ALKO Heavy Chassis: Tag Axle Handbrake Woes

[7Hvn]

Took our 2009 tag axle (ALKO Heavy Chassis) for its MOT last Month and it failed due to inefficient hand brake:

Foremost Axle: NS 200, OS 160.
Rearmost Axle: NS 70, OS 100.

On investigating the rear hand brake mechanism, the cables were shot. As an aside the rear pads were pretty low and disks tatty.
Purchased these (very expensive) and fitted them along with new handbrake shoes, discs and pads on the two rear axles.

Following the steps:

1. Release the tension on the handbrake cables by slackening off both fore and aft 'cable to rod' splitters.
2. On each wheel separately adjust the shoes so that the wheels are fully locked then back them off 5 (+/-1) teeth on the adjuster. Make sure they aren't binding.
3. Ensure the 'handbrake lever to mechanism cable' is tensioned such that the mechanism lever is detached from it's rest.
4. Set the handbrake lever to the 6th click.
5. Tension the fore, then aft, splitters to a torque of 1.5daNm aka 15Nm.

Trouble is when they are tensioned to 15Nm, the cables, now like piano wires, whilst lock the wheels at the '6th click', they ALSO lock the wheels when the handbrake lever is fully released.

At first I thought my torque wrench must be out of spec so I used a 2nd and the same happens.

Is 15Nm definitely correct for an ALKO Heavy Tag Chassis?

I then tried, with the handbrake still off, slackening the splitter tensioners such that the wheels would spin freely. I got this to the point where one half a turn more on the tensioner would change from a free spin to the start of binding on the 4 wheels.

Queue the 20 minute procedure to get her off the axle stands and back on the tyres (right faff). Quick back and forth on the drive (no road jaunts without an MOT) and it seems to hold it ok. Now, when I reverse or drive up my Milenco Quatro ramps and test at the 6th click she wont hold.

I can't see a world in which I can have an operating hand brake that can lock the rear axles at the MOT station (and crucially keep the van on the ramps on a pitch) and have them NOT binding whilst driving.

I'm sure a few of you will have done this job yourselves on a Tag or do it for a living - Care to share your pearls of wisdom?

What am I missing? Are the above instructions correct for a Tag?

Any advice appreciated... Thanks in Advance.

 

[Clivefog]

New disc/drums and new shoes something not fitting correctly? Got the springs placed correctly?

 

[7Hvn]

New disc/drums and new shoes something not fitting correctly? Got the springs placed correctly?

I took before and after images of the changes so that I could try and ensure things went back the right way.

I checked the discs, pads, shoes and the cables against the old ones before fitting. They all looked like-for-like.

 

[Clivefog]

Don't know, need input from someone who is able to comment on the cable tensioners adjustments.

 

[bigtwin]

Re holding on the ramps, I don’t rely on the handbrake I ensure that it’s holding against the engine compression in 1st gear.

Works for me.

Ian

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[Fontie]

deleted

 

[Googlebot]

When I changed mine recently the handbrake wouldn’t work even though I had tensioned everything correctly.

I drove for a few miles with the handbrake on, stopping often to check they weren’t overheating.

This seemed to bed them in and increased the efficiency to a degree that the handbrake l worked great after.

It’s not a recognised or recommended procedure but it worked for me.

 

[7Hvn]

When I changed mine recently the handbrake wouldn’t work even though I had tensioned everything correctly.

I drove for a few miles with the handbrake on, stopping often to check they weren’t overheating.

This seemed to bed them in and increased the efficiency to a degree that the handbrake l worked great after.

It’s not a recognised or recommended procedure but it worked for me.

Looks like it may have to be a handbrake journey to the test station then - I'll have to take the longer scenic route.

 

[Googlebot]

Looks like it may have to be a handbrake journey to the test station then - I'll have to take the longer scenic route.

I used an infrared thermometer to keep checking the temperature, a hand on the wheel would work just as well though.

You did remember to degrease the new discs didn’t you? They come coated in anti rust oil based stuff. Don’t ask me what happens if you forget, like I did.

 

[7Hvn]

I used an infrared thermometer to keep checking the temperature, a hand on the wheel would work just as well though.

You did remember to degrease the new discs didn’t you? They come coated in anti rust oil based stuff. Don’t ask me what happens if you forget, like I did.

Yea used brake cleaner to clean the discs throughly before I fitted them.

Go on… share the pain… what happened?

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[Googlebot]

Yea used brake cleaner to clean the discs throughly before I fitted them.

Go on… share the pain… what happened?

It took quite some time before the oil burnt off the discs as I couldn’t stand the two hours per side of dismantling them all again. :-(

I did the discs where the pads contacted but like an idiot forgot all about the shoes.

The few miles to bed them in turned into a lot more before the bloody stuff went.