Kerry,
Couple of comments on the rear brakes:
On the rear wheel cylinders, they are aluminum housings. Typically
I find the moisture in the brake fluid will mix with the aluminum,
producing a nice aluminum oxide material. Almost looks and feels
like sand!
When you go to bleed the brakes, it will often be with a "squishy
sounds" hard to explain, but not uncommon on roadsters that have
sat for years to have quite a build up. On one roadster, I could not
get anything out of the bleeder. Finally removed the bleeder,
held a rag up to catch the fluid and told a friend to PUSH.
Paaaatoooooeeeeeee..... out came quite a bit of the crystal stuff.
Then I proceeded to remove the drum, and shoes. Pulled the wheel
cylinder PISTON out (peel back the boot, and slip out the piston).
Well, lots more crud in there. Good luck as the cylinder was very
clean - no pitting. Pumped the brakes some more, with a rag in
place, to make sure the line was clear. Clean cotton, and alcohol,
was used to clean everything up.
Thankfully I had bought new rubber seals from Ross (Sports Imports),
so they were on hand. Little of the Girling Brake Grease (special
red stuff for brake seals, I have had a tube for years! Little goes
a long way), and slid in the new seals. I was able to confirm the
brake cylinder was able to slide back and forth.
NEVER USE A BRAKE HONE on a aluminum cylinder. They are meant for
cast iron brake cylinders. Only place you find those on a roadster
is the front calipers, but there is a pin in them... so you need
a SPECIAL hone to clear the pin (or if you are so lucky, and have
a hone that clears it). If you see some nasty big pits in the
rear wheel cylinders, replace them!
While you are in there, go ahead and remove the upper brake adjuster.
Usually they are stuck on the drum. I'll remove the two nuts, and
"pop" it with a good rahide mallet and a piece of board against
the studs. NEver use a steel hammer on the studs, as you'll mess
up the threads!
Once off, with lots of WD-40, or penetrating oil, I'll get the threads
clean off and start moving the adjuster back and forth. Typically those
adjuster 1/4" square is messed up some. Use a file, and clean up any
rounded edges so it is square again, and you can get a 1/4" socket
onto the adjuster. As Bill already explained, it is easier to use
a "home made" rear brake adjuster (10mm socket, piece of 10mm hex
key, another 10mm socket, and my 1/4" drive... I'll slip a piece of
tubing over the two sockets, and hunk of hext key to keep everything
together).
Once everything is clean... time for a little SILICON BRAKE GREASE.
I like this stuff (NAPA part), or use some aluminum antisieze.
Coat everything, and slide it back into the backing plate. Little
section of tube to go over the brake adjuster, to keep the threads
clean (tube is filled with grease/antisieze). Much nice to adjust
the brakes next time around.
Back to the drum itself. I have a pair of old, but CLEAN, brake shoes.
I'll install them, and let the shoe remove the light coating of rust.
After a few weeks, I'll install the new brake shoes.
With the adjuster in place, and wheel cylinder ready to go: Look
at the rear backing plate. Notice there are six little raisded areas?
The show will rub against them, so a LITTLE dab of the silicon brake
grease there (light smear) will help the shoes move back and forth
without scraping.
Slip those springs back into the shoes. They should keep the shoes
bended back agains the backing plate. No little retainer pins like
most drum brakes these days.
Before you put the drum back on. Smear a nice light coat of antisieze
on the axle flange. This will help prevent the drum to axle corrosion
bond (aluminum to steel).
Nice thing about once you have done this, it is much, much, easier
to inspect the brakes next time around!
Also folks, we should always FLUSH brake fluid once a year to keep
the aluminum from getting corroded from the moisture in the brake
fluid. That odd "crystal stuff" I mentioned before is odd...
While you are back there, and the axle are up on JACK STANDS. Not
a bad time to check the fluid level in the rear diff. Also look
at that rod for the brake adjuster. Notice the pivot point off
the diff? There should be a zerk fitting for a little grease.
See what happens, I crawl under the roadster and spend way too
much time looking for more little attention problems! Usually the
rubber brake lines will all be 30 years old. Might as well change
them for a piece of mind!
Cheers,
Tom Walter '67 2000
Austin, TX '68 2000
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