorter. Do both sides this way.

What you're doing is moving the adjuster one click each time you pull the lever. The adjuster will stop adjusting when it's taken up all the slack on the rear shoes which is what you're feeling when it suddenly gets harder to pull the lever arm.

 

Hey thanks that reversing thing brought back a little more life into it. I will adjust those nuts as well.

 

Cable adjustment in at the linkage just in front of the gas tank underneath, the threaded rod and nut just at the top center of the picture below:

 

If your going to snug up your brake adjusters which unless clean and lubed rarely work (are designed to work when you stop in reverse which most of us do very little of generally) it would be a wise thing to either do it like the prevoius post said by backing up and stopping repeatedly (which will only work if your adj's are functional) or if you do it by manually working the adj arm or using a adj'ing tool on the adj itself please don't do it until the E-brake tightens up or your brake shoe will be rather firmly positioned against the drum and you will be smoking something (axle grease seal,shoes,drums and or damaging dust caps on wheel cyl's or the wheel cylinder itself) , if you want to adj the arm within the drum or the adj with a tool please make sure you jack it up and make sure the wheel will turn with little resistance so that you do not have the shoes planted against the drums .
I may have mis-understood one of the posts but if the auto-adj arm is adj'ed until your E-Brake is tight then you will be smoking something , may just be your brake shoes or a few other things as well .
Typically if your rear brakes are adj'ed somewhat properly then it is cable stretch that is most of your problem and can be adj.ed under the trk as described in previous post .

 

i am the Y/T idiot, and it took me an hour of playing around with the adjusters to finally get mine to work. then i bought the FSM, and it is written in greek. glad you got working.