Mr Noisy Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 hey chaps so ive got an x brake of a couple years vintage and it has been grand the rest of the car hasnt been so grand mind so if had the brake on and off various times with transmission changes etc and i have noted that each time i reinstall i am adjusting the cable up further and further i use the centre hole on the arm and am now more or less at the end of my adjustment, ie, the arms is substantially rotated at rest position already i assume this is simply due to pad wear however, as an x brake noob i thought it worth a post to see what y'all think - maybe simon could even advise me from his point of view!! i did think perhaps my cable was stretching but i have no lack of braking power once adjusted, but then before too long i need to adjust, rinse and repeat it has only come to light now as 3 clicks is no longer sufficient for steep hills, i am out of cable/caliper travel i think at that, so i reckon the pads are likely to blame any help appreciated! cheers, sam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuck Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 What thickness of friction material is left on the pads? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retroanaconda Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 I believe you can get the rebuild kits and strip/rebuild the calipers fairly easily. It's something that's on my list of things to do as mine is running out of travel as you say, and it also rattles like a bugger and drives me mad! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doda456 Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 From my experience they are a bit heavy on pads, however they are simple to change Also is you read the instruction manual this is a page about course adjustment of the calliper arm, this works as I did it the other day, This is quite easy todo in situ on a disco but I have no idea about a defender I also recently fitted a set of non x eng supplied brake pads, and they were actually fractionally too thick to fit in the calliper and disc, but that was easy to fix Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anderzander Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 Mine was always towards the end of tracks - so when I changed pads I rotated the arm and cured the rattle and travel issue all at once. i should buy another at some point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CwazyWabbit Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 ....i should buy another at some point. Why did you not recover it from your old one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Noisy Posted January 6, 2015 Author Share Posted January 6, 2015 right thanks gents i shall whip the caliper off i think tomorrow night and have a look see whats going on cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Team Idris Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 There was a part number mentioned on here about which part was the same pad but not from Simon? (Only cause it might be cheaper ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CwazyWabbit Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 http://forums.lr4x4.com/index.php?showtopic=61798&p=536612 the caliper is fitted to jcb tele handlers,try model number 531-70. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anderzander Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 Why did you not recover it from your old one? I can't explaon without sounding a weirdo But basically it didn't feel right at the time ... Part of me thinks I should have - but ... C'est la vie ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CwazyWabbit Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 ....But basically it didn't feel right at the time ... To be fair that's a good enough answer for me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Noisy Posted January 6, 2015 Author Share Posted January 6, 2015 Thanks for the part numbers chaps, if I'm honest I have no quarms buying them off Foundry anyway and supporting them/X-Eng etc I will pull the caliper tomorrow, if it simply appears to be thin pads it'll be a nice easy fix, I don't know what function the repair kit has but at 15 quid it's no great shakes either Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GBMUD Posted January 9, 2015 Share Posted January 9, 2015 I hate to suggest this, and mean no disrespect, but are you sure you are adjusting your calliper correctly? I am by no means an expert on X-brakes, but I have one fitted to my 90 (fitted with automatic gearbox). I rarely use the brake (preferring 'park'), and perhaps that has some bearing on it, though no amount of static use should cause wear to the pads AFAIK. I bought the car with the brake already fitted, but in the tens of thousands of miles I have done in the car I have not needed to adjust the handbrake, nor have I noticed any marked difference in how it applies - when I do use it. Just a thought. FWIW, the guys at Foundry4x4 are great. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPendrey Posted January 9, 2015 Share Posted January 9, 2015 ...though no amount of static use should cause wear to the pads AFAIK... That's what I was thinking, although perhaps as muck gets induced there is a mild grinding effect? Or maybe lots of hill starts for those non-automatic drivers among us? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discomikey Posted January 9, 2015 Share Posted January 9, 2015 I hate to suggest this, and mean no disrespect, but are you sure you are adjusting your calliper correctly? I am by no means an expert on X-brakes, but I have one fitted to my 90 (fitted with automatic gearbox). I rarely use the brake (preferring 'park'), and perhaps that has some bearing on it, though no amount of static use should cause wear to the pads AFAIK. I bought the car with the brake already fitted, but in the tens of thousands of miles I have done in the car I have not needed to adjust the handbrake, nor have I noticed any marked difference in how it applies - when I do use it. Just a thought. FWIW, the guys at Foundry4x4 are great. Chris I don't mean to tell you how to drive, and maybe i am wrong here, but iv'e always been told, and felt from the massive clunk, that leaving an auto to rest against park is really bad for the mechanism when you go to release it. whenever i drive an auto i always apply the handbrake in neutral, let the vehicle roll up the slack then select park. if the pads are rattling it would suggest to me that they are able to contact the disk more often under driving conditions which could be a cause for excessive wear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Noisy Posted January 9, 2015 Author Share Posted January 9, 2015 Hi chaps Not had chance to get this off yet but I have had a look The moving pad isn't too bad but the static pad has a couple mm wear in it You can see on the rubber slides where it has moved to allow for this wear Anyway This car only gets used off road so to speak and mud is a big deal I do rear pads in like 500 miles sometimes just because the mud rips the pads to pieces I bet the x brake is no more than 2000 miles into its life over maybe 3 years, but it has clearly, steadily worn Anyway hoping tomorrow to take it off and I'll get some pics Reckon it's just worn tbh! Not gonna take offence at all by the way if anyone wants to school me on how to adjust this bugger but tbh I thought it was a pretty simple affair! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonr Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 Sorry, only just seen the thread! For the best combination of pad life and stopping ability, adjust the brake to fully apply with six clicks on the handbrake lever. If you adjust it tighter than this, it just wears the pads (and adjusts itself) for about six clicks - so you may as well save the pad wear and start with six! I'm only on my second set of pads (2 years ago) on the second X-Brake ever made! 10 years and about 60k miles on the first set! If you do run out of adjustment on the cable, you can rotate the lever on the caliper (clockwise looking from the rear of the truck). The lever sits on a spline with 12 positions. If you un-screw the bolt on the lever by 6 turns, the lever will spring up and sit on a shoulder allowing it to be rotated. Rotate 1 spline and re-tighten six turns. If you remove the bolt, the lever, washers and spring will all spring apart and you'll spend the afternoon looking for the bits! How do I know this?! This will reset the adjustment on the cable back to zero and give you the same life as you had in the previous rotational position. I suspect that at least 50% of orders for new pads don't actually need them if they did this. Remember to reset the lever when you do fit new pads! The pads start life at 3.125mm thickness - again people look at pads that are say 2mm thick and assume they are worn out - where really they are barely worn in! If you need more help - even if it takes a while, I'll always respond! Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GBMUD Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 I don't mean to tell you how to drive, and maybe i am wrong here, but iv'e always been told, and felt from the massive clunk, that leaving an auto to rest against park is really bad for the mechanism when you go to release it. whenever i drive an auto i always apply the handbrake in neutral, let the vehicle roll up the slack then select park. Thanks. Mine does not make a massive clunk when selecting 'drive' from 'park', though I very rarely park on a hill of any consequence. When I do, is when I use the handbrake too! Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Noisy Posted January 10, 2015 Author Share Posted January 10, 2015 Simon! Many thanks for that I will attempt a lever rotation. Remember of course I am on discovery 200 lever and I "think" they have less clicks available due to the constraints of the console aperture, but, I will see what's what There is certainly lots of thickness on the pads, just as above, I think I am struggling to apply it. Cheers, Sam! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Noisy Posted January 10, 2015 Author Share Posted January 10, 2015 Well I rotated the arm 2 notches actually, and then moved up to the top hole on the arm instead of the Middle hole So I have now rescued my cable travel, and I am able to apply much more handbrake effort, all down to a simple adjustment, thanks simon!! The moving pad is hardly worn but the fixed pad certainly is, I've probably got around 1mm until the caliper body contacts the disc But now with new-found adjustment methods I can fettle the brake to keep it tip-top whatever pad thickness I have. Great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonr Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 I should have added - if the pads are wearing unevenly, the caliper slides are seized (or at least very stiff). Remove, grease and they will be fine again. Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Noisy Posted January 11, 2015 Author Share Posted January 11, 2015 Thanks simon However I must say, if the static pad is wearing more than the moving pad, it implies that the caliper is quite happy to move I would have thought! Anyway after stripping it down a bit last night and removing all pad preload, I could tell the caliper was quite happy to move on the rubbers I must say I was surprised as I expected due to the design of the caliper that if anything the moving pad would have worn more I think maybe the static pad has worn from always being in contact with the disc whereas the moving pad is forcibly backed off Anyway I'm back on the road and all is well, and when it does become time for pads I'll know much better what to do! Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mo Murphy Posted January 12, 2015 Share Posted January 12, 2015 Much useful info here, this could do with being archived Mo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted January 12, 2015 Share Posted January 12, 2015 I've added it to the Popular Modifications forum along with my x-brake fitting thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.