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MG TD TF 1500 - RHF Brake

I'm attaching an image of my right front brake setup. For some reason, both front brakes are very tight (it's hard to turn the drums once they are assembled, but they do turn). I was hoping someone might tell me where I have gone wrong, because as far as I can see it all seems OK... They are set with the adjusting cams at the narrowest point.
You may notice that one of the backing plate bolts is larger than the others; that is because they were so rusted on that one broke and had to be replaced.

All suggestions appreciated.

Geoffrey M Baker

The only thing that jumps out at me..and it could be the picture.. is the the shoes don't carry the same arch as the back plate...funny hmmm. Plus they are a bit off center as well.

MG LaVerne

Had a similar situation with my TD. I had the shoes relined at a local shop. Don't know if I got my original shoes back, or another from off the shelf. Anyway, the curve where the shoe fits on the adjuster had a buildup of paint/rust/foreign material. The shoe was not seating properly on the adjuster. A little adjustment with a rat tail file cured the problem. A slightly too thick lining can also cause a similar problem. Were your brake shoes arced to fit the brake drum?
John Masters

The shoes were in a box...I know nothing about them except that my dad must have picked them up...
Geoffrey M Baker

Take the shoes off and check them against the drum. That's the important dimension. You can have the shoes matted (arced as Geoff pointed out) to the drum if they turn out to be the wrong curve. They would also wear that way over time but in the mean time you are going to have the friction plus more limited stopping power and brake fade if extreme because of heat buildup. You could also do this with a belt sander but probably best to a professional.

While you are at it they could check your drums too to make sure they are true. That's usually a problem that shows up where the drum hangs at a certain place when turning.
Chris Couper

I had the brake drums turned so they should be 'true'. I'll check the shoes against the drums and see how they look...
Geoffrey M Baker

Did you really crank the pedal down to center the shoes and then re-check adjustment? Also make sure the pistons are retracting and not holding the shoes out. With all assembled and adjusted, crack open the bleeder to make sure there isn't some residual pressure in the system. Some years ago I ran across some shoes with the same problem. If all OK, the shoes. Some years ago there were some new shoes around that caused that problem (the curvature did match the drum on those BTW). Easy fix: file or grind a mm or two off of the curved butt end of the shoe. Problem solved. George
George Butz

I *think* I fixed the problem. Following John Master's advice, I checked the adjusters themselves, and they were pretty rusty. I just cleaned up the adjusters, filing the rust down to a clean surface, then I cleaned the surface where they meet the metal edges of the shoes in the same way, so that all touching metal surfaces were clean and shiny; 'dressed' the shoe a touch just to have another perfectly clean surface, and the result was a nice easy fit. Still not perfect - it went on easy but there is still some friction there turning the drum, but much less.
I think a little more work with a file all around will make it all fit nicely. Clearly, buildup of rust can make a huge difference!

BTW, the shoes matched the drums perfectly, it must be either a bad photo or maybe the rear mounting plates aren't round; but at any rate, the shoes are a very good fit to the drums.
I'll do the same with the LHS and I believe I am 99% of the way there...

Thanks for all the input!
Geoffrey M Baker

Another question for the experts... just how freely should the drums spin on the axles? Is some contact with the shoes OK or do they need to spin totally freely?

I did the same work on the LHF drum and that fit nicely too...
Geoffrey M Baker

Be sure to step on the pedal hard a few times to centralize the shoes. I then tighten each adjuster until it is absolutely tight, then back off a click or two until the drum doesn't drag badly or with too much resistance. A little bit of dragging won't make any difference, and will wear away in just a few miles. Spinning absolutely freely is probably a bit too loose, and you will have a lower pedal.

Tom Lange
MGT Repair
t lange

What Tom Lang says... I set mine with just a wee bit of "swish" heard as the drums roll around. I find this is often two clicks back from full stop. The stiff pedal push must be done first though to set the shoes centered in the drum.

Alex
Alex Waugh

This thread was discussed between 09/03/2014 and 10/03/2014

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