Handbrake cable woes

Sun Mar 24, 2013 6:02 pm

Hi guys,
I was inspecting my brakes this afternoon and when I went to adjust the handbrake I noticed that my ns cable was very slack and almost pulled through its holder.

It was too cold to fiddle for long but I'm worried that the cable is snapped somewhere along it's length. Could it be anything else?

Sun Mar 24, 2013 7:54 pm

A common failure is the backplate has rusted through and the cable connections have came loose. Providing this has rear disks you really need to pull the disc off to tell for sure.

Sun Mar 24, 2013 10:55 pm

Thank you, I will CHeck that. I imagine changing a handbrake cable is a massive pain.

And I forgot to add it is a disc brake model.

Thanks
Dean

Mon Mar 25, 2013 10:04 am

My handbrake never quite worked properly on one side - looked at it a number of times as did a couple of garages and never managed to find the issue. It was only last year when I changed the shoes and was about to start getting the cable out and fit a new one that I noticed that whenever it had been fitted someone had failed to loop it around the base of the handbrake that forces it to pull up as you lift the handbrake - I did that and then it worked fine!

Not sure how I didn't notice that when I had checked it before.

Mon Mar 25, 2013 1:49 pm

Bakedbean100 wrote:Hi guys,
I was inspecting my brakes this afternoon and when I went to adjust the handbrake I noticed that my ns cable was very slack and almost pulled through its holder.

It was too cold to fiddle for long but I'm worried that the cable is snapped somewhere along it's length. Could it be anything else?

"You went to adjust the handbrake"? At the handbrake lever?
If you were adjusting the handbrake, then you should have been nowhere near the lever. The adjustment there is for setting up new cables, and should never need touching again, once they've been set up.
The adjusters for the rear handbrake are inside the handbrake drums, and are accessed through a wheel bolt hole.

Mon Mar 25, 2013 2:03 pm

^^ As above. To adjust the handbrake properly normally requires a rear brake strip down, discs off and more than likely new discs and shoes. The handbrake mechanism needs stripping, cleaning and a smear of Copperslip. Once done it will last for ages - it's quicker to do the full job rather than piss about. Handbrake cables don't stretch either. They can get rusty and even snap - happened to me just once 15 years ago on an E23.

Mon Mar 25, 2013 2:30 pm

I did go to adjust the brakes at the actual brake but i read that you need to slacken offat the lever end first so i went to do that and then noticed the cable was pulled through and slack.

I would have fiddled with the adjustment further but it was cramped and cold in my garage yesturday so decided to ask for advice on here before going outside and braving it all again.

Mon Mar 25, 2013 5:31 pm

How easy is it to change a handbrake cable if it is snapped? Can't find any guides anywhere!

Mon Mar 25, 2013 5:36 pm

Not too bad. Where they fit into the body, you'll need a good pair of mole grips to twist the cabble ferrule and get it moving. From memory you may have to unbolt the lever from the floor to allow the cable threaded end though. It's years and years since I did one.

Mon Mar 25, 2013 5:53 pm

Thanks I just need to find if it has broken but it seems the most logical conclusion.

Mon Mar 25, 2013 6:45 pm

Changing a handbrake cable isn't a particularly difficult job - if the last person that fitted them knew what copper grease is for. If not, you will probably find that the steel ferule on each end of the outer has seized into their respective sockets. If the cable is scrap, and the inner cut off, you can drive the hub end one out with a long parallel punch through a wheel bolt hole. Wrap the punch with tape to protect the threads!
The other end of the cable needs a bit of care though. It fits into the end of a steel tube which is welded to the body. Just the last 10mm of the tube is the cable, but the join is often hard to see. Get too rough trying to extract this, and the tube will break free from the body.