Elan handbrake pads

[pimkeirle]

Does anyone know if it is possible to re-line handbrake pads ? At ?50 + vat a pop they seem quite expensive as an exchange item, surely if I could get hold of some ferodo brake lining material then that and a tube of araldite would work OK, after all, they are only used when the car is stationary.

[ardee_selby]

Does anyone know if it is possible to re-line handbrake pads ? At ?50 + vat a pop they seem quite expensive as an exchange item, surely if I could get hold of some ferodo brake lining material then that and a tube of araldite would work OK, after all, they are only used when the car is stationary.

I've not done it but Alex (Black) has. I believe there are others.

See post near the end of this thread: elan-f15/hand-brake-pads-t17819.html

Cheers - Richard

[69S4]

I've not done it with any pads on the Elan but I have araldited a set of motorcycle pads back together again when the friction material separated from the backing and it worked well enough until I could replace them. I hadn't realised that handbrake pads had become so expensive so maybe diy relining might be another skill I'll have to master.

[john.p.clegg]

Don't the backing plates have a circular recess,so turning some friction material down and then squaring them off and a blob of araldite should do the job??
John

[rgh0]

I have taken old pads down to my local specialist brake place and he bonds new lining material onto them for minimal cost. I guess you could get some old brake pad lining and bond it on yourself but I prefer to use a proper lining bonding system used by the professional - it is the "emergency brake" after all even if you cant reach it when belted in

Just finished on the weekend doing a rear brake rebuild on the Elan and put in my spare set of handbrake pads so the old ones will go back for relining. The last set was in my spares for about 15 years so the next one will be a while before it gets used. Get the little L shape pull off spings set right so the pads lift off the disk evenly when released and the other adsjustments right and the handbrake will last for a very long time with almost zero wear or need for adjustment

cheers
Rohan

[UAB807F]

If you strip an old pad completely you'll find the area underneath the friction material has a small circular recess, about 1/16" deep and the diameter is just less than the pad width. Through the centre of this is a hole which goes completely through to the other side - a vent for the glue.

I've relined mine using araldite plus some friction material, but it's more than just cutting to size & sticking in place. You cut roughly to size & then file a "spigot" on the back of the new pad to fit inside the recess. Cover everything in glue and then compress in a vice while it cures, any excess glue will run out through the vent hole.

The spigot probably adds to the strength of the pad because it doesn't just rely on the shear strength of the glue, but also that of the friction material. If you just glue onto a flat surface I could see it coming off if you ever tried to use it as an emergency brake and it was under heat/stress. (you wouldn't want that happening on an MoT, would you ?)

Usual caveats about filing and creating dust with nasty materials apply

Brian

[worzel]

Hi

I've had these relined by various brake specialists over the years- I think the last lot cost around ?15. A tip- ask them to fit very soft linings- makes a big difference to the handbrake function.

Any brake specialist can do the job- probably.

Regards

john

[Bud English]

I relined a set awhile back. The advantage of the relined ones is that I used a bit softer material as John suggests. I don't have the car back on the road yet so I don't know if I've been successful or not.
Details are here...
free-parking-f19/bodges-you-found-done-your-elan-t23590-15.html

Since then, these have been showing up on eBay....
For elans:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/LOTUS-ELITE-ELA ... es&vxp=mtr
For +2's
http://www.ebay.com/itm/FIAT-1200-1500- ... 484b0b50f9

They look to be right (although they use this same picture for various sets of pads) and not too pricy. They have the advantage of not being worn at the pivot point.

[david.g.chapman]

I have relined my +2 handbrake pads with old lining material from a set of drum shoes. I use JB-Weld for adhesive - good for higher temperatures then araldite. There will be occasions when you apply the handbrake when the car is moving - one day you will do it!

Over the last 10 years and 40000 miles I have been fine with this setup, although I have not tried any handbrake turns!

I wonder if you can do one in an Elan/+2?

Dave Chapman.

[reb53]

Done mine a couple of times over the years using countersunk brass rivets.
No glue at all.

Ralph.

[jono]

..just remember guys, if you're using old pads to do this with be careful, especially if cutting, grinding or drilling the material - asbestos

..only a worry for the young guys though, the gestation period can be up to 40 years so the oldies among us don't need to be concerned.

Jon

[YellowS4DHC]

When I got my car, one of my pads was completely missing friction material (another of the never ending gifts from the PO ). I assumed the material simply fell off (a clean adhesive failure). The other 3 were fine.

I couldn't see spending all that for just one pad, so I took an old front pad and simply cut off a section and bonded it on with a high temp epoxy. Looks as good as the others and it seems to work fine, or at least as well as the other 3.

BTW, I thought practically all commercially available pads and shoes were made without asbestos. Am I mistaken here?

Rick


'72 Europa TC
'69 Elan S4 DHC
'67 S800 Coupe
'57 T1 Speedster

[stugilmour]

...BTW, I thought practically all commercially available pads and shoes were made without asbestos. Am I mistaken here?

Rick


'72 Europa TC
'69 Elan S4 DHC
'67 S800 Coupe
'57 T1 Speedster

Rick, I think you are correct for modern pads/material available now. I think the warning was about being cautious if using old pads from the parts box (of unknown material). Used to work with insulation products, and asbestos is definitely nasty stuff. We finally just this year stopped mining the stuff in Canada.

I had mine done locally as described above. If doing this, worth pointing out the missing corner on the friction material; mine are covered over the whole back plate area and will leave a wear line where the rotor is not touching the pad.