Brake cylinder greasing?

[JaneHibbert]

Now, I'm not doing it at the moment but just wondered, when fitting new brake cylinders in wheels I have heard you grease them with red brake grease but WHERE do you grease them?[frame][/frame]

[bmcecosse]

Red grease normally goes inside the cylinder......so don't worry unless rebuilding the cylinders with new seals.

[mike.perry]

A light smear of grease around the slot in the backplate and the ends of the handbrake cables

[JaneHibbert]

Thanks, is that the slot on the left of the picture? Is that what actually pushes the brake pads?

[bmcecosse]

No pads on a Minor....shoes. And you don't use red grease for the suggestion above - ordinary grease for those two places. The shoes are moved by the piston inside the cylinder. It slides to equalise the forces between the two shoes. However one is a leading shoe, and the other is trailing......the leading one does almost all the work when travelling forwards. The trailing show stops the car running back down a hill.....

[mike.perry]

Thanks, is that the slot on the left of the picture? Is that what actually pushes the brake pads?

It is the slot in the backplate in which the rear piston slides.
The piston pushes the shoe against the brake drum which in turn pushes the piston in the slot to push the other shoe against the drum

[drivewasher]

You can use copperslip grease on sliding parts. Just a note though, the red grease is rubber friendly and should be used where it comes into contact with rubber so as not to "rot" the natural rubber. We use red grease for example where calliper slides have a rubber buffer inside.
Copperslip or normal grease wil eventually perish rubber boots and seals etc

[JaneHibbert]

Thanks everybody