Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[Ray White]

I found a more suitable type of spring. After shortening it and forming a new "hook" end, I fitted it to the car.

The good news is that my brake lights are working again.




Not wishing to sound negative but in terms of design, both the brake and clutch operations leave quite a bit to be desired. Their design can either be described as ugly, clumsy, poor etc. ...


...or you could claim it is quaint and what looks like a "lash up" simply adds character.!

Personally, whether it is the cobbled together brake pedal assembly or the awkward clutch, with its chain operation (yes, chain!! ....it is just visible in the photo)...as long as it all works O.K. I don't really mind.

[ukdave2002]

Both the brake and clutch mechanical operation is exactly the same in pre war Morrises, including the 8's I always think it looks a tad "agricultural" !, with the brake master cylinder very exposed. However once set up its pretty reliable

[alastairq]

The brake light switch on my Dellow is a bit hit 'n' miss....being a small switch screwed to the driver's floor underneath, with the switch button in contact with the [mechanical] brake pedal.

Now & again, the switch moves slightly sideways, and the brake lights either come on permanently, or fail to function altogether.
Remediation involves me lying on the ground and tweaking the brake light switch with my fingers until the little button is back where it should be.

The rods & levers don't look much like Ford's system at all, either. [Girling, or thereabouts]....but it all works well enough.

Which is the whole point, I suppose?

I do distrust those brake light switches that operate using hydraulic pressure.....a sure source of leaks or air ingress, yet another I could well do without. Seems Suzuki shared my distrust too...
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Dellow Mk2, 1951 built, reg 1952.
Fiat 126 BIS
Cannon special [1996 registered. Built in 1950's]
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Ford Pop chassis, Ashley 1172 bodyshell, in pieces.

[Ray White]

Like all vintage cars, Trundles - my 1930 Austin Swallow saloon - was not equipped with brake lights. ( in fact all it originally had was a single rear "tail lamp"). In the interests of safety I have added two D lamps; one at each end of the number plate. This gives me side and brake lights which actually look "in keeping" with the age of the car.

I have the brake pedal itself operating the lever of a generic brake light switch that rather appropriately came from a Jaguar. It works surprising well (even if the brakes are, well, Austin Seven brakes!.).

As an aside, I changed the pressed steel drums for cast iron ones some years ago. It made a big improvement...I just hope they are not like some others I have read about recently that can disintegrate!

.

[ukdave2002]

[alastairq]

Land Rover brake light switches on our military land rovers[when I worked] frequently failed...

Now, whether the MoD procurement decide to save a bob or two by ordering cheapoh switches...or the suppliers trued to make a bob or two sending inferior products [its only the Army, they won't notice!] I wouldn't like to guess.

But it did mean the vehicle was 'off the road'' for a bit...
Now, I realise we had loads of Land Rovers on site, we also had loads of 'students' [ to train....Often the brake light issue meant yet another day for me, sat in the instructors' rest room, drinking coffee for the rest of the day...until 'go home' time. {Or, normally, a good hour beforehand! This sort of attitude is what happens when governments decide to restrict the amount of pay a civil servant got......I always looked to get value for the meagre pay, using all the unseen perks available to me..like, paid sick leave, paid doctor's appointments, etc....on top of decent holiday leave, paternity leave, dentist appts, etc....playing the system that suited the Whitehall minions ....

I don't go to the doctors so much now I've retired.....I don't give myself sick pay. Maybe I should??
_________________
Dellow Mk2, 1951 built, reg 1952.
Fiat 126 BIS
Cannon special [1996 registered. Built in 1950's]
----------------------------------------------
Ford Pop chassis, Ashley 1172 bodyshell, in pieces.

[Ray White]

I realised from an early age that being an employee was not a lifestyle choice that I wanted to make. For me, self employment was a way of taking control of my life.

There have been ups and downs but overall I would not change a thing; not from a financial perspective but looking at the labour market I am not convinced that being an employee, I could ever be happy with being bossed about...by anyone!

[ukdave2002]

[Vintage Fly Guy]

[Ray White]

If I wanted to replace the brake light switch on the TC it would either have to be a replica (with all the reliability issues) or a genuine Lucas part from America for a very high price.

This is what the original switch should look like.

[alastairq]

Without going up the garden in the dark ['ere be dragons!] I might have one of those....probably won't work though.
_________________
Dellow Mk2, 1951 built, reg 1952.
Fiat 126 BIS
Cannon special [1996 registered. Built in 1950's]
----------------------------------------------
Ford Pop chassis, Ashley 1172 bodyshell, in pieces.

[Ray White]

[JC T ONE]

Hope you got it fixed, so it dont "brake" again - sorry I will let myself out

This is not just a "old/classic" car problem, my brake switch in my Audi A3 also stopped working, a few months ago.
That thing was not made to be fixed, but I managed to get it apart, and clean the contact points.
Might be small money saved, but its the satisfaction, on getting things repaird.

Jens Christian
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http://www.eurods.eu/wp/index.html

[bjacko]

The switch could not be any simpler. A wire or spring pulls the contact plate forward and joins the two contacts together.
The system is a simple system, unusual for British design, as they are usually over complicated, causing failures. The Kiss principal of "keep it simple stupid" applies.
Having said that I had the ball on the push rod fall out of it's socket as I applied the brakes for a pedestrian crossing, and stopped using the hand brake, on my UK Morris 8 Tourer. Luckily in the 1950's you just went to a Morris dealer and bought new parts.
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1938 Morris 8 Ser II Coupe Utility (Pickup)
1985 Rover SD1 VDP

[Ray White]