Problem with front drum brake set up

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wink
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Hi all, I have come to the end of my first Italian GP 125 rebuild and the scooter is now ready for the Mot and then registering. Everything appears to be set up correctly and runs really well but I'm experiencing some difficulties setting up the front brake.

I have had the hub off and cleaned and greased the various components and sanded off the original asbestos pads. I put it all back together and still there seems inadequate soft braking at the front. When you raise the front wheel off the ground you can spin the wheel and it stops quite well but when the scooter is travelling the Brake will not bite and stop quickly, it's more of a gradual slow up.

Conscious that this will not pass the mot, can anyone advise on the likely cause of this problem, the correct set up including cable to brake arm positioning and adjustment. Any assistance would be much appreciated as it's driving me mad and is the only issue stopping me registering the GP and getting it on the road.

Thanks in advance, Chris
Beanhead
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You said you stripped the hub down previously, was there any grease ets on the shoes??
Did you clean it all with a brake cleaner?
If the shoes have absorbed something then it will be worse under braking, not gripping the drum etc, i suggest you strip the front hub again to double check all is ok, it is your brakes afterall, if all is well rebuild an adjust.
Check the drum too, make sure that is ok and not worn
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bicboy
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I could go for ages about the different ways of setting the brake up but this is the easy answer..Buy a Hydraulic Disc, it may upset the Scooter Purist. Modern cars can brake and stop in an instant whilst the Vintage brakes are applied on your scoot you sail into back of the modern car and perform an excellent triple cartwheel over the car. In my opinion the Hydraulic front disc brake should be fitted by everyone to all Lambrettas and f@@k astestics... ;)
Everything must be done to the Extreme.....
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sean brady scooters
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bicboy wrote:I could go for ages about the different ways of setting the brake up but this is the easy answer..Buy a Hydraulic Disc, it may upset the Scooter Purist. Modern cars can brake and stop in an instant whilst the Vintage brakes are applied on your scoot you sail into back of the modern car and perform an excellent triple cartwheel over the car. In my opinion the Hydraulic front disc brake should be fitted by everyone to all Lambrettas and f@@k astestics... ;)
i agree :D
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johnny diamond
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nowt wrong wi drum brakes lad!
first thing to do is chuck the indian shoes in the bin,and get ferodo's
then ride steady for a week or two and allow them to bed in correctly....if you burn them they will harden
and be less effective,as said above they cant compete with disc's.
but done properly can be more than adeqoute for normal riding.
wink
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Hi all, thanks for the response, I was intending on eventually fitting disc brakes (can anyone recommend a decent set that are relatively easy to fit, or a good secondhand set for sale ) but I was hoping that I could improve the drum brakes for the MOT. I've always had drum brakes on a Vespa in the past and whilst not perfect they are pretty responsive. Are the standard Lambretta brakes normally this bad?

The brake shoes are the original italian shoes, can anyone advise on what a decent depth should be for the abestos pads. I can then measure and see if they need replacing or not. Failing that is it a matter of just cleaning, rubbing back further and checking for any high spots before refitting.

Thanks chris
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