Thread: Brake Shoe Spring Removal & Re-Fitting

Vice grips. 👍

It's funny you just 'do it' and trying to put it into writing is hard (because I cannot remember what I did last time).

I've lifted end out of its slot (depending on whether it's front, rear, LWB, SW swing it towards the other shoe and the pressure is off the spring. Sometimes you have to lever the end of the shoe out of it's slot or slide the shoe up or down. If you can physically pull the a shoe just out of the slots you can twist it towards you and it releases the pressure on the springs..

I made a tool for re-assembly of LWB shoes, it was in my thread on Wallit.
DSCN2031 by Colin Radley, on Flickr

I've done some recently without using the tool though.....


Colin

I use a tyre lever against the hub, although I have found it easier on the odd occasion I have done it with the hub removed. Not worth removing the hub specially though.

I have made a couple of hooks up from Phillip's screw drivers of various lengths for brake jobs on the Landy's.
But like Colin said, some just pop together or apart with ease, and others, well, you need to get an appropriate
collection of expletives in the right order, before any success comes your way.

Good luck.

I found it easy to take the hub off first, then just take shoes off springs and all with a small crow bar (wrecking bar) levering against the stub axle.

Cheers,
John

Hello All,

Please excuse my less than professional diagram. What it is attempting to express is how I have tried various tools to exert a downward pressure on the spring. Then a sideways pull so that the pressure moves the 3/4 spring diameter off the mounting pin.

One time I was able to use a set of long handled plies with offset jaws to get the bottom spring off the post. It was apparently a "one off" because other attempts have result in nil success.

I also had success with a piece of plain - heavy gauge fencing wire which I bent into a hook. I then gripped the wire in a pair of vice grips and gave it some effort and off the spring came. This approach worked once.

I even bought a "T" bar "Heavy Duty Spring Hook Puller Tool" like the one in the picture. However, I moved the vehicle without stretching the spring. Similarly I have had a backing plate held in a bench vice and managed to move the backing plate.

I will try a wrecking bar.

The other way I had success with was to just pull the trailing edge shoe away from the brake wheel cylinder and moving the shoe at an angle towards the hub. The allowed the top spring to come off the mounting pin. A similar approach to the leading edge shoe resulted in the spring becoming permanently bent before it came off the bottom mounting pin.

Another attempt was made manipulating the brake shoes without the hub and it took the least amount of effort so far.

However, it should be a case of just being able to hook onto the spring- while pushing down as the tool is pulled towards you. Then with the spring off the mounting point the shoes should fall off with very little effort .... SHOULD.

Kind Regards
Lionel

Hello All,

Now this looks like a nice bit of kit designed just for brake shoe spring removal and installation

Accessed June 4th 2018 from YouTube

There is also this video at the 9:12 minute mark that shows how a tool can be use to rotate the spring off the mounting post. This video also shows how the arrangement of Leading and Trailing edge shoes can be fitted incorrectly. YouTube

Kind Regards
Lionel

Picked up something similar at the weekend, probably OK on a smaller brake setup where the springs aren't as strong as on the Land Rover.
Mine cost $1 at a Trash & Treasure market so if they don't work it's no big loss. Identical to those in the link below.

BRAKE SPRING PLIER-REMOVES AND INSTALLS BRAKE SPRINGS | eBay



Colin