Project Dollywobbler's Invacar - Ongoing

[SiC]

Is the brake adjuster a square headed thing?

 

I picked one up at my local car/motorfactors shop! Going by the faded packaging it'd had been there a while. The guy reckoned it had been there as long as he'd been working in the shop...

[dollywobbler]

Is the brake adjuster a square headed thing?

 

I picked one up at my local car/motorfactors shop! Going by the faded packaging it'd had been there a while. The guy reckoned it had been there as long as he'd been working in the shop...

 

It is. I'm currently abusing a 1/4" socket in a pair of molegrips...

[plasticvandan]

I'm sure I've goit a few 1/4" brake spanners,think I've even got a socket type spanner for it,and the brake pipe nut spanner that goes around the pipe

[dollywobbler]

Cool. I'll soldier on with what I have for now, as I'm hoping to complete brake work tomorrow, but a few actual proper tools would certainly help with servicing.

[Ghosty]

If any tools are going begging Dan, I'm woefully short of imperial spanners. A proper one for the brake adjuster would be handy too.

What sort of size? I have a few Whitworths I don’t need.

[Zelandeth]

Balls...Everything on these suckers (engine excepted) will be imperial won't it...

 

*adds set of imperial spanners and an imperial socket set to his shopping list.*

[Tadhg Tiogar]

...*adds set of imperial spanners and an imperial socket set to his shopping list.*

*opens wallet. Finds it empty. Sighs*

[plasticvandan]

Keep an eye on my imperial tools advert,I should have enough to go around

[dollywobbler]

Balls...Everything on these suckers (engine excepted) will be imperial won't it...

 

*adds set of imperial spanners and an imperial socket set to his shopping list.*

 

No. They're an entertaining mix of metric and imperial. The driveshafts and I think some of the hub bits are Fiat, so there's metrification there too. Mind you, quite a few nuts and bolts seem to the 7/16", which is almost exactly 11mm (a very common 2CV size) so that has helped me.

[dollywobbler]

I'm back to battling brake shoe springs again. I'm not sure I've got it in me for this, still feeling the tail end of man flu as I am. So sod it. I'll have a go at fitting the new master cylinder instead. I'm just going to ignore the brake shoes. FUGGIN THINGS.

[plasticvandan]

They are easy once you know how,assuming these are like reliant ones with the two springs,assemble the shoes with one spring connected and the other engaged in one hole,slide the connected side into position on the cylinder then push the unconnected side upwards(shoes in front of the adjuster ) and slip the spring onto the shoe,then lever one onto the adjuster while keeping the other one taught to stop sprig coming off,then lever the other one on.

[plasticvandan]

No. They're an entertaining mix of metric and imperial. The driveshafts and I think some of the hub bits are Fiat, so there's metrification there too. Mind you, quite a few nuts and bolts seem to the 7/16", which is almost exactly 11mm (a very common 2CV size) so that has helped me.

Most sizes on small British cars of this era are 7/16,1/2 and 9/16

[Stanky]

The springs are all utter gits and needs to get in the sea!

[dollywobbler]

They are easy once you know how,assuming these are like reliant ones with the two springs,assemble the shoes with one spring connected and the other engaged in one hole,slide the connected side into position on the cylinder then push the unconnected side upwards(shoes in front of the adjuster ) and slip the spring onto the shoe,then lever one onto the adjuster while keeping the other one taught to stop sprig coming off,then lever the other one on.

 

Problem is, the springs won't pass the hub flange, so the only option is to hold one shoe in place first, try to keep the springs from falling off as you thread them through behind the flange, then start wishing you were some Indian deity with about six more arms as you try and hook the springs into the other shoe. Stanky is right. The springs can just get in the sodding sea.

 

Decided it'd be more fun* to tackle another brake job - master cylinder. First problem was that the tightwads at Invacar Ltd didn't use captive nuts to fit the sodding thing.

 

Only thing that fitted on the rear nuts was a 13mm socket in a ratchet, and that was quite a battle to get in on the bottom one, so I had to remove the horn for (slightly) better access, and the brake light switch so I could get some penetrating oil in.

 

With that finally done, and much cursing to warm up the air, I set about dismantling the old one and rebuilding the new. Couldn't get the circlip to locate with the new pushrod. After far too much faff, I realised that I should have used my bloody eyes first.

 

Great! New one has a much smaller bore.

 

To be fair to Angry Dicky's employers, there is absolutely nothing on the old master cylinder to suggest what the bore might be. The new one kindly has the bore stamped upon it. 

 

Restoring old cars is rubbish.

[DeeJay]

Keep chanting the mantra,

"This is a fun hobby... This is a fun hobby... I'm having a great time"

[coalnotdole]

So what bore is the old one? I'm gussing the new one is 3/4?

 

Hard to tell from the photo but the only real difference I can see between them is the size of the dished recess for the push rod?

[Sigmund Fraud]

try to keep the springs from falling off as you thread them through behind the flange,

 

Small cable ties can help with this bit !

[dozeydustman]

Great! New one has a much smaller bore.

 

To be fair to Angry Dicky's employers, there is absolutely nothing on the old master cylinder to suggest what the bore might be. The new one kindly has the bore stamped upon it. 

 

Restoring old cars is rubbish.

 

 

did some googling, this eBay ad would suggest a 7/8" bore for the original

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/INVACAR-3-WHEELER-NEW-BRAKE-MASTER-CYLINDER-SEAL-KIT-7-8-INCH-BORE-WE900/272662800792?hash=item3f7bf82998:g:8vAAAOSwCQZZEGNq

 

It's about the most info I can find - is the old one rebuildable?

[dollywobbler]

Old one is certainly on the large side. Maybe I should just have left it be, but I'm pretty sure it was leaking slightly. I'll discuss with Angry Dicky once he's back in the office.

 

For now, here's where we are. Warning. Contains man flu.

[dozeydustman]

It looks like a standard Girling type cylinder, there's probably a BMC/BL product that uses the same. I'm thinking A60 Cambridge.

[dollywobbler]

It looks like a standard Girling type cylinder, there's probably a BMC/BL product that uses the same. I'm thinking A60 Cambridge.

 

It is, but there are a lot of different bore sizes in the same housing.

[chaseracer]

Hope the stream's staying out of the garage... 

[dollywobbler]

I did take the precaution of removing all tools and electrical items from the floor, but thankfully the flood waters are receding. It would have to be pretty spectacularly bad to flood the garage, but I certainly wasn't ruling it out earlier.

[dollywobbler]

I'm glad I post up my complete lack of knowledge for the world to see. So far, I've learnt that I've got one of the shoes upside down, and that I've put the wrong flare on the pipe. I can see why people farm out jobs you know...

 

All this makes me very glad* that the government is getting rid of MOTs for 40-year old cars, because obviously every other classic car owner out there actually knows what they are doing...

[drum]

I always try to unseat the shoes before removing the springs as it takes the tension off.

Then do the opposite when refitting.

[dollywobbler]

Aye, that's what I'm trying to do. However, if my brake flare is indeed utterly shit, then I've got bigger problems, as I'll need to find a way to remove the pipe. Given that the body is entirely in the way, I've a nasty feeling I'm going to end up having to remove it. On the plus side, separating the two will make it much easier to just weigh the chassis in for scrap and turn the body into a nice garden feature with some plants in it.

[richardthestag]

i enjoyed watching your vid, always do, didn't enjoy your pain and mistakes.

 

but then you know now double flare on male fitting doh

 

do you still want a length of 3/8 kunifer brake pipe, can post you a couple of feet as payment for my enjoyment of this thread. after all it is pointless buying 10 foot of the stuff unless you want to donate 8.5foot to a bastard range rover project on the other side of the brizzul channel.

 

also when I do drums with no access like on the staaaag driveshaft and hub come out, backplate comes off, clean paint, reassemble shoes and cylinders on the backplace in the comfort of whereever you want to be, then refit backplate and driveshaft hub.

 

 

 

that said I have no idea how the driveshaft and hub fit the inva. probably find the manual says remove brake drum and shoes first

 

 

[richardthestag]

, as I'll need to find a way to remove the pipe. 

 

cut a hole through the shell, with a hole cutter in the right place, sheet of glassfibre and resin to repair after

[dollywobbler]

Thanks. Pipe may be appreciated, though Twosmoke was offering some, and I'm seeing him on Wednesday. Will know more tomorrow once I have a look at it all with a fresh head. 

[Uncle Jimmy]

Awesome Fred

I clearly remember these Invacars around Brighton when I was a child; they must have made an awful lot of em. Seems odd to me that the Government didn't get Reliant to do a version of theirs.

The only thing I don't like about them is the orrible NHS pajamas blue, resprayed canary yellow or arrest me red and they'd look mega.