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Cautionary tale


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For a little while my hand brake had been making some noise, initially just after a prolonged period of rain. My first thought was that the drum had become a little rusty, a theory borne out by the noise disappearing when the hand brake was gently applied.

Over the next few days the noise came and went, sometimes a light rubbing noise, others a light tinkling noise, so now my thinking is that perhaps a spring has broken and the remnants are rolling around inside the drum. Thinks to self, better get under there and check before it jams or something equally unpleasant. Then the noise stopped, so now my thinking is that perhaps a small piece of gravel had managed to get betwixt drum and backplate, has been spat out and the noise is no more.

Yesterday it came back, intermittently, again, a light tinkling noise, occasionally a scraping noise.

Today I finally got my lazy self under the truck to have a look, dropped the rear prop away from the hand brake, removed the two screws and tried to pull the drum off, wouldn't come. Went and put some new batteries in my head light so I could have a better look at what was going on. Turns out that the drum is failing to separate from the back late because the back plate is trying to come with it. A bit of jiggery pokery managed to split them and then I saw the cause of all my noises/problems. Three of the back plate retaining bolts had fallen out and the 4th was very loose. There didn't appear to be any damage so I retrieved the three bolts, cleaned them up, applied a dash of loctite and refitted them, removed the 4th bolt, cleaned it up, loctite etc and torqued all 4 to the prescribed value. Refitted drum, prop, using new nyloc retaining nuts, and adjusted hand brake. All noises gone.

Whilst the back plate is held in place and cannot really go anywhere because the drum is located by the 4 bolts for the rear prop and will prevent it from falling off, I dread to think what might happen if the 4th bolt had joined its 3 contemporaries. Especially as I well remember, from my army days, a chap trying to perform a hand brake turn in a 109. The consequences were remarkable and quite rapid in the way they unfolded, Something sheared, the rear prop fell away from the hand brake and dug into the ground, flipping the 109 onto its side.

Edited by neil110
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Not sure where in the maintenance schedule it suggests that you check the security of the handbrake backplate retaining bolts. I wonder when you last checked yours?

Bearing in mind this hand brake back plate has been on there, without any trouble, for nearly 20 years why would my first guess be that the bolts had worked loose?

Edited by neil110
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Hi sorry for any misunderstanding. I agree it's (probably) not on any schedule. I was referring to my experience in the wider world of manufacturing. I've been taught and have taught others, to watch and listen to running equipment for any signs of potential failure and then ensure that a planned intervention is scheduled if at all possible before there's any chance of failure. In that way you probably reduce the overall time to repair and also do it when you want rather than when you have to.

I was just impressed that you've done something similar. :mellow:

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When I replaced my standard trans brake with the X-brake those 4 bolts were a right pain to undo, took my long breaker bar & a 2 foot tube on the end just to 'unlock' them. they were refitted with loctite as they were needed to secure the X-brake backplate, I'd suggest someone has been in there long before you & not done the job properly. 

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13 hours ago, Peaklander said:

Hi sorry for any misunderstanding. I agree it's (probably) not on any schedule. I was referring to my experience in the wider world of manufacturing. I've been taught and have taught others, to watch and listen to running equipment for any signs of potential failure and then ensure that a planned intervention is scheduled if at all possible before there's any chance of failure. In that way you probably reduce the overall time to repair and also do it when you want rather than when you have to.

I was just impressed that you've done something similar. :mellow:

Sorry, I misunderstood your meaning. The printed word can be a bit flat sometimes and the deeper meaning of what is written can go astray.

I made a mistake, I have only had the vehicle for 19 years rather than the 20 I suggested and got to thinking about the handbrake last night. I replaced the original LT95 gearbox with a R380 when I found I was arriving everywhere TALKING LIKE THIS, because the original box was so noisy. That would be in 1998, which was when the LT230 T box and handbrake assembly from a 300 tdi was also fitted. During the intervening period I think I have adjusted the handbrake about 3 times, usually because the cable has stretched rather than any wear of the shoes. Each time I have had to remove the rear prop, for any reason, I take the drum off to have a look inside and look to see that all is as it ought to be. Similarly, about once a month I crawl under the truck and just lie there looking at things, stuff like shock absorbers, brake pipes, exhaust system (and I would be a happy man if I could find a way of fastening the middle box to the Y pipe with something that doesn't work loose, even using castle nuts and split pins on the bolts has not prevented it from working loose and leaking) I digress, it all serves to help keep an eye on things and hopefully nip in the bud any potential failure. I have been around Land Rovers as driver, owner and maintainer for far more years than I care to remember (alright 48) and I have never come across a Handbrake back plate working loose before. But as somebody once said. Anything that ever had another thing fastened to it has had that thing fall off.

I agree completely with the principle of not ignoring any noise, especially new noises. If it didn't do it yesterday, why has it started doing it today? Yes trying to locate some of them drives me to distraction, sometimes, but far better that than a potential catastrophic failure at some later date

Edited by neil110
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12 hours ago, western said:

When I replaced my standard trans brake with the X-brake those 4 bolts were a right pain to undo, took my long breaker bar & a 2 foot tube on the end just to 'unlock' them. they were refitted with loctite as they were needed to secure the X-brake backplate, I'd suggest someone has been in there long before you & not done the job properly. 

My LR manual gives a torque setting of 48-59 lbf/ft for the aforementioned bolts, though they are flanged bolts and the underside of the flanges is serrated

Edited by neil110
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