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[theolodian]

What is the trick to adjusting the parking brake at the wheels?  I have been able to adjust them down, but apparently up is tight?  I regained a couple clicks, but now I can't get it to move any further.  

The mechanism is fine, I just can't seem to get the screwdriver in the right place.  I already slackened off the cable.  Didn't even have to remove the heat shields.  Glad I realised that before following that bit of the instructions!

[hotel21]

Have you ever had the rear hub off so that you have an idea of what you are actually adjusting?

If you look at the pics in the howtoo guide, you see the star wheel adjuster at the 12 o'clock position.  There is a spring which is located to the bottom of this.  Look at the pic taken from the side.  The starwheel appears at the extreme right hand side but is actually at the 12 o'clock on the car.

If you rotate the wheel hub until the larger inspection hole is, from memory, just past 12 o'clock towards the front of the car.  Get a torch and shine in and look in at the same time.  Its not easy as its all recessed from the hole.  What you are trying to do is get the screwdriver blade between the spring and the star wheel, so as to 'flick' the starwheel around.  If you do not manage this, all you are doing is trying to move the spring upwards.  Again, I cannot recall if its upwards to tighten or the opposite.  

HtH

B

[ians]

It helps enormously if you have a picture of what you are actually doing,  otherwise you are poking around in the dark.    I take it you have found this
http://www.omegaowners.com/forum/YaBB.pl?num=1152564750

I can't remember now for sure, but it may well be that it is up to tighten on one side and down on the other.  The adjusters point in the same direction and you are basically trying to flick the nut round from opposite sides.

The basic idea IMHO is to get each side in balance and just clear of the drum.  You then do the tensioning via the central adjuster.

It may well be worth biting the bullet and removing the disks, so you can see what's happening and giving the mechanism it a good clean/lube at the same time.

Cheers,
Ian

[theolodian]

Cheers Ian.  Yeah I did take the disks off in the end.  The adjusters can be installed either way, but also mine were bottomed out hard.  Had to take them off and use tools to free them up.  They weren't rusted, new last year.

I didn't get the adjustment quite right, took about 10 miles for the shoes to stop dragging.  

[ians]

I remember spending ages on this the first time I did it trying to figure out whether up or down was the right way , or whether I was actually doing anything at all!

I really should replace the shoes on my old car - its done 185k and the handbrake was binding for a while (cable had corroded).  But I get the impression from elsewhere that it is a dog of a job.  

Anyway - well done for sorting it.

Cheers
Ian

[theolodian]

Mine had all new bits so that helped.  However, I think with a few tips it wouldn't be such a bad job.

1) You don't have to drop the heat shields.  Just use a long extension and 13mm (very) deep socket.
2) If you can't figure out the drum adjusters in 5 minutes, take off the discs.  It's not hard.
3) The drum adjusters can go in either way.  If the star wheel is to the left side then down is tight, and vice versa.
4) You want a really good torch.  Neither of mine were good enough.