Very tight brake drums

[MikeTeesside]

Hi guys, I ran a search and this has been asked before but I'm getting conflicting information so thought I'd just ask.

I've completely rebuilt my rear end suspension and brakes, everything is new inside the drums and the drums themselves have been cleaned out and checked for scoring etc before being refitted. I've followed the manual to the letter, centred the shoes as best I can by eye and made sure the adjusters are backed off all the way. The offside drum went on with a wiggle and it's tight enough to make turning it by hand very difficult, but the nearside one had to be pretty much forced on with a lot of wiggling and some smacking with a rubber mallet.

Some people are telling me to get it back off and wiggle the shoes around, but I'm at a loss to see how this would help as they'll only wiggle up and down a little bit.

Other people are telling me to smack it with a hammer to get it on, which I tell them I have already, they say good and the shoes will centre themselves/free off when I drive away.

This is my very first time dealing with brake drums so I want to make sure I'm not going to cause any damage by just trying to drive away. I've rebuilt old cars before but mostly late 60's/early 70's Alfa Romeo 105's which have calipers front and back.

[heraldcoupe]

It may be worth trying a different brand of brake shoes. Though there are prescribed dimensions, some linings are thicker than others. New linings together with new drums can make things very tight indeed.

Other than this, ensure that the handbrake cable is disconnected and that the cylinder can slide freely. Once you've established this there's not an awful lot left that it could be,

Cheers,
Bill.

[ferny]

It's exactly how Bill says. Often it is the slave not being able to slide around. Any time I've had to strip the brakes or remove a half shaft I've made a point of stripping that part, cleaning its surfaces and then using a suitable lubricate (I've got some old graphite based stuff all written in German so can't tell you what it is) before putting it back together. Not being free is also often the reason whey the handbrake fails the MOT.

[heraldcoupe]

One other thought, the retaining clips for the wheel cylinder.
The quality of these clips can be shocking - some are too thin, others too thick, others have poorly defined locating pips. Result is a cylinder which won't move at all, or alternatively one which flops about because the clips fall out as soon as the cylinder moves.

Cheers,
Bill.

[GT64fun]

Hi Guys

I have had similar problems. I would agree that 'aftermarket' retaining clips are 'pretty poor', bordering om totally rubbish'r!. I struggled getting the cylinder to move freely and eventually went diving in my bin of discarded bits to find some old original ones. A trace of grease can help but don't go mad, grease and brakes don'y mix well.

I am also fairly convinced that lining thickness on repalcement shoes can vary, which means there just isn't enough space even with everyting backed off. With new drums (which I replaced because I thought my drums were a bit oval) were almost impossible to get to fit. A replacement set of shoes were just that bit easier (Set of shoes for worn drums anybody?).

Keep perservering

Hope this helps

Regards

Ian F ;)

[MikeTeesside]

Well I've left it slammed on there with a rubber mallet and hope it.. finds its level.. so-to-say when I drive off and use my brakes on and off a bit.

If not, it's drum off and fiddle time. Oh joy. :(

I do love these cars but the Alfa setup was much better, calipers front and back with an internal drum on the rear discs for a shoe handbrake.