(Home) Brakes

Pictures & diagrams ...

Brake cyl. maintenace kits. (Oblsud)
Brake. Handbrake. (Oblsud)
Brake lines. (Oblsud)
Brake master cylinder. (Oblsud)
Brake pads etc. (Oblsud)
Brake parts behind dashboard (J Corfield #73)
Brake parts behind dashboard, close up (J Corfield #67)
Brake pedal. (Oblsud)
Rear brake details. (Oblsud)

A stuck-on brake drum.

After a service by a local company they told me that they couldn't get the offside rear brake drum off and, as the linings on the nearside looked good, they decided to leave it. They suggested that it might be quite a job to get it off (eg application of blowtorch heat and much brute force) and best to leave it until it really had to come of for a brake reline.

I studied the drum later and noticed that there is a fair bit of clearance in the drum holes around the wheel studs. I locked the handbrake on very hard and (having decided which way the wheel needed to turn) I put the Townie into D and pressed the throttle. Much to my delight, on the third attempt, I heard a loud crack and, on inspecting the wheel, found that the wheel drive shaft had turned relative to the drum.

Having broken the grip of the rust the next half an hour was spent with the WD40 (and much brute force with levers) gradually rotating the studs to and fro relative to the drum until it would move easily. Using a fine file to remove the rust around the bit of the shaft boss outside of the drum then allowed the drum to come away!! After plenty of wire brushing and the application of a smear of grease I had a drum that would slide on and off with ease.

John Corfield, 22 September 2002