Safety First

Discuss other problems here.
Forum rules
By using this site, you agree to our rules. Please see: Terms of Use
linearaudio

Post by linearaudio »

Darn! I missed this thread due to it not being headed anything to do with brakes!

Another opportunity to open that can of worms :wink:

Something which usually seems to be beaten down by the raging mob is fitting a servo to your existing drums. IF it is mainly pedal pressure that is off-putting, (and I find it to be worryingly high after driving Citroen power braked cars for years), then a servo would surely lessen the pedal pressure? I am well aware that it does not improve the brakes, but may make them feel more "modern" without the need for major surgery to fit discs? (ducks down!)

To argue that District Nurses used the cars in the fifties, therefore the brakes are up to modern driving conditions, is ridiculous(sorry!) I wan't driving until the early seventies, but the traffic and more importantly, the way people drive nowadays, is incomparable with those days.

Aggressive driving attitudes, worsened by seeing some doddery fool in an old banger which should be crushed under the scrappage scheme, means that all talk about anticipation, larger gaps, slowing down gently without the brakes etc is going to make things worse for you! (certainly in our part of the country) Sad but true :-?

I BLAME THE TOP GEAR TRIO FOR A LOT OF THIS!
Glamourising speed, ridiculing old cars ( I wouldn't want to be driving a Marina at the moment!)
Rant, rave, gnash :-?

Oh-sorry, Welcome to the board by the way :D
bmcecosse
Minor Maniac
Posts: 46561
Joined: Wed Feb 16, 2005 11:24 pm
Location: ML9
MMOC Member: No

Post by bmcecosse »

Cor blimey LA - have a bit of a lie down - your BP is obviously far too high!!
The point is - good condition Minor brakes are NOT heavy - and many argue that Citroen brakes are far far too light! But maybe they need to be - to survive the Periferique!
ImageImage
Image
User avatar
d_harris
Minor Legend
Posts: 4388
Joined: Thu Apr 15, 2004 3:52 pm
Location: Sunny Brighton
MMOC Member: No

Post by d_harris »

Assuming that you still have the original 7" Drums there are a number of options available.

1. 8" Drums from a later car - requires new back plate, drums, shoes, springs and adjusters. Almost certainly the cheapest & simple spanner work - they are interchangable

2. 9" Drums from a Wolsely/Riley 1500 - Requires all of the above. However the parts are getting increasinly haard to obtain. The brake cylinders are unavailable and the back plate has to be modified to accept minor ones.

3. Ital/Marina Discs - Again, simple spanner work and set-ups come up on ebay from time to time (cost varies from £40-£80) from memory uses the same pads as mk2 escort but the discs are hard to get. Unless you are lucky and get re-drilled hubs you will need to fit ital/marina wheels (13") or montego wheels (14") (if you really want to push the boat out, MGF alloy wheels fit too) I'd suggest changing the back axle at the same time to keep the same PCD of wheels (3.75")

4. Ford Based conversion - normally available from the suppliers you will suffer no parts availability problems and from what I hear they are fairly straightforward to fit but be prepared for a significant wallet lightening.

If using the standard minor master cylinder with disks then you need to remove the "top hat" seal from inside (this holds residual pressure to keep the shoes pressed lightly against the drums - undesirable with disks) its a simple job but one that needs to be carried out with care to prevent risk of damaging any other seal / the bore of the cylinder

The addition of a servo is personal preference - the job it performs is to reduce the amount of pedal force required it does not improve braking efficiency (IMHO, worthwhile with disks, but not drums)

Hope that helps

alex_holden
Minor Legend
Posts: 3798
Joined: Tue Jul 25, 2006 9:46 am
Location: Burnley
MMOC Member: No

Post by alex_holden »

Dan_Harris wrote:2. 9" Drums from a Wolsely/Riley 1500 - Requires all of the above. However the parts are getting increasinly haard to obtain. The brake cylinders are unavailable and the back plate has to be modified to accept minor ones.
When I last looked into it, the cylinders were still available but expensive. Fitting Minor cylinders to Wolseley backplates (Rileys are completely different) increases the braking force for a given pedal pressure because they have a larger diameter bore; you can balance this out on the back by fitting the earlier 7/8" rear cylinders. That setup really doesn't need a servo IMHO. :)
ImageImage
Alex Holden - http://www.alexholden.net/
If it doesn't work, you're not hitting it with a big enough hammer.
JamesAnderson
Newbie
Posts: 2
Joined: Tue Jul 28, 2009 9:32 am
MMOC Member: No

Post by JamesAnderson »

Hi Again, sorry I've been off line for a while, just wanted to say big thanks to all who took the time to offer me advice.

Take care folks!

Cheers
James
linearaudio

Post by linearaudio »

Thats scared another one off :lol:
So many conflicting opinions, the poor beggar has probably decided the simplest answer is to sell it! :wink:
Post Reply