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[Andy B]

.... He says showing his age.

You don't look it!       

I used to do the brakes on my Dad's car when I was a kid.

A likely tale ...... 

[terry paget]

Thanks for all the advice chaps. Over the years I have overhauled handbrakes on Minis, Escorts, Peugeots, and others. The Omega is tricky in that I cannot get my hand  behind the pin to steady it. Some cars had a screw slot in the pin end and the pin plus spring engaged in a slot in the back plate. I have a tool similar to the e-bay number given. I have not seen the long handled tool depicted; I shall look for it.

The tool I have will not go through the hole in the hub, which makes it tricky. I seem to recall that Haynes recommends taking the hub off the car to do it. Bigger job. I suspect on the assembly line hub arrives with brake ready assembled.

As mentioned in earlier thread, once the scissors lever arrangement seizes up all the leverage is lost and the brake becomes ineffective. The OOF guide recommends overhaul every 2 years, which I think very wise. Pity it's tricky.

[dbug]

As others I have always used pliers

[terry paget]

Most of my cars over the last fifty years had drum rear brakes, and they were designed to be serviced. Senators/Omegas had disc rear brakes and drum parking brakes, so the brake shoes never wore out, so the drum brakes would not need attention during the car's design life (7 years). We enthusiasts run end of life cars, cheap to buy but challenging to maintain.

Thanks Webby, flyer0172 and b4ndit for tips on tools. I shall buy them all and report back.

[symes]

long nose pliers mate - fit through largest hole in flange plate easy when you got right tool for job

[BazaJT]

A point to note is that the hold down pins for the shoes on P/F/L cars attached the opposite way.By that I mean that the head of the pin was inside the drum whilst the bit that usually goes through a dished washer actually went through a slot in the backplate.I know beacause the backplate on my P/F/L rotted out in this area  meaning I couldn't hold down the shoes.

[Marks DTM Calib]

A point to note is that the hold down pins for the shoes on P/F/L cars attached the opposite way.By that I mean that the head of the pin was inside the drum whilst the bit that usually goes through a dished washer actually went through a slot in the backplate.I know beacause the backplate on my P/F/L rotted out in this area  meaning I couldn't hold down the shoes.

Only very early vehicles had this and it changed due to the issue you describe (there is a tech bulletin covering it).

As for the spring removal, the cable return spring can be got off with some good snipe nose pliers.

The shoe reatining springs, as per the guide, I use the snipe nose pliers plus a ring spanner. There is a nack and once you suss it then its a dead easy job.

[terry paget]

Thanks Marks. On doing the second side  I think I am getting the hang of it. Using the tool I have - a tube in a handle, I could have done as well with a long socket in a handle - I easily got the spring and cup on with the shoe to the side of the hub, then tapped the shoe into place afterwards. No springs pinged off out of sight this time.