Parking Brakes I
How we installed the parking brakes was posted a very long time ago. Since then RCR has added an angle bracket to the mix, we discovered an issue with the clearance between the calipers and the wheels, and adjustment issues needed to be addressed. So we thought it best to just start over.
Brake Handle
The parking brake handle assembly was installed. We painted the steel bracket low gloss engine black. The aft holes securing it to the chassis were drilled two inches forward of the point where the floor and back panel meet. The bracket was assembled using the upper holes in order to clear the shifter cables.
Note there may be a clearance issue between the seat bottoms and the bolts that hold the brake bracket to the floor. We countersunk one of the bolts on the passenger to address this issue. The other three bolts were not a problem. (See picture).
We routed the upper shifter cable over the brake bracket. Make sure the cables do not rub on the brake linkage. The shifter looks a bit ungainly once it is in place, but it is a nicely engineered assembly, it is good and solid, and once the aluminum cover is in place it will look like it belongs.
Cables
The brake cables were installed. Two holes were drilled on the fire wall either side of the shifter cables hole.
Be sure to fasten the short connecting cable to the lower attachment hole on the brake handle. It will give you a greater arc of travel than the top hole.
An angle bracket is now available from RCR that routes the cable from the chassis to the caliper in a straight line resulting a cleaner assembly, reducing the risk of the cable coming in contact with the tire. If you don’t have these angle brackets, give Fran a call. They are an easy addition.
But the angle brackets shorten the distance between the cable housing and the caliper which means the spring on the cable end becomes rather tightly compressed. We cut two inches off the spring. Here is a really big tip: don’t pull the inner cable out of the shield to remove the spring. It is VERY hard to get the cable back in because of the sharp angle it makes just before it passes through the fire wall. Instead bend the spring loose at the chassis end (not the caliper end) and untwist about two inches off and then cut it.
Calipers
After a few miles of driving we began to hear a grinding sound. The monocoque chassis makes it difficult to isolate where sounds are coming from. We initially though it was coming from the front, but soon discovered it was coming from the parking brake calipers rubbing against the inside of the wheels on both sides. We removed the calipers and ground down the ‘wings’ that protruded from the sides of the calipers opposite where the cable attaches, repainted it with high heat paint and reassembled it. One may want to do this before the initial installation and save themselves some potential headaches later on. The clearance is tight.
A picture of the trail left on the inside of the wheel is attached. A picture of calipers, one before and one after, is attached. Finally a picture of the caliper installed shows the revised surface on the top, outer portion.
When securing the cable to the caliper, one can position the “L” bracket either forward or backward. We positioned it forward.
The brackets that hold the calipers had an extra bit of steel welded on the end that slides into the caliper. This extra bit of steel should be position away from the brake disc – towards the center line of the car.