Topic

Hi all.
We have 2 TFs and both suffer from bad handbrakes, one is especially bad, basically useless, only just gets through the French mot.
Any tips as to why they're so bad?
Thanks
Pete.

Most likely the mechanism on the caliper seizing, if you are competent a strip down and clean/lubricate is all that is normally required, they are teenage cars at a minimum so maintenance is essential.

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Steve is correct but you must remember that buggering about with brakes might not show up a school boy error until you have to avoid a man in a stripped shirt & beret selling onions off his bike.
To get right to the bottom of the hand brake mechanism I would recommend long nosed right angle circlip pliers, as per my comments from a few weeks ago. Look that up & decided how far you want to go.
I have a spare set acquired cheaply a number of years ago which go on if required for MOT & the old ones are reworked at my leisure
But I’m a bit mad in the way I view things but do remember the onion seller when you’ve dropped it of the jack & are washing your hands.

I'm very mechanical, do all my servicing, cambelt etc. And I'm restoring a classic mini.
I will search the forum for how to when I'm on a pc, not easy to search on the phone.

Does a dodgy handbrake affect the foot brake? They're not much better!

I will look out for that man on a bike 😁

The last time brakes were discussed on here was about three & a bit weeks ago & any bit of info will help you build a picture of what you’re dealing with. Do your cars have the four pot brakes, if they’re poor you really need to get your sleeves rolled up. If you recon your brakes are poor yet the French MOT has been passed there might be a queue MG owners wanting to relocate.

No, we don't have 4 pot calipers, just standard 135 brakes.
We have 6 cars in all, and coming out of one of the others into the TF, you realise just how bad the brakes are. And at the end of summer, the TFs go into hibernation, you get back into one of the other cars, brake and nearly go through the windscreen.
I did buy a strengthening bracket to stop flexing that is supposed to improve the feel of the brakes, not improve them, but never bolted it on.

My first recommendation would be bolt the bracket on if needed, I did and yes it does not "improve" the brakes as such but it feels as though you've fitted a bigger servo and gives you more confidence in them.
Open the bonnet and get someone big to stamp on the brakes and watch if the servo moves, I scared myself silly when I did this. The servo moving and flexing the bulkhead is taking away some of the effort your putting into the pedal so after fitting the bracket they feel better and more responsive.
If you have an early TF with the square box type heater intake you will usually have to change this to the later snorkel type intake.

Yes the bracket on the bulk head does stiffen up the pedal but , in no way can you compare the F n TF brakes with modern day cars . The poor hand brake could be the caliper internal mechanism but , if they aren't set up correctly when you fit the pads then it won't pass any test UK or EU .

You will find a good write up in the ' How to ' section on brakes .

I ran a tf with four pots in parallel with the f for quite a while & there was an adjustment period having changed over, but I didn’t think it was as disconcerting as some past members have made out. It certainly encourages you to think further down the road, which for a sports car is no bad thing. Watching the racing during the Goodwood revival illustrates how well brake systems can perform whilst in the hands of a talented driver, but these are maintained to a standard past critical & to get your brakes to impress more than they are doing now is to enter the world of stripping down to basics & rebuild to that critical standard.
Watch the road position of the Frazer Nash Owlet & the way brakes are used & I doubt they are as good as those on our cars when in tip top condition. And most of those cars will be heavier than ours by a good margin.

Ive not regarded the TF brakes as particularly bad. They are in a much better league that those on the MG BGT I am slowly rebuilding and the V6 Capri I ran until last year. By comparison with 40 year old cars the 20 year old TF brakes more like a modern car.

Can someone post the link about rear brakes? I've searched and can only find a post about freeing off the levers on the calipers.

Thanks in advance.

Pete.

If you go on the “How To” pages & go to the brakes section, you will find a guide by David on the hand brakes, it’s the last in the list of brake guides.