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HC Girling Rear brake levers

PostPosted: Sun Jun 23, 2019 11:33 pm
by vauxhallbitz
This is becoming a roller coaster ride of emotions, first an engine rebuild, cracked sump, poor starting and now a MOT failure, it seems like things are transpiring to prevent me from attending Sywell in a Viva!!!

I am having difficulty with the ratchets levers that operate the handbrake and self adjust the rear shoes, for some reason they will not work, and appear to be worn with a fair bit of play.

Can you buy new ones?

Are they the same as the Chevette?

Is it easy to change to the Lockheed system?

Has anyone else had a similar problem?

Any help would be appreciated as I am now running out of time fast........thanks.

Re: HC Girling Rear brake levers

PostPosted: Mon Jun 24, 2019 9:15 am
by droopsnoot
I had quite a lot of play in the arms on my Sportshatch, particularly where the arm fits into the brake shoe, and around the various pivots. I solved that by building it up with weld and carefully filing it down until it went back together. I didn't touch the ratchets. I recall 1972Nail saying that some TR7 components are similar to OHC rears.

Re: HC Girling Rear brake levers

PostPosted: Mon Jun 24, 2019 9:33 am
by StefanM
But there is no such thing as ratchet levers? The handbrakelever is one thing and the adjusters is a separate mechanism on the shoe and they are activated by normal brake as well.

Re: HC Girling Rear brake levers

PostPosted: Mon Jun 24, 2019 12:11 pm
by Mike Attew
The shoes are adjusted up with the adjusters, the handbrake lever only moves a shoe as at the bottom of the picture. I had a problem with mine binding and found the slaves corroded inside.
Are the cables free where they slide round the axle fitting?

Re: HC Girling Rear brake levers

PostPosted: Mon Jun 24, 2019 5:14 pm
by vauxhallbitz
I don't have adjusters like the ones in your picture mine are not adjustable I just have a block which locates the shoes.

The hand brake cable is all new and free, the cylinders are free and have been cleaned out.

Re: HC Girling Rear brake levers

PostPosted: Mon Jun 24, 2019 6:49 pm
by Mike Attew
Ok, Mine is a 72 and the adjuster is shown in this.

Re: HC Girling Rear brake levers

PostPosted: Mon Jun 24, 2019 9:40 pm
by vauxhallbitz
Thanks for that, I wish mine was the same!!!

Re: HC Girling Rear brake levers

PostPosted: Wed Jun 26, 2019 4:56 pm
by chopper
As has been said the ratchet system is a self-adjust mechanism for wear in the rear linings, it is does not adjust the handbrake. If the handbrake effect has become poor it could be that the self adjusters are not doing their job because the mechanism is tight/seized, not assembled correctly (they are not only precise bits of kit in the way they work but they are also handed LH and RH!), or the ratchets are worn out and won`t ratchet and lock to take up the wear in the linings.
If the ratchets have had it and the saw tooth parts have very fine teeth and can wear/corrode, then replacement is about the only solution which is costly (£90 typ. axle set) and parts can be hard to find.
You need to check if you have 8" or 9" drums and then have a word with Rimmer Brothers (Google them) and see if they can help. As mentioned TR7 (and others) use similar parts.

Hope this of some help :wink: