63 Lark Brakes sticking

[23 cratae]

1963 self adjusting brakes can be somewhat tricky. Unless you already got the drums out and had a look inside, I would do it to be certain that no parts are missing. Some people seen to don't understand this system and have a tendancy to junk parts when they don't understand what they are doing. Please, don't ask me how I know! See this link for further details:https://drive.google.com/open?id=13y...S886hKEU5O1tZQ
Also, be aware that there is adjusters even if it is a self adjusting system! All linings are supposed to be 3/16" thick, except for the secondary fronts which are 1/4".
A big plus is to use special high temp grease for all friction points and special rubber grease for all hydraulic parts.
Nice day to all.

fantastic link !!!! thanks very much !!

Brake shoes look new certainly very close to the quoted 3/16 .. inside the drums looks clean as in not years of neglect (ive had heard the car had NZD $4000 spent on the brakes..which is new everthing for that sort of money here

[christophe]

fantastic link !!!! thanks very much !!

Brake shoes look new certainly very close to the quoted 3/16 .. inside the drums looks clean as in not years of neglect (ive had heard the car had NZD $4000 spent on the brakes..which is new everthing for that sort of money here

You're welcome, Alex.
I had the curiosity to make the NZD $4000 conversion in Euro. 2346€!. This is a lot of dough (at least, to me!) and you should get a perfect job for this kind of money.
Nice day to all.

[doofus]

Try looking hard at those shoes, if the drums are worn the shoes will only contact the drum in the center 1/3.my 63 has good drums so no worries but there is a work around. watched a fellow mechanic pull this stunt, set shoe on concrete and whack it with a big arse hammer! do this till shoe fits drum. he had done this for years and no problems. Luck Doofus

[christophe]

Just a precision. The shoe lining thicknesses I mentioned are those to be used with a standard diameter drum. If the drums have been turned, you are supposed to use thicker linings (it seems these are hard to come by in the USA as Studerich mentioned a few years earlier, don't know for NZ!), or arcing the shoes like Doofus said. I also heard of placing shims between the shoe and the lining but never tried this one.

[E. Davis]

Not really...I could never make the washer trick work. I found a pair of vice grips and the biggest strongest teenager you can find does the spring stretching trick.

[23 cratae]

alrighty then.. so ive spent some time adjusting the shoes as per the link .. even printed it off so i could read as i went.. all my brakes look shiney and new. as in the linings are the correct measurement, the shoes still retain the silver factory paint (or Galv coat ??) anyway dust free .

The shoe faces shine like the morning sun ! and have full contact on the drum. ( i have since roughed up the shoes abit- i believe there should be no gloss on the shoe).

the instructions say id should set the shoes to contact with the drum then back off 20 clicks (did that) then apply the brakes 4--5 times. this should set the brakes to the correct adjust and the pedal to the correct height.

thinking my gravel drive wasnt really doing it for the brake adjust , i tried the road outside side home ( lucky is a quiet road) that didnt work either...

the brakes do work after the 3rd pump to about 1/2 pedal. the pressure at that point is rock solid - no fade whatsoever=- however when the pedal is released instant no brakes -

this tells me the auto adjust isnt working , and the distance is to great at the slave cylinder to move enough to be effective. yet my knowledge tells me this should be effective in shifting the auto adjust ..

as my dear old Ma says " where have i gone wrong""

im just a little too stubborn to take the car to my favorite shop yet just because i want to learn this stuff.. please keep in mind im in my mid 50's , NZ trade quailified body man , with alot of mechanical skills cos of my affinity to " gearheadedness"

road safety is a concern and dont take this sh*t lightly .. an inheritance from my Dad bought this car for me.. i dont want to kill it because im being Stoopid

that being said ,, would love some more pointers ideas thoughts from those more clever than me please

Thanks All !!

Al S

[christophe]

At this point, I would set the handbrake on and look what happens to the brake pedal. If it behaves exactly like before, the trouble should be in the master cylinder. If it does not, I would try to adjust the brake shoes once more. As you said that the brakes were rebuilt, I also wonder if the right cylinders were used. You'll get the same troubles with brake cylinders shorter than required.
Best of luck and nice day to all.

[doofus]

OK i read the 59/64 repair manual to. didnt make sense so adjusted brakes in normal manner, backed each off 4 clicks and went for test drive hitting brakes hard several times. i believe this causes things to center themselves and they work fine. the entire shoe and adjuster assy. has to rotate some to get the self adj. feature to work. now i have good brakes and they will last a good long time. Luck Doofus

[rocket1]

The return spring is very strong and impossible to stretch by hand,I hook it to the floor jack from the axle to the jacking pad stretching just enough to insert washers between the coils so to make it longer to able to hook it up.Then as it was said step on the clutch pedal!

[23 cratae]

so mostly sorted thanks all !! biggest dillema now is im sure my slaves are sticking .. in fact 1 rear drum i took off , holding a bar on each shoe with my son slowly depressing the brake pedal, i noticed the lead shoe moved before the trailing shoe.. im not sure this is normal behavior ? i havent checked the other side as yet...

and left front works great ,, rf not so much ..

any thoughts ??

thanks again

[christophe]

so mostly sorted thanks all !! biggest dillema now is im sure my slaves are sticking .. in fact 1 rear drum i took off , holding a bar on each shoe with my son slowly depressing the brake pedal, i noticed the lead shoe moved before the trailing shoe.. im not sure this is normal behavior ? i havent checked the other side as yet...

and left front works great ,, rf not so much ..

any thoughts ??

thanks again

You should be able to move the brake pistons by hand quite easily. I would remove the rubber boots and have a look in the cylinders. You might find some rust traces. If so, clean them and use good rubber grease for reassembly. If your front brakes behave differently, I would suspect the bake hoses, assuming the brake cylinders are working properly. With all your troubles, I frankly suspect that this car had a poor brake job.
Best of luck and nice day to all.