Snagging #3

Two topics to address in this post…. New wheel nuts and brakes… Fewer pics this time, sorry it’s a bit wordy…

Brakes

As mentioned before, the brakes are still binding and this is something that needs to be cured before we are out on the open road.

What is binding and why are they doing it? 

LGL has drum brakes all round and each drum suffers from this problem to a lesser or greater extent. Each drum brake contains one “Cylinder” between the brake shoes at the top (12 o’clock). The brake shoes connect to a pivot at 6 o’clock. When the brake is applied, the cylinder expands and forces the brake pad onto the inside of the brake drum, causing friction and heat thus retarding the vehicle.

Of these two shoes, there is the leading shoe and the trailing shoe. The trailing shoe is causing the problem. As the brake is applied, the trailing shoe is not only pushed onto the inside of the drum by the piston but as the drum rotates, it “picks up” along the length of the braking surface forcing more of the braking surface onto the inside of the drum.

All good so far. BUT…. when the brake is released, the trailing brake pad, still hard against the brake drum, stays in place as there is no release spring. The leading shoe has a release spring.  This is the “binding” part.

To alleviate  this problem, it is highly recommended on a number of forums to file a small chamfer on the braking material of the trailing show. In fact, it’s recommended to do it on the leading shoe too. I’d had a half hearted attempt at this previously and it didn’t make much difference.

Asbestos….

Asbestos used to be the material of choice in brake linings and clutch plates. If handled correctly, using the correct equipment, was OK for regular work in a workshop. But the more one does these things, the higher the risk of exposure… etc.

Asbestos is not to be found in modern brake pads or clutch plates. These are British brake pads, so I’m referring next to the UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) guidance.

“The use of asbestos in these components was prohibited from 1999, with the exception that pre 1973 vehicles could continue to be fitted with asbestos containing brake shoes until 2004….”

My brake shoes were made my Mintex in 2016. That said, I still wore overalls and my spraying respirator whilst I filed a small chamfer on to ends of the pads.

I didn’t take any picture of this but I can report that the brakes no longer bing… quite as bad (when driven on the exiles stands)

Having the vehicle on the axle stands also allowed me to see if the speedo works. It does… sort of. It goes up the dial but is very slow at coming back down. I will need to oil the cable and check there are no kinks in it.

One little job I did photograph this morning was, whilst the wheels and drums were off, I fitted the missing anchor for the brake shoes… Here’s some pics…

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wheel Nuts

Wrington Engineering in the UK make a range of very smart wheel nuts for Land Rovers, MG’s, Rovers etc. I’d had a set on a Series 3 in the past and they look a lot better than the battered old originals.

I’ve gone with a black anodised finish to match the rest of the exterior detailing. They are effectively a blind nut, i.e. they are only open on one end. Hiding the end of the wheel stud is no bad thing (in my opinion).