1917 Brake Chatter

[autoluke]

One last problem with the 1917 touring car.. Considering that the brake system is extremely limited with rear-only mechanical action, slight application seems to work reasonably well. When transmitting a heavy effort to the pedal, however, the entire system rings and vibrates .

Is this considered to be normal, or should I be concerned ?

Phil

[Guest elmo39]

phil,, i,m not really up with rear only brakes , although some years ago ( 46 to be exact ) i owned a rear brake only 24 Dodge ,it was used daily, i can,t recall any chatter problems , but have found over the years if there is a chatter there usualy is a reason , one comes to mind , are your brake linings securely fixed to the shoe .

[autoluke]

The lining appears to be intact...I have slightly adjusted the brakes at the large wing nut on each drum, which seems to help with the chatter. Only time it becomes severe is during a hard pedal application

I suspect that an axle/spring wind-up might be the issue, so that the chatter might be the result of kick-back through the linkage. Does this make sense ?

[rocketraider]

Phil, you might also post this up in AACA sections. If Ivan Saxton in Australia sees this he may have some insight, though I haven't seen him post much recently. He's very familiar and knowledgeable on pre-20s cars.

[Guest 54ing]

Were the brakes recently relined? sometime an incorrect friction material can cause chatter. Also, new linings sometimes have a higher resin content, and will "heat cure" while in use and bed in to operate correctly.

[autoluke]

the lining is relatively new and seems to have a hard resin component..could be the problem as you have suggested. I will keep the site up to date if the chatter improves after use.