Parking brake cable loosening up?

[Assforkr]

Sometimes I am an idiot.
During those times I forget to disengage my parking brake lever before reversing out of the drive.
After I realize i'm being an idiot I of course disengage the brake but soon realize that the amount of slack or freeplay (non engagement) in the parking brake lever has increased drastically. Like you could start pulling on the lever and feel resistance immediately before screwing everything up and now that you've been an idiot you have an new 1-2" before you feel tension.

It's at this point that I crawl under the Jeep and tighten up the 13m nuts on the parking brake splitter that exits the cab and merges with the two parking brake cables that run to the rear axle.

Am I the only one experiencing this nonsense? Is the nut slipping or is the cable stretching? Why can't I have nice things?

 

[qslim]

Sometimes I am an idiot.
During those times I forget to disengage my parking brake lever before reversing out of the drive.
After I realize i'm being an idiot I of course disengage the brake but soon realize that the amount of slack or freeplay (non engagement) in the parking brake lever has increased drastically. Like you could start pulling on the lever and feel resistance immediately before screwing everything up and now that you've been an idiot you have an new 1-2" before you feel tension.

It's at this point that I crawl under the Jeep and tighten up the 13m nuts on the parking brake splitter that exits the cab and merges with the two parking brake cables that run to the rear axle.

Am I the only one experiencing this nonsense? Is the nut slipping or is the cable stretching? Why can't I have nice things?

Is there a bunch of slack in the cable? If so did you remove it?

Might also want to adjust the rear shoes via the star wheel access hole on the drum backing plate.

 

[Assforkr]

Is there a bunch of slack in the cable? If so did you remove it?

Might also want to adjust the rear shoes via the star wheel access hole on the drum backing plate.

I adjusted the star wheels last weekend. i tightened up on the nuts in the parking brake splitter under the cab.

 

[TJ4Jim]

Sometimes I am an idiot.
During those times I forget to disengage my parking brake lever before reversing out of the drive.
After I realize i'm being an idiot I of course disengage the brake but soon realize that the amount of slack or freeplay (non engagement) in the parking brake lever has increased drastically. Like you could start pulling on the lever and feel resistance immediately before screwing everything up and now that you've been an idiot you have an new 1-2" before you feel tension.

It's at this point that I crawl under the Jeep and tighten up the 13m nuts on the parking brake splitter that exits the cab and merges with the two parking brake cables that run to the rear axle.

Am I the only one experiencing this nonsense? Is the nut slipping or is the cable stretching? Why can't I have nice things?

You should be using the star wheels to adjust the shoes which usually avoids the need to adjust the splitter. The rear shoes should be in the correct adjusted position without tensioning the cable.

 

[Assforkr]

You should be using the star wheels to adjust the shoes which usually avoids the need to adjust the splitter. The rear shoes should be in the correct adjusted position without tensioning the cable.

I'm not sure I agree but maybe something is lost in translation. before reversing with the brake engaged the shoes were adjusted. The procedure I follow is loosen up the parking brake lever and then adjust the shoes, then retighten the cable.

Regardless, losing brake shoe tension shouldn't affect the parking brake cable or lever tension and the first telltale sign I'm experiencing is the point of engagement on the parking brake lever. Before I screw things up the point of engagement or tension is immediate. After I move with the parking brake engaged the point of engagement is much higher. There's a lot more slop. Don't think brake shoes would affect that.

 

[reddvltj]

The procedure I follow is loosen up the parking brake lever and then adjust the shoes, then retighten the cable.

There is absolutely no reason to loosen the park brake cables when adjusting the drum brakes. Unless of course you previously over tightened them thinking that was your problem.

Regardless, losing brake shoe tension shouldn't affect the parking brake cable or lever tension and the first telltale sign I'm experiencing is the point of engagement on the parking brake lever. Before I screw things up the point of engagement or tension is immediate. After I move with the parking brake engaged the point of engagement is much higher. There's a lot more slop. Don't think brake shoes would affect that.

Actually, as the brake shoes wear it creates a larger gap between the shoe and the drum, this accounts for the added park brake lever movement. Backing up with the park brake on does not stretch the cable it just wears the brake lining down no more or less than riding the brakes.

Cable stretch does happen over time, it's the nature of the beast but brake shoe wear is the most common cause of long brake lever travel.

 

[mrblaine]

I'm not sure I agree but maybe something is lost in translation. before reversing with the brake engaged the shoes were adjusted. The procedure I follow is loosen up the parking brake lever and then adjust the shoes, then retighten the cable.

Regardless, losing brake shoe tension shouldn't affect the parking brake cable or lever tension and the first telltale sign I'm experiencing is the point of engagement on the parking brake lever. Before I screw things up the point of engagement or tension is immediate. After I move with the parking brake engaged the point of engagement is much higher. There's a lot more slop. Don't think brake shoes would affect that.

You are grinding friction material off of the shoes. No other way to say it.

 

[reddvltj]

I'm not sure I agree but maybe something is lost in translation. before reversing with the brake engaged the shoes were adjusted.

If as you say the brakes were adjusted before the cable suddenly loosened up then I suggest you investigate the inner workings of the brakes.

 

[T A]

I have to firmly pull my brake lever all the way to the top for it to do anything. I'm interested in this as well. I've just started researching exactly what I need to do.

 

[mrblaine]

I have to firmly pull my brake lever all the way to the top for it to do anything. I'm interested in this as well. I've just started researching exactly what I need to do.

First thing is stop moving the rig with the brake applied.

 

[reddvltj]

I have to firmly pull my brake lever all the way to the top for it to do anything. I'm interested in this as well. I've just started researching exactly what I need to do.

If you have not already I suggest inspecting your brakes and if all looks good then adjust them properly.

 

[T A]

The emergency brake(s) use different shoes than the regular drum brakes correct? I'm guessing I probably just need some replacement parts based on the age - 97/213k miles. No Idea if anything has been done to it already.

 

[reddvltj]

The emergency brake(s) use different shoes than the regular drum brakes correct? I'm guessing I probably just need some replacement parts based on the age - 97/213k miles. No Idea if anything has been done to it already.

Only if you have disk brakes. Then you would have a smaller set of drum brakes behind the rotor.
But unless someone put them on your '97 no.. They are the same shoes.

 

[T A]

Ahh, I thought they were separate, thanks. So if my regular drum brakes are working ok - then I should adjust the cable I guess.

 

[reddvltj]

Ahh, I thought they were separate, thanks. So if my regular drum brakes are working ok - then I should adjust the cable I guess.

Not necessarily, As I stated above to the OP the most common cause of long travel on a park brake lever is the drum brakes are out of proper adjustment. If you have verified that the brakes are adjusted properly and all internal parts are there then yes you would need to adjust or replace the cables.

 

[T A]

I haven't checked the adjustment in the drum. Will do that first. thanks

 

[mrblaine]

Not necessarily, As I stated above to the OP the most common cause of long travel on a park brake lever is the drum brakes are out of proper adjustment. If you have verified that the brakes are adjusted properly and all internal parts are there then yes you would need to adjust or replace the cables.

I run across too many that are maladjusted where it has been done at the splitter and at rest, the cable is holding the shoes apart.

Best process is to back off the cables at the splitter until there is slack in them. Pull down on the splitter and you will see the cable move without moving the levers.

Then do the star wheel adjustment until you feel slight drag. After that, take the slack out of the cables testing the same way. Pull down on the splitter, see if the cables move and adjust until they just quit moving. Otherwise you are applying the parking brake.

 

[T A]

will do. Thank you

 

[reddvltj]

I run across too many that are maladjusted where it has been done at the splitter and at rest, the cable is holding the shoes apart.

Best process is to back off the cables at the splitter until there is slack in them. Pull down on the splitter and you will see the cable move without moving the levers.

Then do the star wheel adjustment until you feel slight drag. After that, take the slack out of the cables testing the same way. Pull down on the splitter, see if the cables move and adjust until they just quit moving. Otherwise you are applying the parking brake.

I haven't run into that too many times in the past but most of the shops I worked for catered to far less "do it yourselfers" so most of the time things like that hadn't seen a tool since the assembly line.

I mentioned in an earlier post that unless someone has already over adjusted the cables there shouldn't be any need to adjust them unless proper drum brake adjustments did not take the excess travel out of the park brake lever.

 

[mrblaine]

I haven't run into that too many times in the past but most of the shops I worked for catered to far less "do it yourselfers" so most of the time things like that hadn't seen a tool since the assembly line.

I mentioned in an earlier post that unless someone has already over adjusted the cables there shouldn't be any need to adjust them unless proper drum brake adjustments did not take the excess travel out of the park brake lever.

You need to work on a few more TJs. The only ones that are ever adjusted correctly are the ones that I have just done or done before. 100% of the rest of them are maladjusted.