Handbrake Again

[Roland]

Despite reading all the previous handbrake related posts I still seem to be struggling with setting the handbrake pads on my discs.

I have new drive shafts and bearings with virtually no run out on the discs and the disc is right in the centre of the caliper on both sides. I also have newly relined handbrake shoes (5mm lining) and all the handbrake levers on the calipers are free.

So I have tried to set up the handbrake shoes on the disc. The first few attempts on both sides resulted in the inside pad fouling the disc. This was despite trying to reshape the centralising strips accordingly.

After quite some fiddling it became apparent that the centralising strips were fouling the hole in the handbrake lever on the inner side and pulling the lever and brake pad onto the disc. Looking carefully at the centralising strips it was as though the 'crank' on them is not large enough so they catch the hole on the lever.

I was eventually able to reshape the inner centralising strip to avoid the handbrake lever but it is certainly not the same shape as the outer centralising strip. I do now have the pads 4 thou off the disc with no rubbing at all.

My concern is how long will this handbrake continue to operate with the centralising strips shaped as they are. I was tempted to try the following solutions:

1. Slip a thin washer between the centralising strips and the brake caliper so the strips are moved clear of the handbrake lever.

2. Relieve the hole in the handbrake levers on the calipers with a dremel slightly.

3. Buy some new centralising strips in the hope they incorporate some more crank.

Has anyone encountered similar problems? Note at this stage I have not connected the handbrake rods to the calipers or tried to operate the handbrake from the handbrake itself.

Tks

Roland

[661]

I'm tempted to leave alone, connect everything up and use the handbrake, a lot. In the hope that it will equalise itself centrally.
Obviously, keeping an early and periodic eye on excessive wear.

[Roland]

Just thinking about this more, I guess it doesn't matter the centralising strips are shaped differently. As long as they continue to have enough spring to take the pads 4 thou off the disc as I have set them up it should continue to work.

The whole design with these centralising strips doesn't seem very elegant though.

[Andy8421]

Roland,

I have recently wrestled with the handbrake mechanism. If it is any consolation, we are in good company as the E-Type Jag used a very similar design.
I agree with your analysis, in fact I think the design is dreadful, as for 'adding lightness', the two cast dangly bits seem to weigh as much as half the caliper itself. I guess on the E-Type the caliper is inboard, so doesn't contribute to unsprung weight as it does with the Elan.

In my case I had to bend the 'centralising strips' out of shape to make them work. I did wonder how much may be due to the pads themselves which were after-market.

[Roland]

Andy,

The handbrake pads on my car I think were original and showed very little wear apart from the top edge of the inner pads. This probably indicated that the inner pads never properly contacted the disc and I doubt the handbrake ever worked well. Certainly in my ownership it has never been good.

I got my pads relined by Auto & Industrial Friction Services (ww.autoandindustrial.co.uk). They confirmed the original spec was 5mm thick material and did all four for £30 which seemed good value.

If it is any help for anyone battling this the attached photo shows the shape I have used to get the inner centralising strip to work. You can see I have had to kick the strip outwards immediately after the cranked part to get it to clear the hole in the inner handbrake lever. I suspect with manufacturing tolerances and age each car maybe subtly different.

Regards

Roland

[TBG]

I just leave it in gear......................................D

[Roland]

Andy,

I see sometime ago you put in a few posts regarding the pivot pins for the handbrake levers in the calipers.

I noticed this afternoon that one of my brake pads is really a tight fit on the pivot pin and is binding up. I managed to extract the pin and the waisted section diameter measures 0.315". The waisted section on the other pin seems to be just under 0.3" and the pad moves freely on this pin.

I assume that all the waisted sections of the pins should be the same? You didn't by any chance take any diameters measurements of the waisted sections on your pins when you had everything stripped down.

Tks

Roland

[RichardHawkins]

Roland,

I think many of us have had difficulties with the handbrake. A friend who occasionally posts here gave me a copy of his instruction sheet of how to assemble and adjust. I am away from home, will be back 24/4/22, have hospital appointment 25/4/22 but should be able to send you a hard copy if you private message me a postal address.

My car was very rusty everywhere, I had good reports from Classicar Automotive Macclesfield, so sent my very scruffy callipers to them for overhaul. Most people speak well of them, I was very disappointed, but then I am fussy.

You mention the “dangly bits”, these have a curved surface that bears against the handbrake pads to push the pads onto the discs. Classicar replaced mine, but they were the wrong shape and had the wrong pivot pins. The result could never have worked correctly. Another friend lent me the “dangly bits” from his car that I used as a pattern to file mine to the correct shape and then have them re-plated. My hand brake now works, but I view the thing as for MOT use only.

Hope this helps,

Richard Hawkins

PS I think dangly bits is an excellent description.

[andyelan]

Hi Andy

Those centralising strips look wrong to me, here are photos of the ones on my car. From the caliper face to the inside of the strip should be about 15mm.

Also, for what it's worth, provided properly set up the handbrake should work just fine, that it's weak of doesn't work is just a myth

Regards
Andy

[Roland]

Richard/AndyElan,

Thanks for your posts. I have just checked my history file and the PO had both rear calipers refurbished at Classicar Automotive in 1999.

So looks to me that they used the wrong pin in one place and those centralising strips are definitely not cranked enough looking at Andyelan's picture. The handbrake on these refurbished calipers really had little chance of working.

Richard these are exactly the same mistakes you identified which is very annoying.

OK at least its now clear, I need new centralising strips and certainly one new pivot pin.

Tks

Roland

[andyelan]

Hi Roland

Sorry but I did mean to address my reply to you. I wasn't thinking

Regards
Andy