VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1912-1928 Brakes/Rear End

Hi all, going over the brakes on my '27 Capitol, the passenger side tire spins freely but the drivers side feels like it is in gear, but the tranny is in nuetral! Is this normal??
The car is on jack stands and I haven't taken off the wheels yet to investigate.
Any ideas?

If you have wood spoke wheels then it is easy to check the gap between the brake drum and service brake lining. If disc wheels a bit more work to take off the wheel. Should be the width of a hacksaw blade (back side without teeth) gap all the way around. If that is okay then it might be the emergency brake adjustment that is off. Those shoes are inside the drum. The brake adjustment procedure is in the owners manual and repair manual. If you don't have both they are available as reprints from several sources. A ChatII advertiser The Filling Station is one.

Thanks Chipper, I'll have to take the disc wheels off and have a look!

In addition to Chipper's suggestions, if one wheel is dragging as much as you say look for gear oil seeping out at the bottom of the backing plate. The axle seals can leak rear end lube which when it gets all over the e-brake linings creates an amazing amount of drag on the drum. If the gear lube is visible the axle/drum have to be removed to replace seals. In many cases you will need to obtain a special puller to remove the hub from the axle taper (available from Gary wallace parts supplier). Dan

1927 Chevrolet Capital
Well, I finally got around to taking the wheels/hub off! And to my suprise, it seems that the e-brake lining or possibly the shoe is alittle bit too big! Has anyone ever experienced this? Can I possible shave about an 1/8" off the material. It appears to be possibly a cork/cloth lining with some sort of metal imbedded in it. I took off the other side to see the difference, the Pass side is good, good adjustment, good lining and the shoe fits as it should. I looked around to find replacements but came up short! Any ideas on what I can do?
DFC - no seepage of any kind, thank goodness!!

Don't know much about 27s but there is an outfit in Iowa that I used to reline my 28 Coupe brakes. They do good work at reasonable prices and know the materials. If you send them pictures they will give you costs and such, and will talk to you on the phone if you contact them. I'd recommend getting both brakes done unless you know that the one brake is absolutely good and not worn or too old. If you send them the whole brake shoe assembly they will clean it up, reline it and send it back to you looking as good as new. They are called Brake Parts Stop I believe.

There are also some industrial supply places that sell brake lining materials, if you know exactly what type you need. What I found out however, is if you get the wrong stuff you can have real problems. Some folks get the really aggressive linings for their brakes when it doesn't take them, and then the drums (on a 28) wear excessively and eventually get spongy from the heat. So you have to know for certain all the details, and then have the tools to install it. I just let Brake Parts do the work to ensure it was done right. Otherwise you have to have the right rivets, rivet tool, etc.

Hope this helps.

Thanks, I will definetly give them a call!!