Hitchcocks Forum

Hi All,

I have a 2001 Enfield 350 with a very poor front brake. I have stripped it down and cleaned the drum with brake cleaner and emery cloth, wire brushed and sanded the shoes to get a good "rough" surface but think the shoes may have been in a poor condition for too long to be resurrected as they are not much better than before.

I already have the brake rod modification and have ensured that is set up correctly so now I am thinking of buying some replacement shoes however I have the type with the ridge which don't appear to be available any more via Hitchcocks. Does anyone know what items I need to purchase to fit the non ridge type shoe or does anyone have any recommendations?

As far as I can see Hitchcocks, can replace the ridged type but whether you have to send yours off and get the same one relined I don't know. If not Saftek, have an extremely good reputation and good price for their specialist linings: http://www.saftek.co.uk/vintage/safteks ... ml.....BTW, roughening up brake drums and linings does not produce the best friction. The same effect is observable when you be to push your your finger over spotlessly clean glass, the glass grabs your skin strongly whereas if you do the same over fine patterned glass there is very little grip on the skin. Brake linings can take a very long time to bed in.....weeks of use sometimes. I recently cleaned out the dust from a 2LS Commnando unit after fitting new shoes and it was still not fully bedded in after scores of rides. Every time I use it, the braking minutely improves and it is now very powerful. There was a similar thread a few months ago and after persevering the owner posted back to say the brake was now working very well. I included some tips as regards polishing up and lubing cam pressure pads, spindles and brake cable to get the brake working as well as possible.

CORRECTION: The same effect is observable when you push and slide your your finger over spotlessly clean glass etc etc.

Sorry but I cannot recommend Saftek

I am the guy who Les H is referring to. I had the very same problem and went down the route of new shoes, rebalancing the setup, and fitting a heavy duty cable. I was initially very disappointed at the results - the brake seemed little or no better. However, after a lot of use and bedding in it is now quite a decent brake. A guy in the pub put forward an alternative if you are interested. The following firm will fit oversize linings and machine them to your exact drum size. www.classicbrakeservice.com - I cannot vouch for them and have no vested interest. Les: Have you any experience of having this done? Cheers guys.

Hi Beezabryan, any chance of sharing the horror story with us? The more info on services and products we have the better for all of us.......Hi riggers, sorry for your name not coming to mind as I typed, I was pleased to hear from your second post that the the brake improved a fair bit more. I guess even better performance might be achieved by getting a softer lining if that was possible. I couldn't view the link for "classicbrakes" even though I Googled for the name. I agree though that machining the linings to fit the drum exactly will get the brake nearer to max performance right from the start but ultimately even normal shoes will bed in. BTW at this point with yours, it might be a good idea to whip the front wheel off again and wash out the dust now the main bedding in has occured. I usually do this with hot soapy water and hose it out...it will dry out very quickly. Smear a little more grease on the cam surface too and re oil brake cable again. Don't touch the link rod adjustment at all though, but check that both shoes have been in contact identically by comparing the wear on each.

Ho Riggers I can vouch for www.classicbrakeservice.com .............. Les Ian Campbell (Classic Brakes) works form home in the derbyshire Peak District and does all my brakes except onec when he was on holiday & I needed Enfield rear shoes relining............. Saftek are CHEAP with a very quick turnround, not always the best option.

Hi Les. Sorry about the web site! After I'd posted my 2 pennyworth I couldn't access it either but I did copy it faithfully from a torn out bike paper advert. However I did find a directory listing for them at www.motorcyclewebsite.com/classic-brakes-services. Thanks for the further tops regarding the brake, I'll certainly give it a try. Cheers mate.

Thanks Beezabryan. And Les I meant 'tips' not 'tops'!

I also would not recommend Safetek. They performed a very poor reline of my BMW brake shoes. They actually managed a hollow at one point, useless.