How To Tight Handbrake

[Guest mower man]

Isn't there an adjuster actually at the hand brake in the cabin

Not if it uses a ford cable

[tractor]

our ford focus adjusts under handbrake gaiter

[Guest mower man]

our ford focus adjusts under handbrake gaiter

But it is not a RH using a seirra cable is it mick

[Guest janis]

Adjust one side and it is pretty good..not binding coud probably adjust another click..passanger side is not great i think the reason is that drum is worn a bit..adjust handbrake so much that it was binding still was not great but good..took her for test drive come back still binding like hell..had to release one click now is not great..no chance of locking wheels etc..took drum off and one loads times..test drive 3 times and thats the best it can be..still no problem leave on hill and cant start driving with hand brake on but just annoying that i know i can turn wheel if i put my feet in alloy spoke and pull with other hand..so just enjoy now and maybe new drums over the winter..

[agent_zed]

so to confirm does your setup use the sierra handbrake (no adjuster on the actual level) and the cable with the plastic adjuster, with the center of the cable being pulled by a yoke on the bottom of the lever?

 

You might find that cleaning up the yoke will help equalise the pull. If its a bit rough the cable won't equalise and it'll pull more one side.

[Guest janis]

Yes its sierra cable and it have wee white plastic nut etc..i cant adjust it anymore now cos it will be binding..

[Guest 2b cruising]

Hi Yanis.

Check if you shoe adjustment is correct by pressing and holding the footbrake on and pulling up the handbrake.

If it pulls up higher than normal you shoe adjustment is incorrect.

You must get this right on both sides before you adjust the handbrake cable.

Slacken your cable adjuster off before adjusting the shoes to stop it interfering with your shoe adjustment. The adjust your cable back to the correct possition.

Also make sure the inner cable is free moving through the U bracket, and both the Clovis pins are free in the holes at the front off the cable and in the U bracket. (compensator)

Hope this works well for you. It certainly is mail adjustment or partial mechanical part seizure by what you are describing.

[Guest janis]

if I press pedal brake handbrake not going any higher..4 clicks it goes..

maybe I shoud adjust cable now?i don't like that one wheel is better handbrake than other..i will drive a while and then lift up and see maybe they will be the same..if not I wll check u bracket.

[Longboarder]

It is important that you follow a sequence when fitting new shoes or checking adjustment to allow the auto adjuster on the leading shoe to do its job. (And it makes it easier to do!)

1. Slacken handbrake cable off. Lots. So its not working at all, even after ten clicks! And leave it released.

2. Make sure the ratchet quadrant on each leading shoe is backed off fully. That is, pushed outward toward the drum. (Its on a spring which makes it try to swing in toward the axle.) Your picture above shows it swung in toward the axle it the partly 'adjusted up' position. Released outward it is much easier to get the drum off and on. (You are sure the quadrants are able to move freely and are not seized?)

3. Fit the drum and wheel.

4. Sit in the seat and press the brake pedal down about 3/4 stroke slowly, firmly but not hard. It should go further than normal and easier. Release slowly. Repeat press. Release. And again. And again if needed. You should find it firms up and the pedal travel reduces. This bit is to allow the self adjuster quadrants to do their job and swing themselves in on their springs correctly. Also at this stage the rear wheels should still spin freely or with only slight drag. Further pedal stamping or pressing should not change the drag. If the wheel drag increases a lot the adjusters are not working correctly. Strip, clean and lubricate. Start the whole process again from stage 2.

5. Note that the hand brake lever has been off and the cable slack throughout this whole procedure so far! Only now at this last stage do you adjust the brake cable back up again on the knurled plastic adjuster(s) that spin round the cable sheath at their brackets under the car. Do this until the slack in the cable is taken up. Check hand brake movement in clicks. You want no less than 4 clicks. Fine tune the knurled plastic adjuster till its four or five clicks from off to on. If one rear wheel drag increases hard before the other then the equalising quadrant attached to the bottom of the handbrake lever is not doing its job. Pull up the handbrake lever hard a couple of times and it should equalise. If not the cable needs to slide in this quadrant. Slacken off the knurled adjuster on the cable, free the cable in the quadrant and grease it. The adjust it up again.

You should get to a stage where the drag is still unaltered at the wheels with the handbrake off but it works when on four clicks.

 

The two processes are separate. Auto adjust of the shoes with handbrake cable released and SLACK first. (If the handbrake cable is not slack at the start it prevents the auto adjusters from doing their job.) Then adjust the handbrake cable.

Also I do this with the car jacked up, rear wheels off the ground and on stands so I can spin the wheels to test the drag.

 

Nigel

Edited September 19, 2015 by Longboarder

[Guest janis]

yea..i was lifting up by jack then it was much easier check how its working..quadrats seem to be working very nice and moves freely..ill go throu this stages and see.thanks a lot..

[Guest 2b cruising]

Your fault could be odd shoes on each side.

One of the shoes has no linkage attached to it and can fit on either side.

If you stop these shoes side to side it could possibly correct your imbalance problem.

[Guest janis]

So done an nigel said an was a lot better..on first and second click both had same drag but when fully on i coud tight my wheel with braker bar on one side but other turn slightly still on pasanger side.. wee U thing works 100%..i coud not adjust cable anymore as it was start to bind..i think if maybe wear them in a bit or something and try adjust cable slightly after few days..still no locking the wheels but i dont hnow is thats even possible..

[Longboarder]

You are right to think it now needs a few miles with the ordinary braking to settle it down. Get a few miles on it and you can re-adjust the cable only again next weekend. If you have done the shoes and auto-adjusters as I described today then they should not need to be touched again till next time you change the shoes.

 

Nigel

 

ps. I couldn't lock the wheels, front or back for my first five years after build. I had cheapo pads and shoes. Never worried me or failed to slow me down. And during genuine emergency stops they locked far to easily. I guess you press the pedal very hard when death seems near?

I do have Mintex 1144 front and rear these days.

Edited September 19, 2015 by Longboarder

[agent_zed]

you'll more than likely get the one side locking first on the handbrake as the handbrake is offset so the one side has a shorter length of cable. In theory the yoke should even it out but there will always be some friction allowing more force on the one side as you pull.

 

I can lock my sierra drums reasonably easy on the handbrake. Using halford shoes that are ~7 years old now. Last mot if failed so i sanded all parts where 2 surfaces moved against one another (the adjusters on the shoes etc) and then Copper greased all moving parts. all good now

[Bob Tucker]

I guess you press the pedal very hard when death seems near?

 

In a similar vein.....

My brother & I built a boat many years back & went looking for a bilge pump (to remove any water that came into the boat)

We asked the salesman how efficient it was and many gallons an hour it pumped.

Doesnt matter he said, its never enough in an emergency.

He gave us a bucket....we looked puzzled...

he said I've got nothing more efficient than a frightened man with a bucket...