E- Brake Help

[jams]

Hi,

I need some help with an E-Brake problem. I have a B & B with a standard 8.8 rear(disk brakes) Right now my E-Brake is useless because it will not stop the car from rolling. All cables etc. seem to be hooked up properly and the rest of the breaking system works fine. I have adjusted the handle to tighten things up, which almost worked but once I release the e-brake the rear brakes are still being applied. The extra tension from the adjustment is still pulling on the cable. I found out the hard way when I went down the road and said to myself what’s that smell. Oh that’s just my brakes burning up! So before I go fiddling with every nut and bold I wanted to see if there was an easy solution. Is there another adjustment at the wheel that I can make? I know I can make an adjustment where the 2 cables transition into 1 but I am thinking I would have the same excess tension problem.
Any Suggestions?

Thanks

[dgcomps]

Jams, I have had the same problem with my B&B since I have had the car. Last year, I took off the rear calipers and adjusted the piston. This helped for the first three or four times I drove the car, then right back to the same issue of the e-brake not holding the car. This year I wrote to B&B (over a month ago, with no response) and have also re-bled the rear brakes, but the e-brake is still not working. The pistons are moving, but I feel they are not working to their full potential. Once I have a little time, I will replace the calipers and try to put this thing to bed once and for all.

[meangreeny]

Also had an e brake problem with my b&b. Here is how I solved it.

Make sure you have strong springs on your e brake cables that allow them to release.

Make absolutely sure each cable is the exact same length or the shorter side will only work.

Tighten (adjust the cable(s)) by tightening the nut on the threaded rod with the brake handel in the down position. I had to get 3 different length threaded rods before I got the right length that worked for me.

Tighten the nut on the threaded rod until the e brake just begins to work on both sides then back off slightly (with car on jacks so you can spin the wheels while you are tightening so you know when they are beginning to work). Lock off the nut in a position where the wheels spin and only a slight pull of the e brake should engage them. The springs on the cables disengage them.

You will probably need to adjust your e brakes a couple of times each year to keep them in working order.

I bit the bullett and went and bought two new e brake cables that were the exact same length.

david
B&B 186 351w (for sale by the way - see for sale section)
dqualls@qwest.net

[cslithergo]

I am still working on this also. From the above I guess I need to look into stronger springs as mine do not release if they are working.
Thanks

[jams]

Thanks for the tips. I will give the stronger springs a try and make a few adjustments.

At least I know I am not alone. Adjusting an E-Brake should not be this hard!

Thanks

[jams]

Just fixed my E-brake problem. Here is a fix that works. I trimmed the spring at the end of the brake cable where it attaches to the lever and caliper. (The spring goes right around/inline the cable itself) I found that the when I engaged the e-brake before the fix the inline spring was to long so I couldn't get any more pull. Any adjustments I made were fruitless because the cable already bottomed out. After using my rotary tool to trim off about 1" of the spring I have plenty of room to adjust the hand brake properly. I though it was going to be a nightmare of a fix but it turned out to be pretty easy.