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web macomber
Samba Member
Joined: December 02, 2010
Posts: 282
Location: Webster Wisconsin
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 Posted: Fri Dec 15, 2017 9:34 am Post subject: rear brake drums |
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Hello. I have been cleaning and replacing some of the hardware on the rear brakes of 73 beetle. Everything is fine but while doing one side I noticed that I may have put the connecting rod that goes between the shoes upside down.
Does the concave part go up or down? Anyway it seemed to make more sense with it going up but when I tried to get the drum back on, I could not. Shore are straight, star wheels all the way in but the drum will just not go on. I did fine before? Any clues?
Web in Wisconsin |
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alex857
Samba Member
Joined: December 26, 2010
Posts: 767
Location: Stuttgart/Germany
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| Posted: Fri Dec 15, 2017 10:21 am Post subject: Re: rear brake drums |
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Hi,
recheck: I think it only fits in one position! Because there is only one type of rod, the concave part is up on one side and down on the other. It Sound like you mounted it wrong, the brake shoes are too far apart now and that is why you can´t get the drum back on. |
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57BLITZ
Samba Member
Joined: June 12, 2012
Posts: 2392
Location: DEEK - U.S.A.
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web macomber
Samba Member
Joined: December 02, 2010
Posts: 282
Location: Webster Wisconsin
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| Posted: Fri Dec 15, 2017 2:36 pm Post subject: Re: rear brake drums |
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| ok, I will check for that. Thank you |
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volksworld
Samba Member
Joined: November 26, 2011
Posts: 2580
Location: formerly NY currently NC
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| Posted: Fri Dec 15, 2017 4:42 pm Post subject: Re: rear brake drums |
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| the slots on the adjusters are cut on an angle to match the end of the shoe...deeper part of the slot on top |
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web macomber
Samba Member
Joined: December 02, 2010
Posts: 282
Location: Webster Wisconsin
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| Posted: Sat Dec 16, 2017 8:23 am Post subject: Re: rear brake drums |
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| good call on the adjusters. Who knew?? I must have just been lucky all of these years. Thanks again |
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Cusser
Samba Member
Joined: October 02, 2006
Posts: 33086
Location: Hot Arizona
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| Posted: Sat Dec 16, 2017 9:29 am Post subject: Re: rear brake drums |
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| web macomber wrote: |
| good call on the adjusters. Who knew?? I must have just been lucky all of these years. Thanks again |
Who knew? Most of us who have had the same issue or at least discovered this many years ago.
Like the weird thing about the same spacer bar being used on both sides, when one side should've been made as a mirror image. Oh well.
By the way, the title of this thread should be "rear drum brakes" because "rear brake drums" is different !!
_________________
1970 VW (owned since 1972) and 1971 VW Convertible (owned since 1976), second owner of each. The '71 now has the 1835 engine, swapped from the '70. Second owner of each. 1988 Mazda B2200 truck, 1998 Frontier, 2014 Yukon, 2004 Frontier King Cab. All manual transmission except for the Yukon. http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=335294 http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=335297 |
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andk5591
Samba Member
Joined: August 29, 2005
Posts: 16801
Location: State College, PA
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| Posted: Sat Dec 16, 2017 10:01 am Post subject: Re: rear brake drums |
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| web macomber wrote: |
| good call on the adjusters. Who knew?? I must have just been lucky all of these years. Thanks again |
I can't even remember the number I times I have helped people with this same problem, nor the number of cars that I have worked on that had them in upside down or a mix of the early (straight) and late adjusters on a wheel. 
Its not obvious, so don't feel like a dummy. Pretty much guarantee that most of us have done this at least once.....
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D-Dubya Manx clone 1914. Ex wifes car.
Rosie 65 bug - My mostly stock daily driver.
Woodie 69 VW woodie (Hot VWs 7/12).
"John's car" 64 VW woodie - The first ever
Maxine 61 Cal-look bug - Ex-wifes car.
66 bug project - Real patina & Suby conversion
There's more, but not keeping them... |
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ashman40
Samba Member
Joined: February 16, 2007
Posts: 16575
Location: North Florida, USA
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| Posted: Sat Dec 16, 2017 10:39 am Post subject: Re: rear brake drums |
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Found some pics that illustrate the points made for anyone who stumbles across this thread in the future...
Here is a pic of the left rear drum brake assembly (front of car is to the left).
Note that the #6 bracket at the top of the shoes fits around both the rear shoe and the hand brake lever arm. The slot in the bracket is larger on one side to support the lever. This wider slot needs to be towards the rear of the car.
Here are pics showing the left and right side bracket and springs. Note that the wider slot is always towards the rear of the car because this is where the hand brake lever sits:
The biggest common mistake is thinking that the "groove" in the bracket is to make room for the spring. This is incorrect. The groove is there to stiffen the bracket and prevent it from flexing/bending. One bracket part# is used for both the left and right sides. The spring can either sit IN the groove or ON the hump of the groove, depending on which side the bracket is used.
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AshMan40
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'67 Beetle #1 {project car that never made it to the road  }
'75 Beetle 1200LS (RHD Japan model) {junked due to frame rot}
'67 Beetle #2 {2019 project car - Wish me luck!} |
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