The hex bar for the new brake adjuster arrived at the start of the week. First job was to finish cleaning and paint the outside of the N/S front brake servo. Whilst this was curing, I prepared the brake shoes for the N/S/F, filled the grease retaining bushes with copper grease and hung them on their pins, ready for the return spring to be installed I noted that the back plate seemed closer to the brake shoes, compared with the other side, so some adjustment may be necessary. After fitting the spring and aligning the N/S/F brake shoes, I set about cleaning the loose rust and dust from the both front brake drums and applying a couple of coats of warm Vactan to the rusty areas, ready for refitting. Once this was dry, atrial fitting of the O/S front brake drum revealed it was too tight on the shoes, so I chamfered the edge and sanded the surface of the shoes and removed the ridge of rust around the edge of the brake drum. I was then able to get it on to the stub axle, with assistance. Fitting the outer bearing brought the drum into the correct alignment and it was free to rotate. I then fitted the retaining nut, locked it up to ensure the bearings were correctly centred, then backed it off until the drum was free to turn again. The N/S/F brake drum went on a great deal more easily. I adjusted it up tight and backed the nut off, same as the O/S. I then took both outer bearings out and repacked the hubs with grease, in order to ensure the inner bearings were properly lubricated. I spent some time attempting to discover the source of a slight binding of the offside drum, but concluded it was likely to be a high spot on the brake shoes. I then proceeded to remove the brake operating lever for the offside as it was clearly set in the wrong position and fouling the steering linkage. I measured the height of the N/S lever and set the O/S lever to be as close to that as possible. Next, I installed the brake servo for the O/S, which was a bit fiddly; the rear right-hand corner nut needs to be fitted first due to clearance issues.
Next I turned my attention to the nearside brake servo, removing the end cap and addressing the broken screw by welding a nut on the end. Despite several attempts, the weld failed, so I replaced the end cap and drilled out the offending screw then retapped the hole. The final job of the week was to complete reassembly of the N/S/F brake servo, including lubricating the piston, greasing and straightening the operating rod and fitting a new gaiter. It is now ready to be installed.
