<font face="Arial">Is there any external easy way to check whether my rear drum brakes are 30mm wide or 40mm wide other than removing the drum & measuring. I would rather only have the drums of once to replace the shoes.
Are the hub nuts different depths for the two sizes of drum?
Is the self adjusting Assy the same for both types?
Is there any noticeable brake performance bonus to 40mm width set-up?</font id="Arial">
Checking Girling Drum Brake Shoe Width - Help
Moderator: RichardW
I'd be almost certain you've got 32mm hub nuts, staked into a groove on the stub axle. Both my cars have 32mm nuts.
Why the worry about taking the hubs off? Use a punch to unstake the hub nut, then, using a long extension bar or torque wrench, undo the nut.
Be gentle when taking off the drum so the wheel bearing doesn't come apart. Then bob's your uncle.
The nut is torqued up to 150lb ft, which isn't blood-vessel popping tight.
I'd reuse the nuts since they won't be on for long, get the new shoes and some new nuts/hub caps, and get replacing.
Bendix and Girling set-ups use different auto adjusters. I can't imagine you'd notice a difference in performance for different shoe widths.
One last word of warning - drum brakes are fiddly and springs/auto adjusters can get damaged. I use molegrips to get springs back on, but I've had to buy replacement adjuster and spring kits over the years for bits that got mangled.
If the springs in your brakes are original, they might be a bit tired. If you need a kit, they have to be ordered from a dealer. Cit charged me £18 for springs and £31 for new Girling auto adjusters - not cheap.
Why the worry about taking the hubs off? Use a punch to unstake the hub nut, then, using a long extension bar or torque wrench, undo the nut.
Be gentle when taking off the drum so the wheel bearing doesn't come apart. Then bob's your uncle.
The nut is torqued up to 150lb ft, which isn't blood-vessel popping tight.
I'd reuse the nuts since they won't be on for long, get the new shoes and some new nuts/hub caps, and get replacing.
Bendix and Girling set-ups use different auto adjusters. I can't imagine you'd notice a difference in performance for different shoe widths.
One last word of warning - drum brakes are fiddly and springs/auto adjusters can get damaged. I use molegrips to get springs back on, but I've had to buy replacement adjuster and spring kits over the years for bits that got mangled.
If the springs in your brakes are original, they might be a bit tired. If you need a kit, they have to be ordered from a dealer. Cit charged me £18 for springs and £31 for new Girling auto adjusters - not cheap.
<font face="Arial">I replaced the springs a few months ago as my rear brakes were sticking on. This sorted the problem. There wear left so I didn't chae the shoes. The Spring fitting kit was around £8 at Partco or Euro. I did not change the self adjust assy bacuase it wasn't in stock at the time. (Andyspares was closed [;)])</font id="Arial">
<font face="Arial">What I need to know is can you tell if the shoes are 30mm or 40mm WITHOUT undoing the 32mm nuts. i.e. can you tell by looking at the outside of the drum?</font id="Arial">
<font face="Arial">What I need to know is can you tell if the shoes are 30mm or 40mm WITHOUT undoing the 32mm nuts. i.e. can you tell by looking at the outside of the drum?</font id="Arial">