[FC] E- brake

[RoboMan91324 at aol.com]

(From Corvanatics but applies to cars too.)
 
Absolutely correct.  
 
To add more info and warnings .... If you adjust the  E-brake so there is 
minimal travel before the shoe adjustment, several bad  things could happen.  
 
First, your E-brake cable will be in 24/7 tension from both  the return 
springs on your shoes and the cable's return springs.  
 
Second, the brake shoe return springs will be continuously  stretched from 
their intended at-rest position 24/7.  I don't have a brake  assembly to 
look at but this could be an issue with the bottom and/or the top  springs.
 
Third, the cable return spring inside the drum assembly will  be at least 
partially, if not fully, compressed 24/7.  This is the  spring which is part 
of the cable assembly where it attaches to the brake  hardware.
 
Fourth, since the shoes will not be in their at-rest position  against 
their stops on the brake adjustor and/or wheel cylinder, you may get  some 
rattling noise.  You could search forever for the source of the noise  but never 
find it.  The rattling itself could cause wear and damage.   The shoes 
probably will not rattle but your adjuster or brake cylinder push-rods  will 
likely be the source of the noise.  
 
Fifth, it is unlikely but there is a  possibility that with enough play, 
the brake adjustor could fall out, come apart  and cause much worse problems 
than noise.
 
Sixth, If the cable is adjusted first, when the hydraulic  brakes come into 
play, the shoes' lower pivot point will be around the E-brake  hardware 
attachment points and not around the adjustor as designed.  This  will reduce 
the brake-drum contact surface significantly (probably more than 30  percent) 
with a respective reduction in braking force.  The portion of the  shoes 
beneath the E-brake attachment point will pull away from the drum instead  of 
move toward it.  In other words, your bad E-brake adjustment will reduce  
your foot-brake stopping power.  Not good.  Also, the shoes will wear  
unevenly and shorten their life span.
 
So, as wern3 (name?) says, adjusting the brakes with the  adjustor before 
playing with the cable may solve a cable problem, but there  are many more 
technical and safety issues involved.
 
This is just my opinion but, if you are short on funds and  must limit what 
you spend on your car, your first investment should be in your  brakes.  
The Hard-Harder test is the first thing you should do before  driving a recent 
purchase home (or borrowed car anywhere) as well as  periodically during 
the life of the car.  How many of us do this on a  regular basis with our 
toys?  By the way, the brake lines often rust  from the inside out and this 
cannot be detected with a visual inspection.   In addition, much of the 
right-front brake line is hidden above the gas tank  where even a visual inspection 
is impossible.  The invisible issues with  brake lines, hoses and seals are 
why the Hard-Harder test is so important.   Once you are home, a full brake 
inspection should be done by someone who knows  what to look for.  (Master 
cylinder, fluid, brake lines/hoses, wheel  cylinders, drums, E-brake, shoes 
and hardware.)  I have owned many  collector cars in my life and have seen 
more than a few borderline situations  with brakes even when they seemed to 
give good braking.  Saving a little  time or money will become insignificant 
if you risk your life and limb or  the life and limb of others and something 
bad happens.
 
Remember, most of our cars and all of our FCs have a single  master 
cylinder unless you have upgraded the vehicle with a dual cylinder.   This means 
that if you lose one wheel cylinder or line/hose, you lose the brakes  on all 
four wheels.  This most often happens without warning and in a panic  stop.  
If you have a dual master cylinder you may lose only two  brakes.  Keep in 
mind that the E-brake was designed for parking and only as  a minimal backup 
for properly working brakes on all four wheels.  In  addition, if you lose 
your brakes without warning, how quickly will you think to  go for the 
E-brake handle and then act to pull it.  In most  situations, your braking will 
be done by the car or truck in front of  you that you just hit.
 
Doc
 
1960 Corvette, 1961 Rampside, 1962 Rampside, 1964 Spyder  coupe, 1965 
Greenbrier, 1966 Canadian Corsa turbo coupe, 1967 Nova SS, 1968  Camaro ragtop 
and more.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
In a message dated 1/13/2012 9:00:04 A.M. Pacific Standard Time,  
corvanatics-request at corvair.org writes:

Message:  1
Date: Thu, 12 Jan 2012 17:57:21 GMT
From: "wern3 at juno.com"  <wern3 at juno.com>
Subject: [FC] E- brake
To:  corvanatics at corvair.org
Message-ID:  <20120112.195721.24730.1 at webmail06.vgs.untd.com>
Content-Type:  text/plain; charset=windows-1252

AndrewI too was running out of e -  brake holding power. I re- adjusted the 
rear brake shoes, and that really  tightened/shortened the "pull" on the E 
- brake lever. somnething worth trying  before you do anything to the 
cables.Tim W '61 Rampy 140 4  sp.