Sam Buchanan Posted May 6, 2019 Report Share Posted May 6, 2019 (edited) This tool has been improved and updated and can be found in this thread. Like many newbies to the P15, I'm finding the brakes to be the most frustrating aspect of an otherwise simple vehicle. The absence of a factory adjustment tool certainly adds to the uncertainty of setting up the brakes in addition to not having prior experience with the Lockheed brakes. I filed flats on the ends of the anchor bolts so they can be adjusted with the drums in place but I just wasn't confident the shoes were concentric with the drums. The tool below is one I fabricated from scrap material in the shop and it provided visual confirmation that the shoe adjustment was close to what it needed to be. This is not an original idea and many of you may already have something similar, just want to toss this out for those who are struggling with brake adjustment. The tool is just a length of .875"x.059" steel tube with some 1/4" all-thread welded to it. A short length of aluminum angle forms a pointer than can be adjusted via the nuts on the all-thread. The tube is a close fit on the 3/4" spindle. With the drum in place one minor adjustment cam was set so the toe of the shoe barely dragged. The drum was removed and the pointer on the tool adjusted so it barely touched the toe of that shoe which is a close approximation of the ID of the drum. It is then just a matter of sweeping the tool over the shoes to adjust them so they are concentric to the drum. It turns out the method I had used to adjust the anchors and cams with the drums in place was pretty close but this added visual confirmation. I don't have the rear brakes opened at the moment so can't recall if the same steel tube will work on the axle. The tool could also be built by welding the all-thread to a spare axle nut. Edited May 16, 2019 by Sam Buchanan 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P15-D24 Posted May 6, 2019 Report Share Posted May 6, 2019 Cheap, simple but effective! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Coatney Posted May 6, 2019 Report Share Posted May 6, 2019 Tool looks to be inexpensive and effective but the cost of the gloves must be astounding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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