1951 ES2 front brake; can stopping power be improved?

G'day Grant, to answer your question, yes , they certainly can be improved.

My front brake will sink the forks down when applied hard on my '51. To achieve this, I took the linings to a reputable clutch & brake repair shop, where I hadnew, soft over size (thickness)linings vulcanised on. ($55 total). Telling the operator I wanted them foran older vehiclewith cable operated brakes where grip is more important than long lasting high mileage. He said he had just the material for the 'oldies'.

When the job was done, I fitted them to the brake back plate with a .010" piece of shim on either side of the brake actuator cam. (to pack out each shoe a bit). Then I mounted the backing plate in my lathe on a spigot the same diameter as the axle and tightened a clamp bolt I had fitted into the spigot end. I turned (machined)the extra meat that I asked foroff the shoes till they were the exact same diameter of the front brake drum. When I removed the back plate from the lathe, the plate with shoeswouldn't quite fit in the drum, but when i removed the two shims on the cam, the whole lot slipped in neatly, and when all mounted up in the forks, there was no drag when spinning the wheel, and the actuating arm only had very minimul movement in it till the shoestouched the drum. Initially, I had to bed in the shoes carefully by lightly appliying the brake on and off for a few miles, but now they have settled, they are impressive stoppers. Bear in mind, this isn't a race bike, only a plodder that I ride non competatively with the mates and I want to stop safely. Also, I must mention, it is important to have a well oiled cable with no ridiculous bends in it. And a greased, not oiled, cam spindle and cam cheeksin the backing plate.

AND, before anybody comes up saying that vulcanised on shoe linings are not safe, that rivettingis the only way to go,I have NEVER had ony fail in all my hundreds of thousands of miles in cars and bikes that I have fitted. Better find a reputable, competantbrake repair shop if failures are experianced!

Paul.

The only thing I will add to Paul's comments is that it's worth checking the drum is round. If it's worn slightly oval it will effect braking. A light skim can sort this out before skimming the brake shoes

Before skimming the drum would it be a good idea to true the rim for ovality and runout first?

Mike

I have off the shelf brake shoes in both my 1951 ES2 and my 1934 Inter. The trouble is they are undersized when you buy them. So skimming them makes them far to small. We are getting into the riding season now so I will put up with them. But next winter I plan to do all 4 brakes (and drums if needed). My 1951 Royal Enfield has had this done and has excellent brakes in comparison to the Nortons so I have something to aim for.

Hello everybody. I've always admired the look of ES2s and having recently received a lump sum pension payment, was able to buy one (1957). The tyres were close to the limit so removed the front wheel only to find the linings were worn down to the rivets. The brakes were good and did not squeak before or give any warning. I have now received a bonded pair from Norvil but on fitting them, there is insufficient adjustment to refit the brake cable. Is it usual to sand new lining down to bring them within the range of adjustment available. Thanks in anticipation of your help....... Chris from East Devon.

If the brake fits into the hub without the cable on, then the cable is the problem. Cut a bit off the outer if the cable is too tight of the inner if it's too loose. I use some good cutters or a dremil.

In my experience the off-the-shelf ready-to-fit replacement brake shoes you can buy have linings which are far too hard and pretty ineffective at stopping you. Better to have a reputable brake company fit AM2 or MZ41 or similar linings if you want your brake to work.

Got to agree with Paul - my front brake is in fact better than the rear. Modern linings appropriately applied.

Hi Grant,

Some years ago on a different make of bike that was 24 years senior to yours the front brake did nothing (same size as yours) and on a bike in theory still capable of 80mph that isn't a good thing!

I don't know what the linings that were put on were but after a light skim to get them to fit the drum the first brake test make the ancient front tyre complain a bit and it slid me up the tank because I wasn't expecting such power!

The lining looks almost like it has little flecks of brass in it. I wish I knew what kind it is as the 8" brake on my M7 is hopeless and the company that did the job on the other bikehave long gone. Damn!

Jim

Hi Chris ! Just picked up my 1955 es2, Mine is in trials trim and has a bantam 21 front wheel, how the heck I'm going to get that to stop me is a bigger problem!

Hi Grant, I'm working on my norton brakes to get some more bite too.The first thing is to have a substantial cable ,those with weak outer case will always be spungey.If you have a handle bar lever with a distance between the pivot and nipple centers of anything over 7/8 ths of an inch you will lose leverage,many levers are over an inch and this is not good.I have fitted a hub lever which is 1inch longer than standard. Due to the uneven wear pattern its necessary to regularly centralise the brake and you need play around the axle to do this .On SLS dommy brakes the plate is openned out about 1/32ths to allow this.There must not be an angle of more than 90 degrees between the cable and hub lever with the brake on hard.Adjust the brake up as close as possible without it rubbing.Fit a chain spring link over the perch to get the lever right under your fingers (home made dog leg lever!).Exercise to improve your grip .

Cheers folks. I will cut back the outer cable and see how that goes. If the brakes are no longer any good after bedding in, I will have to get the old ones relined as suggested by Gordon.

I am surprised that nobody has mentioned, bridging the pivot posts, particularly when using the early steel back plate.

On further examination, the pivot point on one of the shoes is out of line so that the other end does not line up with the cam. This is a bit of a lesson for me, won't be using them again. Have sent the old shoes off to Saftek on the recommendation of Dave Massam. I look forward to seeing your ES2, Dan. You don't need brakes off road, do you? her har. Chris