Broken brake adjuster cam

[curtiswyant]

Hi all, doing brakes on my '49 Dodge coronet...it is quite the adventure

Anyway, the "minor brake adjustment" cam for the rear shoe on the passenger side is broken; when turning the bolt from the rear, it just spins and does not turn the cam. Any ideas on a quick fix? I'm thinking I could drill a hole or two in the cam and use needle-nose pliers (from the "front" with the drum removed) to turn the cam?

[Young Ed]

This happened on one of dads 51 conv cams. Hit it quick with the welder and he was back in business.

[55 Fargo]

Now here is what I did with my front left minor adjuster that I clumsily broke at one time. My plan is to put it into the hole of the backing plate, use locktite on the threads, and let it set and hopefully I will be able to adjust the cam in either direction. Does anyone know if this would work, or ddoes anyone have a better idea. I would prefer to leave on the backing plate to do the job........Fred:confused:

[Merle Coggins]

Now here is what I did with my front left minor adjuster that I clumsily broke at one time. My plan is to put it into the hole of the backing plate, use locktite on the threads, and let it set and hopefully I will be able to adjust the cam in either direction. Does anyone know if this would work, or ddoes anyone have a better idea. I would prefer to leave on the backing plate to do the job........Fred:confused:

If you go that route, use the green Sleeve and Seal Retainer Loctite. It bonds much harder than the blue or red thread locker.

Just my opinion,

Merle

[curtiswyant]

My tack welds broke so I put a little JB Weld on it...we'll see how it goes. Any other suggestions if the JB doesn't hold?

[Jim Gaspard]

This is a followup to a post I found from a couple of years ago, but my same current problem. I pulled my rear hubs tonight on the B3B as part of my frame-off cleaning and reassembly. On the drivers side rear brakes, both cam adjuster nuts just spin (but not the cam) and will not adjust brake shoe tolerance. Not one but both. Has anyone had this problem and what is the reasonable fix? Are replacement brake cam adjusters available or do I need to take the tack weld approach discussed here? Thanks for your help. Jim in Dallas

[old woolie]

If you go that route, use the green Sleeve and Seal Retainer Loctite. It bonds much harder than the blue or red thread locker.

Just my opinion,

Merle

Just a little heads up here. I replaced a timing belt on a Hyundia and noticed the crank seal was seeping oil,when installing the new seal it kind of just pushed in rather than having to drive it in. Carefully removed seal and talked to the parts store,they recomended Loctite seal and sleeve retainer. Read the instructions on the container and installed the seal,timing belt and covers etc. Let it sit overnight,started it next morning and backed it out. Before I got the shop door closed there was a puddle of oil under the engine. Took it apart again,the seal was out and the Loctite had not set up. Called the parts store and asked why it did not set up,they checked with Loctite and got back to me with this information which was NOT on the container. There is a 24 hour cure time in which heat must be applied. Assembled again following these instructions and hung an incandesant trouble light against the seal area overnight and finished assembly the next day. It worked this tme. Did not make much money on that job.

[Young Ed]

Jim the tack weld approach will work. Dad did it to a backing plate on his 51. Otherwise while you've got it apart you could try and source another backing plate

[Normspeed]

Curtis, check your PMs.

[RobertKB]

I have two backing plates from a '54 Plymouth if anyone is interested. They could come with the old cylinders, springs, shoes, etc. if wanted. Or I could disassemble and ship just the backing plates themselves. These are for the ten inch drum. Email or PM if interested.

[Jim Gaspard]

Thanks for the advice. I went to the Decatur (Texas) Swap meet todeay northwest of Fort Worth, lots of attendees and vendors on 100 acres. This is one of the first shows this year so everyone with cabin fever was there. I picked up a brake spring remover. What a difference the right tool makes. I removed the brake springs, the shoes and tack welded both cams. Worked like a charm. My first venture into the brake realm. Learned a bunch. I'll post photos later. Jim in Dallas.

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