TECHNICAL

TIPS

Excessive Hand Brake Lever Travel

on Late Ruby Saloons

It seems to be characteristic of this model that the hand brake moves nearly full travel, even if the brakes are in good adjustment.

The problem is the diameter of the "wheel" that touches the actuating lever on the cross shaft. Remove the hand brake lever assembly and remove this wheel and replace it with five one inch diameter plain washers with a 5/16" diameter hole in the centre. In most cases this will remove the free play completely.

Front Hub Lubrication

I have found greasing front hubs through the grease plug is by and large ineffective. Having dismantled many hubs, I have found just a blob of grease near the hole with little or none in the bearing. If you think about it the grease has nowhere to go if the seats are OK so I have adopted the following procedure,

         1. Remove grease cap and grease plug (if you don’t remove the plug it fouls on the other                    bearing as you pull it off).

         2. With a hub pulled off outer bearing housing, clean down.

         3. Remove old paper gasket and if felt seal looks OK wipe all old grease off bearings with a              clean rag. Don’t clean  them with Paraffin? they’re not dirty are they?

        4. Check stub axle is split pinned? you would be surprised how many are not.

        5. With an old knife "Butter" the bearings, that is fill the area completely between the two                    bearings.

        6. Replace gasket onto inner housing. cover with gasket cement then run an 1/8 beading of                 silicone seal round the gasket adjacent to the outer edge of the INNER bearing.

       7. Tap on outer housing.

       8. Fit brake drum and then put on three wheel nuts and pull up tight. Then put in the drum                  screws (if in doubt put new ones in)

       9. Leaving the grease plug out, screw on the aluminium cap, the grease will be forced through           the outer bearing and any excess will come out of the grease plug hole. Turn the hub a                   couple of times and refit the plug.

    10. Remove wheel nuts and fit wheel.

    11.That’s it, you will not need to look at your hubs for another 30,000 miles.

     Mac