Drum brake cylinders and handbrake cable

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ollyw
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Re: Drum brake cylinders and handbrake cable

Post by ollyw »

D366Y wrote: Thu May 16, 2019 7:05 pm I give up!! Fingers crossed the pictures are attached, but I've put the shoes on the other way as you suggested, new springs - including that stupidly tight one at the top, adjustment arm will not go any further in and I've disconnected the rod entirely so it can't affect the tightness, still can't get the bleeding drums on!!

Started sanding off a bit of the shoes to see if I could squeeze it over and still no luck and seems like a waste of pad

Any help now please before I give up entirely and just take it to a garage - can be their problem then :lol:
Is it me or is the adjuster fully open to the max in this pic?
If so that’ll be why you can’t get the drum over. For brand new shoes I’d expect there to be a lot more of the ribbed face on the left side to be on show.

Stick a screwdriver between these two faces and lever it back a bit, this should back the pads down via the springs. This is crudely how I set my handbrakes up to start.


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D366Y
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Re: Drum brake cylinders and handbrake cable

Post by D366Y »

Thanks for the thought Olly, but that's with the adjuster arm hammered down into place - it definitely didn't go any lower than that :lol:

I'll pull it apart again when it's not raining (and I'm not working) and have a look to see if the arm is bent and post a picture up

Cheers
Danny
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ollyw
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Re: Drum brake cylinders and handbrake cable

Post by ollyw »

Interesting problem you got there.
Yes I see your point. Are the adjusters the same on all mk3 models? I thought they were but then surely they’d need to be different for the different drum sizes.

Is it worth getting 2 second hand adjusters from Martin at Capri gear that are correct for the size laser you own?

What if you actually have a 2.8 adjuster there? In which case it’s got a bigger dia drum than a laser. I’ll be happily corrected on that.
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D366Y
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Re: Drum brake cylinders and handbrake cable

Post by D366Y »

ollyw wrote: Sat May 18, 2019 10:32 pm Interesting problem you got there.
Yes I see your point. Are the adjusters the same on all mk3 models? I thought they were but then surely they’d need to be different for the different drum sizes.

Is it worth getting 2 second hand adjusters from Martin at Capri gear that are correct for the size laser you own?

What if you actually have a 2.8 adjuster there? In which case it’s got a bigger dia drum than a laser. I’ll be happily corrected on that.
No idea if they're the same on all models - I'd guess slightly different on the 9inch shoes? But it has been fine for the last 'X' number of years until I came along :lol:

I couldn't bring myself to get out there today - the weather wasn't the best over here and I really couldn't motivate myself to try again :(
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D366Y
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Re: Drum brake cylinders and handbrake cable

Post by D366Y »

Just bringing this whole sorry affair to a close - I had to drop the car in the garage this morning to just get it sorted.

They fitted the brake shoes with the new springs, and a new cylinder that I ended up breaking as well so the parts were OK, it really was just my own ineptitude causing the problems...

The garage said it was a pain in the backside trying to get it back on and they spent ages fiddling with the handbrake adjuster but rather them than me - I think if I did it anymore I'd end up like Paul G when he was 16 right at the start of this thread - by sticking a hammer through the rear lights :lol:
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Re: Drum brake cylinders and handbrake cable

Post by Mr B »

Hi mate,

I don't think it's ineptitude on your part, at least you tried numerous times to fix it and didn't give up straight away like some people do, use this data you have gathered for the next time you try, thinking about it now perhaps someone in your car's past mistakenly adjusted the hand brake cable right up to compensate for seized adjusters, just a thought ..

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D366Y
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Re: Drum brake cylinders and handbrake cable

Post by D366Y »

Mr B wrote: Tue May 21, 2019 4:13 pm Hi mate,

I don't think it's ineptitude on your part, at least you tried numerous times to fix it and didn't give up straight away like some people do, use this data you have gathered for the next time you try, thinking about it now perhaps someone in your car's past mistakenly adjusted the hand brake cable right up to compensate for seized adjusters, just a thought ..

Mr B
That I did, though I think I can safely say I'll be trying to avoid going near brake drums anytime soon :lol:
And that's a possibility! a glimmer of hope for me haha

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Danny
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Re: Drum brake cylinders and handbrake cable

Post by andyd »

D366Y wrote: Tue May 21, 2019 3:40 pm Just bringing this whole sorry affair to a close - I had to drop the car in the garage this morning to just get it sorted.

They fitted the brake shoes with the new springs, and a new cylinder that I ended up breaking as well so the parts were OK, it really was just my own ineptitude causing the problems...

The garage said it was a pain in the backside trying to get it back on and they spent ages fiddling with the handbrake adjuster but rather them than me - I think if I did it anymore I'd end up like Paul G when he was 16 right at the start of this thread - by sticking a hammer through the rear lights :lol:
You did the right thing, as safety is a main priority. Sometimes getting your wallet out is the best/easier option.

I know the feeling of a straight forward job turning out a pain in the ass and the temptation to throw tools around :)
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Re: Drum brake cylinders and handbrake cable

Post by Andrew 2.8i »

Hi Danny,
Glad you got the brakes sorted. That's the end of that nightmare....

Andrew.
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Re: Drum brake cylinders and handbrake cable

Post by D366Y »

andyd wrote: Tue May 21, 2019 4:24 pm
You did the right thing, as safety is a main priority. Sometimes getting your wallet out is the best/easier option.

I know the feeling of a straight forward job turning out a pain in the ass and the temptation to throw tools around :)
My thoughts exactly Andy, better safe (and slightly poorer) than sorry

Seems to be my standard move whenever I work on the car recently :lol:
Andrew 2.8i wrote: Tue May 21, 2019 8:16 pm Hi Danny,
Glad you got the brakes sorted. That's the end of that nightmare....

Andrew.
For now.... :shock:
Onto the next nightmare on my long list I guess... :roll:
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Re: Drum brake cylinders and handbrake cable

Post by Andrew 2.8i »

D366Y wrote: Wed May 22, 2019 8:07 am For now.... :shock:
Onto the next nightmare on my long list I guess... :roll:
Have you still got much of that two-pages-of-A4 list to work through?

Andrew.
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Re: Drum brake cylinders and handbrake cable

Post by D366Y »

Andrew 2.8i wrote: Wed May 22, 2019 5:14 pm
D366Y wrote: Wed May 22, 2019 8:07 am For now.... :shock:
Onto the next nightmare on my long list I guess... :roll:
Have you still got much of that two-pages-of-A4 list to work through?

Andrew.
Of course!
Half a side of A4 for Debby, half for June, and a whole page for Jamey :shock: :lol:
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