Not enough travel in the piston to close that gap I quickly found - but didn't break it.
I shoved the piston back in, pulled the caliper, found a bush mechanic rated spacer, used some sweet Frontier zip ties and carried on. I debated finding a rotor and pads for a bit, decided I'd try this and see how bad it was. Trailer brakes and exhaust brake were both behaving and the drums had fresh shoes, it was tolerable.
Brakes on that thing have been so shitty that aside from the pull it wasn't as big an impact as it should have been. Drove carefully, stuck to interstates and avoided traffic wherever I could.... I think I used up my good luck for a while. Probably had enough due to being 1/4 Irish and close to St. Patty's? Luck of the Irish!
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