I tried to adjust my rear brakes yesterday evening, in advance of the MOT in a
few days. Doesn't seem to work as it really should...
I backed the adjuster right off, then pulled the drums. Brake shoes look OK,
still a fair amount of material on them. Hub turns fine without the drum on.
Put the drum back on. Keep turning the adjuster, and checking the hub still
turns. With the adjuster almost all the way in, the hub starts to get stiff
to turn. Keep turning the adjuster, and the hub gets gradually stiffer, but
never locks up. As I understand it, I should go from free-turning to
locked-up hub in about 1/2 turn of the adjuster, then back off just enough to
make it free-turning again - that just isn't happening, it gets stiff but
never locks. Also, all the visible thread has disappeared - I seem to have
run out of adjustment. Could it be that the adjuster is so far in that it has
passed all its thread, so as I turn it it doesn't get any tighter, just keeps
bumping off the end of the thread? If so, what can I do to get my adjustment
back? Could it be that the drum has worn back too far, and needs replacing
(car has done about 116,000 miles, as far as I can tell - no idea if the drums
have ever been replaced)? At 28 quid plus VAT (about $53) each side this is
not my first choice solution...
Also, as soon as I put the drum on (before touching the adjuster) the hub was a
bit stiff to turn at a couple of points in its revolution. Since it turned
fine without the drum, I guess the drum must be rubbing against the
back-plate. The fact that it was at a couple of points suggests that the hub
isn't 100% round. Is it OK to try and bend the back-plate a little to prevent
this rubbing?
Interestingly, the other side followed a similar pattern (apart from the hub
binding on the back-plate bit). The other side was replaced 7 months ago with
a (very) second-hand unit (after the UJ flange got mangled when the UJ
disintegrated at 70 mph...). So it does not have the same history, although
it definitely has a history of some sort.
As far as brake efficiency goes, the car stops OK, but the front brakes could
be doing all the work - the pads are completely gone having been replaced
about 17,000 miles ago. Hand-brake works, but not brilliantly, and there is a
lot of movement.
Any ideas/advice/suggestions?
Richard and Daffy (MOT making us both tense...)
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