Bond shite = gone to a new home

[Torsten2001]

I'm afraid I'm an obsessive radio listener, Radio 4, 6 Music and XFM in that order...if I have no radio handy I am an angry man, again Dolly, you're a good man, in your capacity as Autoshite journalist let us know if anything needs saving!

[dollywobbler]

Anyway, with fame dealt with (though the Bond has been mentioned on the Auto Trader website - coool) the Bond has finally made it into my garage!Sadly, that's as far as the update goes due to the frustrations involved in getting the Mini out of the garage. Full credit to my wife who bravely battled the manifold-to-downpipe clamp while I just lay on the floor holding the thing in place. Success at last! After a week and a half... (most of which admittedly has involved prevarication and a general reluctance to enter the garage...)Did fire the Bond up and enjoyed a nice listen to the smoooooth, six-cylinder engine. Let it have a warm up and had a little drive up the track at the back of the house with just a handbrake to stop me. Next plan, wheels off, bleedy-bleedy (hopefully the brakes rather than me...) and see if the brakes will work. Oh, and put the rear shoe on the right way. We got it a bit wrong when playing at the roadside...

[dollywobbler]

Cock it, balderdash, goat flanges and rats cocks. Just spent two hours working on the brakes, with a new adjuster to replace a snapped one, new pull off springs and the joy of being able to work on the rear brakes in a dry garage with lots of tools rather than the rain and misery laden streets of Wolverhampton. Net result? Sweet FA.I've got things back to the state they were in originally. You adjust the rear brakes up all nice but as soon as you hit the pedal, they jam up and no longer turn.Now, this suggests that there's a problem with the fluid return to my simple mind. Anyone agree? There are flexis to both rear wheels - and it happens on both sides. Or is there something else I'm getting stupidly wrong?Bled the system (with one of those easi-bleed kits - they work!) but still no six-cylinder joy for I. The Minor snapped its speedo cable today. I daren't drive anywhere in the 2CV in case bad karma is setting in...

[garethj]

Often this happens if the flexi pipes are breaking up inside, they can constrict and not let the fluid back.Do the front brakes bind too? If so I'd consider a dodgy master cylinder or servo if it's got one

[hotford00]

Not wishing to possibly tell Granny how to suck eggs, but have you made sure that the rear cylinders are not semi seized.Failing that isolate one rear flexy at a time and see what happens, after that check that the flexies have not started to break up internally, after that..... box of matches , oops disregard last bit.

[dollywobbler]

You ain't teaching granny anything! This is the first time that I've EVER worked on drum brakes - it's been a learning experience!How do you check the wheel cylinders?

[VWPowered]

you shouldnt need to really long as there not seeping they should be good make sure the pistons dont look rusty give them a good squirt of WD40 and the should be ok, did the handbrake work??.. if it did the cylinders work

[dollywobbler]

The handbrake actually operates a lever in front of the wheel cylinders. It works. Undo the bleed nipple and you can turn the wheel again - though not much fluid comes out - just enough to ease the pressure I guess.

[VWPowered]

if you can find them cheap to replace i would replace for safety and peace of mind

[M'coli]

Surely Seth will know something about Herald drum brakes?

[nigel bickle]

I ''know'' Standard 10 brakes-having rebuilt numerous.They'll be the same as a Herald/Equipe, as their official 'predecessor'..Lift the shoe off the cylinder - see if you can move/swivel it slightly. Assuming they move-its free. Look for leaks/damp under the rubber-they'll prob fail shortly after recommissioning..Flexi's do die internally-but look OK. Pedal pressure forces fluid through-return springs aren't strong enough. Hence-binding.Cylinders & flexis are easy to find - same as Mk1 Escort & loads of others. Speedy Spares used to do them -for me -at £3 cylinder £1.50 a hose.Chances are they'll all give trouble till replaced- they dont seem to do layup well. Then it'll be the waterpump, followedby the rear exhaust system. Oh the joys of old cars.

[dollywobbler]

Busy morning. I've swapped the cylinder as it seemed that the front brakes were binding too. New cylinder has cured that but the rears are still jamming up - flexis next but they've clearly been there a long time and they don't want to budge! Now having a break...

[nigel bickle]

Cut them off as close to the junction as poss.Buy new union (or if skint, put in vice,apply heat and wind out) fit, flare, reassemble. Jobsa good 'un.

[dollywobbler]

The union is off, and the hub end of the flexi is free, but the other end is held by a nut to a metal tag on the chassis - presumably to hold it up out of the way of the suspension. I can't shift that nut, so I can't remove the flexi. Given up for today. Perservering will only result in much swearing and no doubt flying tools! Plus it's outragously sunny here today, and the garage is like an oven...

[seth]

Only just catching up on this....You should get a new nut with the new flexi so cut it off if you need to. Or a good dose of heat ought to help. With the metal union out of the way I'd have though a socket on the esn should do it? (You are using imperial sizes aren't you )How did you manage to get the hub end off? Did you remove the cylinder and twist it off that way?Drum brakes aren't really tricky as such. Just drum brakes that have lain undisturbed for years....

[dollywobbler]

Hmmm. Don't think I got new nuts. Fiddlesticks. I have got two brand new copper washers though!And typically, I seem to have lost all of my imperial spanners. Must have a tidy up...It's so rusty though that I've just about got a 14mm on it, but I think it's a bit chewed up now.I haven't removed the cylinders. Should I have?! It's not actually free yet as I need to undo the other end to allow enough movement to unscrew it.

[seth]

It's not actually free yet as I need to undo the other end to allow enough movement to unscrew it.

OK, that's fine. I was wondering how you might have removed it altogether! No need to take the cylinder out. The nut is just an ordinary "thin" 3/8 unf one I think. If you confirm that 3/8 (a bit under 10mm) is the thread diameter then I could rustle one up for you The new copper washer goes at the wheel cylinder end to help make a fluid tight joint.I reckon heat and mole grips would be your best bet. By the way, the hose side of that bracket is formed such that the hex on the hose is prevented from turning (assuming its not got rounded in a past life....)

[dollywobbler]

Ah, thanks for that. I'll have a good explore in the morning. Biggest issue is that trying to turn the nut too hard just results in the tag bending, though I've been using molegrips to try and stabilise it. Maybe a night of soaking will free it off. Haven't got a heat device and there's fuel lines around that area too...

[Richard]

Can you cut the rubber off and use a socket on it?

[seth]

Ah, passenger side then. Can you smell fuel? If not live dangerously! A small blow torch would work well enough and heat is a really good way of unseizing things. Temporary flame/heat shields can be made out of random bits of metal/2cv.

[pogweasel]

Temporary flame/heat shields can be made out of random bits of metal/2cv.

ROFL!

[garethj]

A small blow torch would work well enough and heat is a really good way of unseizing things.

I haven't had much luck with small blow torches - sneaking out the gas torch you use for making creme brulee won't be enough. I've got a sort of plumbers gas torch that uses mapp gas, you can get them from DIY shops. You really need to get the nut up to cherry red and it always takes longer than you think.Worth it though, because the nut always comes off with quite an easy twist. Then you can try and guess how long it'll take to cool down *ow, still hot*

[dollywobbler]

Ha! Pipe is off! When all else fails, enrol the wife in proceedings. She got viscous with a hacksaw and the pipe is off. Very apparent that the hose and nut have become very close friends and with us (well, mainly me...) mangling the nut, there's no way we were going to reuse it. Issue now is that the replacement pipe is about 5cm longer. Is this likely to be an issue? It fits the threads fine. Need some nuts now though - may see if any friends have any locally, though most of my mates own Citroens, so imperial is rare!

[Richard]

Extra length shouldn't be a problem as long as the hose can't move into a position where it can get trapped.

[dollywobbler]

Thanks Richard. Chatted to someone else who agrees. Hoping to hit lucky in someone's random pot of nuts a bit later but Grand Prix now!

[seth]

Just check the hose doesn't snag on the leaf spring clamps/ither moving bits....I CAN HAZ NUTZ. I CAN MAKE THIN NUTZ 4 U AND USE POSTAL D LIVARY SYSTEMZ

[dollywobbler]

Thanks Seth. I'll have a check in the random pot later (I'd really like to get it sorted today if poss) but if not, we'll put the postal systems to test...Cheers for your help - much appreciated! I can lurn 'bout non-Frenchie tin!

[dollywobbler]

Chuffin' ell! I only did it! Pedal is a bit spongy and it's pulling to the left, so another bleed and another attempt at adjusting in order, but I've actually been for a drive in my Bond!

 

Thanks to folk here for the helpful advice.

 

I can see this car is going to be one disaster after another though. It ran out of fuel as I was trying to put it in the garage, then the fuel gauge failed. Then the speedo failed. Put a gallon of fuel in, fuel gauge came back, put more in and it didn't move...

 

Oh and the heater is jammed on. And it's bloomin' good...

 

EDIT - Look! It's beautiful! (Almost - note gaffer tape holding passenger door shut and paint falling off sill...)

 

EDIT2 - Pic now actually here...

[M'coli]

Oh and the heater is jammed on. And it's bloomin' good...

Molegrips on the heater hose FTW!!! it worked for our Herald in 1977!

[Richard]

The other thing you can do is fit a plumbing valve into one of the heater hoses