Beehive spring, rear brakes, necessary ?

[Sarge]

While working on my rear brakes, I have found that my beehive springs had been replaced by some nice shiney new ones.

Try as I might, I couldn't remove them the way I have always done so for the past 20 years.

i.e. press in with long nosed pliers, twist/turn and they should pop off the lug on the back-plate. Tried mole grips for extra bite, push, twist up/down/left/right. All tools in the box used, but to no avail.

Brute force won in the end, but rendered the springs useless !

Got 2 new ones and I have the same trouble getting them back on ! I have sweated, cursed and bled, but can't get them on.
New ones seem to be a slightly thicker steel and the gap between the hook and the spring is much smaller than the originals.

So . . . . are they really necessary ? Can I do without them ?
Alternatively, has anyone got any old ones rattling around I could buy ?

Thanks

[les]

They can be awkward, that's why some people leave them off, personally, I like to be as stubborn as the springs!--and put them on.

[simmitc]

Ah, this is one of those "done to death" topics. Have a quick search. In a nutshell, 50% will say leave them off, 50% will say fit them. The brakes work perfectly without them, but the factory wouldn't have wasted money fitting them if they didn't serve any purpose. You pays your money and you takes your choice. the real issue is, of course, the quality of new parts!

[kennatt]

well,I left mine off several years ago without problem, but noticed that one side,for some reason, was wearing the shoes down on the edges. So not having new bee hives,simply drilled through the hole in the shoe ,with it in place , and through the back plate next to the original hook up tag , and then fitted the other type of retainer found on most other cars, ie the peg ,spring and washer,which are a doddle to take off and refit, and are available at all factors. Intended doing the other side but not got round to it yet.
May do it now that I have been reminded.

[Sarge]

Have bitten the bullet and bought some rather pricey originals off e-bay. More than I need, but hey ho.

[liammonty]

I stand to be corrected here, but i have a feeling that they weren't even fitted to all cars (Minors, that is!). Suffice to say, the brakes will work fine either with or without them.

[Sarge]

I have found the solution to the ******* beehive springs !

On a dull winter's night a few years ago, I scanned all the tech tips in my stash of Minor Matters. Today I found an article on brake adjustment, and there I found the answer "Make a small notch in the end of an old screwdriver to make a handy tool to remove or insert the beehive springs"

Looking forward to checking if it works.

[simmitc]

Or a washer over the end of long-nosed pliers - the washer (not sliding all the way up the pliers) allows you to compress the spring, and the pliers allow you to direct and twist the spring. Experiment with different size washers for best effect.

[tysonn]

Or buy the proper tool for the job.

[bmcecosse]

Or just throw the silly springs away......

[les]

I bet it's been torture having to wait so long to reply to this thread!

[bmcecosse]

Not me..haven't even read the threads till now !

[John Naylor]

By chance I noticed a rear shoe dragging occasionally and couldn't find the source. Decided they weren't staying quite square and then noticed the beehive springs in the workshop manual. Bought 4 from ESM and was just about to fit when I saw this post. Am more used to the other type (pin spring and cap) which are easy so have prepared a scrap screwdriver for the job (took corners off blade so I can easily compress a beehive till it is springbound:[frame][/frame][frame][/frame]

[jagnut66]

Hi,
I do sympathize, they are a pain.
Fortunately I was lucking enough to come across the correct tool for the job, (at a very reasonable price ) a few years back.
Having the correct tool does at least make them do-able, though they still take some persuading........
Best wishes,
Mike.

[simmitc]

How about a photo of the correct tool?

[mike.perry]

My springs are in the spare brake parts tin. Why are they only fitted to the rears and not the fronts?

[les]

----- because of the handbrake mechanism.

[jagnut66]

How about a photo of the correct tool?

[frame][/frame][frame][/frame][frame][/frame]
Simply push the spring into the slot, then push into place over the tag and whilst compressed turn (which inserts the clip into the tag) then pull off, allowing the spring to expand once more (thus locking it in place) and withdraw the tool.
It still requires a bit of fiddling in practice, mainly getting the clip inserted into the tag (keeping the spring compressed and twisting it at the same time, whilst the spring fights against you can be quite entertaining and may require a few attempts before you are successful but it's still allot easier than pliers, long nosed or otherwise....).
Best wishes,
Mike.

[mike.perry]

----- because of the handbrake mechanism.

??? explain please

[les]

I'm convinced it's down to the movement of the rear cylinders when the lever at the back gets pulled, the springs correct any movement away from the backplate, as opposed to the normal up/down. This topic comes up now and then about leaving them off or not, due mostly I suspect to some finding it too fiddly