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E-Brake question.

A

AR_K5

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I am building a 1983 K5 that was a certified mall crawler when I got it. Anyway I'm am in the process trying to redo all of the suspension and drive train (D60 front 14bff rear, shackle flips) to make it a legitimate off-roader. Anyway, who ever owned this thing before me had removed the parking brake (pedal and all). So since I'm putting in all new axles and the rear has been converted to disk brakes, making it pointless to put the pedal back in. I was thinking about adding a 12v line lock to use as a parking brake but after some research and reading the instructions to one of them, apparently they are only good for up to 60 seconds before they will start to bleed off.

So I'm looking for an alternative that I can use as a parking brake in case I break a U-joint on my drive shaft or something and can't rely on my (automatic) transmission to keep it from rolling away.

If by chance I can find an affordable old school 'Mico lock' (correct me if that's not right), I might give that a try. Or maybe a ball valve and a push/pull choke cable to hold pressure on the brakes.

What have you guys done? Or do you know of something easier that will work?

*yes I've heard about the old cadi calipers but finding them is like hunting unicorns.*
 
Most states with inspections dont allow hydraulic E-brakes,they have to be mechanical..in that case a drum brake type one that works on a drum on the driveshaft yoke at the transfer case might be what you need..however those only work if the driveshaft hasn't fallen out...:doah:..one on the rear pinion yoke would be better..not sure if there is such a thing for street use though--monster trucks use them..
 
H.A.D. offers a mechanical e-brake but it requires a flange on the rear of the t-case.
 
I've heard of people using the newer Dodge rear brakes (with internal parking brake) on the 14b. I doubt that's very inexpensive though.
 
No inspection?...then you can use whatever you like then..too bad a line-loc bleeds off,I drove a wrecker with one and it didn't lose pressure that I can recall,and we had to lock up the wheels for more than a minute doing a recovery with it..wonder if there is one with an electric pump or solenoid that wont let the pressure drop enough to release it?..

On our aincient ratty 70 Ford ramp truck at the junkyard,we kept a crowbar in the cab under the seat--when we needed to keep the truck from rolling we used to drop it in a slot we cut in the cab floor,that lined up with the driveshaft yoke,and it slid thru it..crude --but effective!...:D
 
What I did was used a hydraulic hand brake and dual caliper brackets on my 14bff works great for mine. Let me know if you want more info.
 
E-Stopp from Speedway Motors. It is an electric actuator that pulls on the cables. I put one on a friends car and am planning on buying one for my Nova and my Jimmy. I have never been able to get enough "pull" on the cables on the 14B Caddy calipers to really hold it well where this just keeps pulling until it hits the requisite amount of pressure.

I asked about using Mico and Line Locks for extended periods of time many years ago at a Brake Conference/ meeting at Sema. The answer from both Kelsey Hayes and Bendix was that calipers aand their drum counterparts are not designed to hold the pressure for extended periods and eventually will leak. If they were, I believe we'd see some OEM systems and as far as I know, there isn't any.
 
I prefer the caddy calipers from tsm. They have a built in cable holder.

In canoga park, ca, there is cadillacsonly and I bought some springs and levers for under $20 about ten years ago.
 
If I can't come up with an affordable lever lock, I think I'm going to check the pluming and farm supply stores to see what kind of 1/4 turn ball valves they might have, and how easy they are to turn. I think it would be neat if I can rig one up where the line goes into the master cylinder. Then fab a bracket and a push/pull cable ran to the dash. If it works the way I'm hoping it will I could mash the brake pedal and pull the cable to set the brakes. And if it does I could do the same to the front brakes. Then for looks I could get a pair of air brake release buttons for a big rig (I'm a truck driver by trade).

I guess a person could mount them between their hard lines and flex lines at each wheel (without cables). If you broke a line you could just shut it off at that wheel top off the master cylinder and keep going.

I'm sure someone has already done it, I'm just thinking about how I want to set it up. I was just hoping someone might say "Hey dummy" here's what you need, it's simple and cheep.
 
BigOrange90Jimmy said:
I wouldn't spend the time looking at 1/4 turn valves at the hardware store. You want to look here: http://www.highpressure.com/

or here: http://www.autoclave.com/index.html

Your typical hardware store valve isn't capable of surviving, much less holding, the pressures generated in brake systems.
Click to expand...

Good lord man! It's hydraulic brake lines not a high pressure water jet cnc table. I figure if I can find something rated for 2,500 psi or more I should be ok.

Something similar to this, it's rated for 7,500 psi, but I want to hold it in my hand and see how hard the handle is to turn, before I buy it, so I can tell if I can work it with a cable.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0081LI5JI?vs=1
image-32.jpg
 
gonefishin said:
What I did was used a hydraulic hand brake and dual caliper brackets on my 14bff works great for mine. Let me know if you want more info.
Click to expand...

Why would you use dual calipers rather than just tapping into your existing lines.
Dual calipers just seems like over kill and a huge waste of money to me.
I'm asking because I'm actually thinking about getting one.

Cheap ones go for around $50 on eBay.
http://bit.ly/MbGzCc
 
Because in texas for inspection the two systems have to be separate from each other. If anything fails on the main system the hand brake will still work
 
They forgot to ask me about my suspension so I got the antique tags too :whistle:
 
I just installed a 14 b. in the rear of my ride. I swapped to discs. I used Eldorado Calipers w/ E brake. It took my a while but I found the levers and springs brand new from Black birds Custom Trucks. They are $45.00 shipped. I love giving info. to people it took me like forever to find out. That way you don't have to go through what I did.My ride is still being built but from what I understand, you have to actually use this style E brake everytime you stop to keep them in good working order.Otherwise they will go out of adjustment. I also have no inspection here but I also don't want my rig to roll away when I'm out 4 wheeling.Line locks are no good to set and walk away for any length of time. Anything on the transfere case won't work if you lose a driveline, and anything elec. is no good if you lose power.Mech. is the only way to go. Good Luck !
 
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