Emergency Return Spring Help

[ahirt]

Been trying to redo the brakes on my 28 Tudor. Brake rods looked like slalom courses, no brake rod springs, drums were all outside of tolerance, one rear hub had a lug bolt welded to the hub/drum (I guess if you don't have a 30 ton press, welding is the answer), one operating pin had been lengthened by 1/2 inch by welding in a new piece and grinding it smooth (very nice work and I guess if everything else has so much slop, lengthening an operating pin is one answer especially if there are not enough pills to provide the length needed), one clevis had been cut off and a second clevis welded to it to provide an extra long clevis (helps compensate for all of the bends in the brake rod), and the main brake rod from the brake pedal to the cross shaft actually looked restore-able - it was straight albeit rusty. But when I took it off and started to remove the clevis, the clevis came off after 1.5 turns. The end of the rod had broken at some point in its life and the "solution" was to simply use it by screwing in the remaining threads! Now that was a tad scary!

Anyway, many dollars and parts later, I am close to finishing However, I would like some help please. The attached photo shows my old backing plate with the emergency brake spring on the shaft. Having looked at this forum, it looks to me like this spring belongs on the other side of the car. As is, the spring will be forcing the emergency brake shoe against the drum - not particularly desirable. And of course, the grease fitting is no where to be found. Not that that matters since the emergency brake did not work anyway.

Anyway, am I correct that this has been assembled wrong? I would like to do it right.

Thanks for your help.

[redmodelt]

Did you weld up the tracks or replace? What about bushings? There is more to the job then just replacing rods and springs. From your description of the other related parts, I would suggest a complete tear down and inspection if it has not been done in the recent past by you or someone you trust to have done the job right.

[ahirt]

Yes, replaced tracks, bushings, wedges and studs, rollers and pins, brake springs, actuating arm levers, new drums, two new hubs, all properly s wedged together, drums turned etc, new operating pins etc. In fact, the only part of the brake system not new or overhauled is the brake pedal and cross shaft. No play in either of them.

[1955cj5]

To help answer your question..

Here are a couple of pictures..

The first is of the driver's side.

The second is of the passenger side.

There is a left hand and a right hand spring..they are different

The springs are installed so they pull the arm and the rod towards the rear of the vehicle.

[ahirt]

Thank you. I did manage to figure it out thanks to this forum. The springs I had on were on the wrong sides and thus were pulling the arm toward the front of the vehicle. I do appreciate the pictures, confirms I got it right.

[loubob]

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[silversink]

can the backing plates, brakes, be completely assembled and still be installed or do I need to put the emergency brake lever on after installation ?

[ahirt]

Yes, as long as you have removed radius rods, you can install the backing plates with emergency brake levers on.

[RonC]

Assemble everything including the brake rods and cotter pins to the levers. Leave the brake rods unattached at the cross shaft and attach them last.

[john charlton]

You can remove and replace the backplates without removing the radius rods . If you remove the emergency brake lever the backplate can be jiggled free with the service brake lever still attached . This is much quicker than wrestling with that big radius bolt also you dont have to lay under the car if you dont have a four post lift .

John in very very heavy rain Suffolk County England