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MG TD TF 1500 - 52 TD front brake

pull the driver side front wheel today. my front brake would get hot and i could not adjust it to keep it from dragging.
i tapped the hub off with a hammer and it came off after a little while. just before it came off a nut fell out from somewhere. i looked all over and could not find where it should go. maybe it was left in behind the brake by the PO.
well as i got the wheel off, the brakes pads came right off with it. could they have been lose and the problem i had? not sure.
luckily the inner bearing and race came out in the wheel. although the race fell out of the wheel.
so first question is which way does the race go back in? is the beveled side facing in? that would seem right with the curve on the axle.
anyone got any idea where this nut might go? i can't even find a bolt that small around the wheel area or above it.
anything i should order when i order the new shoes?
i was going to order shoes from Moss.
good place as any to get them?


TLW Wright

best to get insrutctions on putting in the new shoes?

TLW Wright

the mystery nut...

TLW Wright

TLW - One thing that jumps out to me is that the wheel cylinder that is pointing down still has the piston in it. This tells me that the cylinders are sticky and definitely need to be serviced or new ones installed.

The nut is not a common nut and shouldn't be inside the drum. How it got there is anybodies guess. somewhere along the life of the car it got in the drum and whoever was assembling things didn't notice it. Cheers - Dave
D W DuBois

Dave
Thanks. I went out and pulled out the cylinders. Cleaned them up and now it just falls out. There is a seal under it and there does not seem to be any leaks around it. Mainly it was just dust holding the cylinder in.
So guessing no leaks in there means they are ok?
I am thinking the same thing on the nut. It was dropped and ended up behind the shoe... Never to be found. It may have fallen from another place also and it just looked to come from the wheel. I was really not looking for it.
The top of the cylinders have two ridges the adjusters slide in. I assume they just sit there. They are not held by anything but the springs holding the shoes. Is that correct?
TLW Wright

Also I was thinking when I get the new shoes in and before I put the wheel on, I would get the wife to push the brake pedal and see that the shoes not only move out but also return. Good plan? Or should I have the wheel on when I check this?

Last I figured once the wheel was back on I would adjust tight then push the brake pedal to center the brakes before backing off the adjusters.

My book is terrible about any details to do these things.
TLW Wright

TLW . don't ask your wife to push the pedal with the drums of. If you do that the pistons will fly out of the housing with brake oil .It's a messy clean up.

Better : to put the drum on even half way so you have a tiny view about the shoes Then ask your wife to push the pedal as you described. And observe

Cheers,

Gerard
Gerard Hengeveld

See Dave Braun's website. Lots of pictures of how to do brakes.
efh Haskell

TLW - First thing, Dave Braun's web site is at: http://www.dbraun99.com/ Lots of good pictorial information there.

Next thing, How long have you had you TD? If for many years, when was the last time the brakes were serviced? From the fact that the brake lining of the brake shoes had fallen off, I am guessing a pretty long time. You need to do a complete brake job on the car. That entails replacing the shoes (which you are already in the process of doing on the front) on all 4 corners, replacing all of the brake cylinders (fronts can be honed rather than replacing), rebuild or replace the master cylinder, a complete flush of the brake system to get all of the old fluid/corrosion out, installing new brake fluid, bleeding the brake system to get all the air out, and adjusting all four brakes. If you have never done a brake job before, you should get some help from someone who has done the job before to guide you through the process.

There used to be a MG 'T' series club in Delaware (check the club listing on this web site) where there will be someone who can give you some guidance. If there is no one close around to help you through the process, you will need to find a brake shop in your area that is familiar with the older brake systems, preferably someplace that has done MGs before (look for the guy that looks to be about 100 years old - that's the one you want to talk to. Cheers - Dave
D W DuBois

To all. Thanks.
Sounds like a winter job.
TLW Wright

I agree with David, except that new wheel cylinders are so inexpensive I think best to replace. They frequently are pitted right at the piston/cup interface. If this is not perfectly smooth, it will leak and ruin your expensive new shoes. Strongly agree to get someone to help you as brakes are really important, and nuances can be missed with internet instructions. George
George Butz

This thread was discussed between 05/09/2014 and 06/09/2014

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