Brake Shoes

[Bryce]

Hello All

I had a look at my brake drums today to check if I could access them easily and whether I needed to change the brake shoes anytime soon.

The drum covers came off pretty easily and with little force which was a pleasant surprise unny: the drums seem to be in fair condition and well within the 230mm diameter maximum.

However, I'm unsure how much should be on the shoe pad cratch: I measured (cruedly) 3-4mm but couldn't see any indicators. See picture.

Can anyone confirm that they are good for now and what the shoe pad minimum thickness is before they require changing?

Thanks

Bryce

[Image: 2qtbhmx.jpg]

[Tomcat3]

It says in the haynes manual 1.5mm min so you got plenty left.

[geoff]

The shoes are looking good for many more thousands of miles yet..... I'd get a grinder and remove any lip at the edge of the drum to facilitate easy removal of the drums when you next take them off. This trick works well as automatic adjusters are great until you want to remove a drum and cannot.
Also use a file or some such and put a good sized chamfer on the leading edge of the shoe as this helps to stop grabbing of the brake especially in the wet on first application.
Geoff. P.S. I just did my sons Astra shoes and had to slam the drums off !!! After grinding the lip off they now fall on and off - they are within spec too !

[Bryce]

Thanks for the replies. I did hear about grinding the inside lip off but it didn't make sense but now it does, a good tip thank you.

[ron]

Thanks for the replies. I did hear about grinding the inside lip off but it didn't make sense but now it does, a good tip thank you.

It's a very good tip,I even champfer the edge slightly so the ridge doesn't build up again.

[geoff]

Thanks for the replies. I did hear about grinding the inside lip off but it didn't make sense but now it does, a good tip thank you.

It's a very good tip,I even champfer the edge slightly so the ridge doesn't build up again.

Yes me too though I forgot to add it into the post ^^^

You can also flash off the ridges on a brake disc and tap the outer edges with a light hammer to knock the scale off the outer edges.

On my last C15 the mot chap wanted to fail me on worn discs ( he mentioned the rusty outer edge ) , I ground off the outer lip and knocked the scale off and took it back for the retest along with a micrometer just in case he bumped his gums about thickness - the discs were within spec - and I had a pass though he had to measure them first. I now get on well with him as we have an understanding.

[Noel Brig]

Is there an adjuster accessed from behind the back plate to loosen off before removal (and then adjust up after refitting ?

[ffrenchie]

I've not looked at mine yet, I think it's going to wait till we get some nicer weather. Some cars used to have a rubber bung in the brake backplate that you could take out to move the self adjuster with a flat screwdriver.

[Berlinguist]

Is there an adjuster accessed from behind the back plate to loosen off before removal (and then adjust up after refitting ?

No. I think you'll find that you need to position one of the bolt holes to the rear of the 6 o'clock position. Find the handbrake ops lever and move it towards the rear of vehicle. That should allow the drum to slip over the shoes. (Take a look at the post's earlier pic for guidance)

[Noel Brig]

Is there an adjuster accessed from behind the back plate to loosen off before removal (and then adjust up after refitting ?

No. I think you'll find that you need to position one of the bolt holes to the rear of the 6 o'clock position. Find the handbrake ops lever and move it towards the rear of vehicle. That should allow the drum to slip over the shoes. (Take a look at the post's earlier pic for guidance)

"handbrake ops lever" not sure what you mean by this ? do you mean that the handbrake should be disengaged as far as poss