Handbrake Solutions

[Chris Green90]

maybe not an option for the 80 or even the 95. But for us shorties maybe a step in the right direction in regards to improving what we have could be to replace the single cable/slave system with the cable system from a Rav4. Short front cable with compensator the 2 seperat cables, one to each drum??? (Why can I never find the chin rubby head scratchy thinky emoticon)

 

[Chris]

I looked at that some time back Chris. A compensator bar would be a very good idea, if not a complete twin cable set up. I would also like to get the bell cranks out of the mechanism and either have them cut out in stainless or bush them in the pivot hole. Lots of slop in that area when they wear.

Chris

 

[Rob]

It'll be interesting to see the solution. 6months and 6000 miles of daily use, and the handbrake on my 95 is fine. No adjustment needed, no creep, it just works - I guess I must be lucky!

Do you take yours off road on a regular basis?

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[Chris Green90]

I really only want the air, oil, gas, string, plasma operated handbrake for off road action. Happy to service the other one, once per year for the MOT. This is about control on steep climbs for me. I like the idea of an air actuator. Electric air solenoid opens on the switch, air rushes in, applies the brake. When power is released, solenoid closes and vents. Just as it does on an ARB air locker. With some form of cranked arm, an air piston should be able to exert quite some force. OR, which I quite like, have a cable operated system like the X Eng, but use an air ram to pull the cable.

Chris

If your thinking just for Off road use Chris, whats alltogether wrong with the rally type hydro I linked to in the first post.

 

[Chris]

Other than actually fitting it and making it work? Nothing.

C

 

[Shayne]

I guess my idea was crap then lol but heres another just to bury myself deeper . Have you looked to see if a manual 90 has the same set up for handbrake as the auto ?

My handbrake seems to hold fast even when parked on the steepest of hills yet i have once or twice drove off in 2nd gear without noticing i forgot to let the handbrake off .

 

[Chris Green90]

Pretty sure they are shayne.

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[Chris]

Manual and auto both the same. Pretty much the same across the cruiser range.

The handbrake works well on most of them. As long as you don't go off road. You can't pull away with mine on. But two mins of axle articulation off road and it's gone completely.

Chris

 

[sae70]

The Vitaras are a twin cable set up, both attaching to the hand brake quadrant individually. I remember the ol' crap hand brake topic coming up while in ownership of Vitaras but nothing like to the extent that it does with regards to the Land Cruiser!!! The other thing with the Vits is that following a lift the hand brake cable gets a bit pulled as its attached to the chassis, so most undo the clamps so the cables are unattached to anything from where they leave the body work (just behind the gearbox) to where they attach to the back of the drums. There's also no cams/quadrants the cable goes straight into the back of the drum and attach to the actuator lever. I'm not sure that this would be a total cure, but would be a definite improvement, maybe combine a modification like this with a hole in the backing plate to allow quick adjustment of the self adjuster would be a good step in the right direction.

ive probably got some photos somewhere ill have a dig about and stick 'em up if I have.

 

[Shayne]

Before i bury my head in the sand and sulk i'll have one last try - This comes from X-Eng's own website and they are explaining the X-eng brake won't fit certain suped up range rovers .

"The simplest solution is just to re-drill the holes if necessary. This is very easy! Take a photocopy of the back-plate, cut out the big hole in the middle which the prop shaft passes through, offer it up to your transfer box making sure the skid plate is at the bottom. Then press your thumb into the paper to make an impression where the holes are on your transfer box. Place the photocopy on the back plate lined up by the hole in the middle and the skid plate. Centre punch through the centre of your thumb impressions and drill the new holes. This is actually how we made the very first X-Brake and it's surprisingly accurate!"

 

[Chris Green90]

Yeah i read that to shayne. The thing is after bens experience with the x brake i am not sure. I am going to donington on sunday and will talk a little more indepth with the guys from x eng and report back. I was thinking of maybe building my own x brake using something like a rover disc and caliper but without actually getting out to the truck and having a look i have no idea weather this will be way to big. Got a few bike builder mates so i will have a word with them about a bike caliper and disc.

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[Shayne]

Surely it would be better to have a steel disc made to fit . Proper brake discs are engineered to tolerate very high temperatures etc and polished because you use them when your moving . While parked almost none of that matters , in fact an unpolished surface would likely keep the wheels locked even if a tank tried to tow it away .

 

[Ben]

Me and Roger spent half a day trying to get my X brake working properly. I've since spent hours and hours trying to get it right without success.

Bloody thing owes me £250.

X-ENG developed the 70 series one on a modified, bodylifted 70. Then started selling them, and their is no way it would fit without a bodylift.
Roger bought one and ended up sending it back because it simply wouldnt fit.

In the end Simon (owner of X-ENG) stopped selling them as he was having too many people complaining they wouldnt fit and sending them back for a refund.

Its a shame really, because maybe if he had spent a bit longer developing it, on a standard 70 then it might have worked and been very successful.

The main problem with mine after messing about with it trying to get everything lined up is to have it working effectively means the pads are almost touching the disc. Then when you drive it it drags and wears the pads out, and once it totally cooked the pads and the plastic behind the pads melted.

Might be different on an 80 or 90, but thats what I've found on my 70.

 

[Beau]

My VW Golf has the best Handbrake system I have seen, which is what I think you guys are trying to establish.

The golf has another cable that squeezes the rear callipers onto the disc (the same normal rear brakes). It works brilliantly holding very strong and never needs to be adjusted! Very impressed with the germans, and I would think it's something easy to do

 

[Chris Green90]

That is perfect beau. Exactly what i have spent several hours looking for on tinterweb. All that needs to be done is to find a way to get the caliper and or disc to fit.

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[Chris Green90]

Also if anyone knows of anything bigger running this kind of setup i would be grateful if you could let me know.

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[Shayne]

Got to thinking about the winch brake we use on trawlers . All it is is a clamp wound tight with a screwthread and thats all there is to stop a 20 grand net with a payload of maybe 5 tonne being lost . I found this diagram which might help someone come up with an idea .

The pic is considerably over engineered compared to the vast majority of boat winch brakes . most consist of a steel band hinged at the bottom and that bit labelled turnbuckle is just a screw thread with a little steering wheel on the end . Perhaps a clamp design would work , it would only take a small spring either side to hold it open when not in use and the handbrake should give enough leverage to lock a clamp tight to the shaft .

 

[Chris]

That's all very lovely and grabbing the prop would be very effective. Unfortunately, the prop moves about all over the place depending on the position of the axle. That's why it has a UJ at each end. The trick isn't clamping, it's attaching the clamp to something. The companion flange at the TC is the only bit that doesn't move.
The shaft that you are depicting doesn't move up down left and right. I'm guessing. It's fixed like a prop to a propeller.

Chris

 

[Chris Green90]

I think I am going to hunt round the breakers found by me to try and find a caliper with cable operated HB that is something close to what we have already. so that, as has been said previously we can do away with the drum in disc and simply have a cable actuate the rear beakes. Sound ggood/feesible?????

 

[Chris]

Well, that's the disc made. Flash on the camera make it look a bit crappy. It isn't. Honest.

Chris