Hey guys, when i bought my car like 6 months ago, the handbrake was weak, but worked when the lever was almost wrenched vertically. I finally got the time to fix it, so I followed the service manual's instructions. Me and my stepdad pulled the drums all apart, and adjusted the handbrake as you usually would etc., but with absolutely no result. In fact, the car is even worse than when we started. When adjusting the shoe spindles, we would turn them to an appropriate extent, but we found that when we tightened up the adjuster cable under the center console, either one wheel would lock up, or the other would. And when I mean lock up, I just mean resist turning. There is no way it would hold. It's a 97 KF Ei Verada. The current plan, is to, when i get some money, get some new shoes for the drums. Does anyone know roughly what they would cost by the way? Whilst I'm here?
But any help would be appreciated, because I can't see any stretch in the cables, or any other reason for this system not to work. I have rego in a few months, and it won't look good if I don't have a handbrake haha.
Cheers

I'd just grab them off a wrecked car. not very often handbrake shoes wear mate, so almost all of the magnas at the wreckers would have near great condition shoes....mightaswell save a bit of dosh....

;1330830']I'd just grab them off a wrecked car. not very often handbrake shoes wear mate, so almost all of the magnas at the wreckers would have near great condition shoes....mightaswell save a bit of dosh....

Thanks for the tip man. I'm just worried it won't fix the problem. Guess there's only one way to find out aye.

Given what is involved in getting the hand brake shoes out, I would not waste my time with second hand only to end up where you are now

Most likely your issue is the little pin inside the adjuster is not seated correctly in the lever and adjuster, this will give you the issue you have now

Yep, check that. Also lightly rub the shoes with sand paper, to get the gloss off.

Another thing to check is the metal "bracket" where the handbrake cable enters the rear hubs, and a single bolt holds the cable to the inner/back side of the hubs.

In two of our TJ-era cars, the flat "tab" with the bolt hole in it had broken off the metal tube at the end of the handbrake cable - assume that the flex of applying the handbrake led to metal fatigue at this point. We managed to disengage the cable from inside the hub and manouvre the bits to a position where we could quickly re-weld the pieces of the flat "tab" together...... you need to weld quickly to avoid too much heat damaging the cable or plastic lining in the "tube" part.

In our experience, this affected the pass side on two cars, not the drivers side for some reason. Check the adjuster and spreader bar under the console bin - if its out-of-balance at that point, it will indicate which side of the car the bracket has broken. If the spreader bar looks even, then this broken-bracket-drama isn't your problem (or less likely, that both sides have broken). Where the handbrake cable enters the rear hub, that should be quite firm - the cable shouldn't move much.

Thanks a bunch guys, I'll be doing it soon, and will let you know how it goes.

Much appreciated

Just had the same problem fixed this week at the local brake centre on my KL verada. It cost $600 to machine the disc and drum part of the rear rotors, supply rear pads and the handbrake kit(shoe bands and new accuators and retainers) and to fit it. He didn't have time to do the fronts on the same day so that will be another job for another day. $231 was labour, Disc machine was $66 and Drum machine was $77 so the parts were $227. Before it was done the left rear would lockup and the right had no effect when the handbrake was applied on the road while the car was moving.

Just had the same problem fixed this week at the local brake centre on my KL verada. It cost $600 to machine the disc and drum part of the rear rotors, supply rear pads and the handbrake kit(shoe bands and new accuators and retainers) and to fit it. He didn't have time to do the fronts on the same day so that will be another job for another day. $231 was labour, Disc machine was $66 and Drum machine was $77 so the parts were $227. Before it was done the left rear would lockup and the right had no effect when the handbrake was applied on the road while the car was moving.

Far out i hope i don't have to do the same, I don't have alot of cash haha. I'm hoping changing the shoes and fixing that pin that Madmagna suggested, and those brackets that elwyn mentioned.

Ok, so, I pulled apart my drums again, checked it all out. Not that I really know what I was looking for, but the pins seemed to be seated correctly, the shoes expand and contract properly, the drums and shoes both have plenty of meat on them, and I can't see any damage or stretch to the cables. At the moment, I chocked up the trunnion with some nuts and washers for more give, with no result. In addition, I adjusted the shoes so they were actually rubbing on the drums, and they do expand, perhaps not enough, but the car just rolls with the handbrake. Seeing as i'm about to head off to schoolies and spend everything I have, I will, in the future, have to look at getting new cables and/or shoes for the setup, hoping that will fix it. If anyone has any suggestions I'm all ears as my stepdad and I have tried everything

Were the mounting brackets where the cable enters the rear hub OK?
The symptoms you described seem very simlar to what our cars had when the single bolt holding the end of the handbrake cable onto the back of the hub broke free from the cable sheath. Pulling on the handbrake lever just led to flex in the cable, and ineffective handbrake - with the lever in the car going just about vertical.

Were the mounting brackets where the cable enters the rear hub OK?
The symptoms you described seem very simlar to what our cars had when the single bolt holding the end of the handbrake cable onto the back of the hub broke free from the cable sheath. Pulling on the handbrake lever just led to flex in the cable, and ineffective handbrake - with the lever in the car going just about vertical.

Where exactly are these brackets located? so I can check em out tomorrow.

Cheers