Rear brake cylinder

Hi, thought I'd check out the condition of the brake shoes before the next Mot and found them to be OK but the whole brake assembly was covered with black gunge. http://1drv.ms/1nbZf6H

I assume this is a sign that the brake cylinder seals are past there best?

Cheers

luxinterior67 said:

Hi, thought I'd check out the condition of the brake shoes before the next Mot and found them to be OK but the whole brake assembly was covered with black gunge. http://1drv.ms/1nbZf6H

I assume this is a sign that the brake cylinder seals are past there best?

Cheers

Click to expand...

Have a peek with a small screwdriver under the black seals around each piston. The wheel cylinders are easy to change, and if you open up the adjusters you don't even need to take the shoe hardware off. You will likely encounter difficulties with seized up fasteners, so arm youself with a decent brakw pipe spanner and use a positive six-point socket on the wheel cylinder mounts.
Tip: wedge the brake pedal down with a piece of wood to stop dripping pipes.

Thanks for the tips, I'll check under the seals. I haven't worked with drum brakes before, done plenty of pads and discs. I reckon I'll change the shoes as well, there's about 4mm left on them but face of them seem pretty contaminated with oil/grease.