a few handbrake q's

[richard s]

last week i heard a bang when my handbrake stuck i was thinking the worst but upon inspection it wasnt the brake shoe seperating. the brakes werent in that bad a state but one side was better than the other.
the 1st thing i came across was that one disc slid off without undoing the nut on the handbrake cable. so question 1 is should the disc come off without slackening the handbrake cable.
the 2nd thing i noticed was that the shoes dont sit on the block on the side where the handbrake mech is. so question 2 is should the shoes sit on the block when the handbrake is released.
cheers

[italian job]

Originally Posted by richard s

last week i heard a bang when my handbrake stuck i was thinking the worst but upon inspection it wasnt the brake shoe seperating. the brakes werent in that bad a state but one side was better than the other.
the 1st thing i came across was that one disc slid off without undoing the nut on the handbrake cable. so question 1 is should the disc come off without slackening the handbrake cable.
the 2nd thing i noticed was that the shoes dont sit on the block on the side where the handbrake mech is. so question 2 is should the shoes sit on the block when the handbrake is released.
cheers

Hi Richard,i have done the rear discs/pads and handbrake shoes recently,my old discs were removed without releasing all the adjustment out of the handbrake cable,the handbrake was off though(obviously i guess) is that what you meant?
There was a small gap between the block and the handbrake shoes,hope that helps you.
Cheers Paul.

[richard s]

hi paul
with the handbrake off one disc came off but the other disc i had to undo the nut at the handbrake lever so somethings not right
and how small was the gap between the shoes and the block on yours
cheers

[italian job]

It would be well worth checking that both handbrake cables are operating smoothly,one of mine was a bit sticky which was stopping the handbrake shoes from returning to the fully retracted position.I picked this up when adjusting the handbrake,one side was slightly dragging,also the disk on that side was difficult to remove again.
The gap between the aluminium block was a couple of millimeters if i remember correctly.

Paul.

[richard s]

cheers paul
i will have to take it apart again and have a good poke around

[italian job]

Originally Posted by richard s

cheers paul
i will have to take it apart again and have a good poke around

If its any consolation mine was 100% after i had fettled the offside handbrake cable,it was a bit of a PITA to release from inside the car as the centre console needs to be released so you can move it around to get at the end of the cable.

Paul.