1973 Westy - Brake Adjusters

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vdubyah73
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Post by vdubyah73 » Wed Jan 14, 2009 4:07 pm

dingo wrote:thought i might remove the whole adjuster unit..but the two bolts are hidden behind the wheel hub flange..so much for that idea

tried to dremel thru frozen adjuster bolt....the cutting wheels kept shattering..resorted to hacksaw blade held by vice-grip....finally freed that sucker !! Now i have all four adjusters turning smoothly, although pass. side will have to be a 'drum-off' adjustment due to stars being 'nubs'
Paint a good coat of regular grease on the adjusters and in their bores, after thoroughly cleaning, assemble and wipe off excess grease before attaching shoes. Have fun with that. Hint: remove the shoe screws from the adjusters slide them into the bores and screw in the screws while trying to keep the trapped air from popping them back out :joker: . Then back off and readjust every oil change, with needle nose vice grips. If you can get a dremel cut off wheel at it I'll bet you can get a small enough pair of needle nose vice grips to fit. That'll keep 'em free and adjusted.
1/20/2013 end of an error
never owned a gun. have fired a few.

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dingo
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Post by dingo » Wed Jan 14, 2009 8:49 pm

Paint a good coat of regular grease on the adjusters and in their bores, after thoroughly cleaning, assemble and wipe off excess grease before attaching shoes. Have fun with that. Hint: remove the shoe screws from the adjusters slide them into the bores and screw in the screws while trying to keep the trapped air from popping them back out :joker: . Then back off and readjust every oil change, with needle nose vice grips. If you can get a dremel cut off wheel at it I'll bet you can get a small enough pair of needle nose vice grips to fit. That'll keep 'em free and adjusted

will do...thanx
'71 Kombi, 1600 dp

';78 Tranzporter 2L

" Fill what's empty, empty what's full, and scratch where it itches."

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dingo
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Post by dingo » Fri Jan 16, 2009 2:23 pm

at what point do you back up 3 stars ? stuck solid ? moderately stuck ? scraping ?(its seems always to be scraping...which gives false backup point)
'71 Kombi, 1600 dp

';78 Tranzporter 2L

" Fill what's empty, empty what's full, and scratch where it itches."

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chitwnvw
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Post by chitwnvw » Fri Jan 16, 2009 2:32 pm

dingo wrote:at what point do you back up 3 stars ? stuck solid ? moderately stuck ? scraping ?(its seems always to be scraping...which gives false backup point)
You could drive it. You'll know really quickly.

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Amskeptic
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Post by Amskeptic » Fri Jan 16, 2009 2:32 pm

dingo wrote:at what point do you back up 3 stars ? stuck solid ? moderately stuck ? scraping ?(its seems always to be scraping...which gives false backup point)
Moderate sticking. Then *hit the brake pedal a few times* and *apply the ebrake and release* then see if the wheels have miraculously freed up. If they have, readjust to moderate sticky and back off two star adjuster teeth each, then test for mild scrape lasting less than 180º.
Colin
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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Ritter
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Post by Ritter » Fri Jan 16, 2009 2:46 pm

If they are too tight, you'll still be able to rotate 'em by hand (without grunting) but when you get into 4th, you'll wonder why the hell you can't get above 45. Not, of course, that I've experienced this myself. Certainly not. :blackeye:
1978 Westfalia 2.0 FI

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Amskeptic
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Post by Amskeptic » Tue Feb 03, 2009 7:24 pm

If you plan to drive hot day high speed mountain passes, slightly looser-than-usual brakes will give you better cooling of the shoes and drums.
Colin
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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