Les Francis wrote:
>Is this the norm? I recall a recent post about this with the writer stating
>he had to pretty much chew up the new shoes to refit the drum. There was
>speculation in one reply that possibly the replacement drums are thicker
>than as originally manufactured to allow for drums that have been turned
>several times.
Ah....I have to plead guilty to being the "speculator" with that
reply. :-)
I had read in Practical Classics that non OEM brake shoes might well
be oversized to compensate for turned drums. The shoes I fitted to my
'74 Spit last month were just about impossible to get on...just like
the original poster's.
Were your replacements made by Beck Arnley, perchance? Ours were.
I notice someone else has responded to your message who had a GT6
but he was able to swap out smaller shoes to correct the problem.
Maybe we can too.
BTW...despite all the problems getting them fitted, my brakes are
working perfectly right now. I just didn't care for the "ritual of
fire" bedding in that I got on the first test drive.
> I thought that's what the adjuster was for - to insure full
>contact regardless of shoe thickness.
Yes...but the surface of the OEM shoe won't make full contact on a
turned drum right away...not until it's worn some. The arcs would be
different since the ID of the drum is now larger.
Cheers!
Tom O'Malley
'74, '77 Spits
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