View single post by Mark Rosenbaum
 Posted: 08-22-2005 10:01 pm
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Mark Rosenbaum



Joined: 03-12-2005
Location: Kingman, Arizona USA
Posts: 532
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Most of the braking is done by the front brakes.  Don't assume that the rear brakes are working simply because the car stops when you step on the brake pedal.

Put the car up on stands.  Place a prising bar between the backing plate and the protruding handbrake lever.  Spin the rear tire and, while it's turning, pull hard on the prising bar to activate the brake.  If the wheel doesn't stop quite abruptly, the problem is in the brake itself.  If it does, the problem (on this side at least) is in the linkage.  Repeat for the other side.

From your description, it sounds like the rear brake mechanism is not working.  If that's the case, there must be something worn, broken, and/or incorrectly assembled.  You'd need to remove the brake drums, take a good close look at the parts involved, and deal with any issues that are present.  Note that the handbrake mechanism and self adjuster mechanism are inter-related.

A linkage problem is almost always due to misassembly, misadjustment, or wear.  Make sure the link assembly is put together properly (see attached photo).  There should be no real looseness or wear at any of the clevis pins or their holes.  The cable's clevis attaches to the left brake's lever, and is adjusted so that the brake levers are initially just loose.  Normally the brake levers begin moving before the cockpit lever reaches its first detent notch, and should be fully engaged by the time the cockpit lever reaches its fourth or fifth detent notch.

Attachment: pivot.jpg (Downloaded 99 times)