Gauge Plate / spring steel

Hi Folks.

I would like to make a couple of old fashioned spring steel bands used to check brake shoe / cylinder operation on older cars with the drum off and need to find out what thickness will work the best and where to buy the material from.

Does any member have experience of these devices.

Thanks

I doubt it needs to be springy, just metal. Mild steel should do.

Gauge plate is not the material you need. Spring steel available in various thickness and widths from Reeves 2000 and I think other suppliers is the best option. Bazyle is right plain old mild steel is fine as you are only requiring resistance to the brake shoes expanding.

If you don't need to cover the whole width of the shoe then the metal pallet strapping may do, available at a skip near you.

Outsize jubilee clips?

A few wraps of wire always worked for me. C-clamps, big hose clamps (as Neil suggested), stout cord, etc..

Darn near anything will work. I've even torched the center disk out of an old brake drum....

Fun with cars.....

Pete

You can join Jubilee clips together to make really big ones.

Mike

I never bothered with anything fancy like that. Apply brake and try to turn wheel for single slaves and a piece of sticky label if I was ever unsure on both leading shoe set ups. Had self adjusters for the last 30 years and gave up on shoes at the front several years earlier (Fords). I wouldn't trust a modern day jubilee clip - most are not the same quality as years gone by....

But, as above, mild steel strips bolted together, or an old drum are two perfectly good solutions of several.

Edited By Richard Balderson on 28/05/2016 11:31:07