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Two Parking Brake Levers?

D

deucestudios

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Malvern, PA / JFC
I guess technically I'm building a set of cutting brakes, but tight turning isn't really the plan.
I want to be able to lock the drum on only 1 of the rear wheels, for when I have a tire in the air (open rear).
I picked up a pair of renix era e-brake levers, because they have a cotter pin attaching the linkage, where the 91-96 has a pressed rivet.
By trimming the bottom of the bracket, I have them close enough together to fit in the OEM spot, without modifying the center console, just the slot that the handle comes out of needs widened.
It's a 96/ax15/231/30-8.25/4.10s/32" tires.

Anyone do this? any tips? worth the effort?

sorry for the crappy picture.

ae848909.jpg
 
YES, I run a LSD and cuters. It has help many times. But with a 5 speed your right hand is keep REAL bizzy sometimes. Have a good cup holder for your beer handy
I used two peaces of flat stock mounted on ether side of the stock handle with bend at the handle end to clear the stocker. A cam system is welded on to the bottom of the flat stock and cable clamps are welded on too to hold the brake cable.
The flat stock have no way to hold in place ones set .So I don't need to release them when cutting.
The stock handle in the middle has a short flat stock welded on the bottom so when pulled up it catches both cutting handles and set both brakes it also retains it's ratching system so the barking brake will still work.
Sorry no pixs but if I can get my son out of bed before 12 he will take and post some. I hate posting pixs.
 
Last edited:
You're basically trying to create your own manual traction control system. If the parking brake is strong enough, it should work, but it will hard to control. You'll have to be super fast with the lever, cause once your jeep starts moving again, your other tire will need to have the brake lever released immediately. If a computer isn't doing the action, it seems like a lot of work. I guess if you're not constantly having to use it, then it should work, but I'm one of those guys that will suggest to just install a lunchbox locker and forget about it :)
 
It would be better to get a lunchbox locker. You will be concentrating the power on the spider gears and taking a much bigger risk of breaking them. Your idea will work though.
 
The stopping power of the parking brake will have to be greater than the resistance of the other wheel for this to work. That will probably be true for most situations but there may be some times when the stuck wheel is jammed up good, at which point the differential will still send power to the unstuck wheel
 
jeeperjohn said:
It would be better to get a lunchbox locker. You will be concentrating the power on the spider gears and taking a much bigger risk of breaking them. Your idea will work though.
Click to expand...

That's one of my main concerns. Blowing up the spider gears using it.

I don't know if this would be harder on them than spinnin up a tire, and landing hard on it though. This seems a little more calm, less speed difference between each axle. More torque going through the unit though.
 
Screw all the naysayers, give it a shot. If it works, great. If not, at least you tried. It doesn't look like it will be all that expensive and I think it will work marginally well.

The only suggestion I have would be to disable the ratcheting mechanism that holds the lever up. Having to push a button in a sticky situation on the trail is going to be the last thing you want to worry about, sort of like a big e-brake handle like they use in drift cars.
 
Unless they are selectable or you got a front digger set up. Locker don't cut well and both are very prices.
With a selectable or digger you still need some kind of independent brake system to cut. there are some sweet hydo systems out there. They are more complex and cost much more then two handles.
If you just looking for max traction the locker is the best way to go. But if your looking to drag you butt around a tree in as tight turn as possible. NOT using the tree as a fulcrum and pissing off the tree huggers. Been there did that. Cutters win.
 
ASP:
I'm def. doing it, just curious if anyone else has any pro tips... Seems like it's one of them things that I'll have to try myself, and see if it does what I want.
PA inspection code, requires that ratchet action, so unfortunately that's gotta stay, this is a street legal, and winter DD jeep.
I don't see anything limiting it to 1 handle though...

http://law.onecle.com/pennsylvania/vehicles/00.045.002.000.html

"...The system shall not be designed to require a continuous or intermittent source of energy for full effectiveness after initial application..."

Detour:
Killer setup, a lot more built than mine, but very clean still. Rare to see both, nice job man.
Pretty much what I'm going for though, it's just hooked to each drum?
Do you use it with an open rear? Or a selectable when it's open?
 
Thankyou, if you're going to do something, do it well.

Yes, one to each drum.
I run an ARB in the rear.
You can infact grab both at the same time if required.

I could give you some tips, but everything within my center console area has been moved......my advise would'nt be of much use......
 
Sorry for disapearing, life's been crazy. I got an hour in with the welder last night though, so here's progress. Might be a bit before I get back with more updates, but I'm not giving up, just going slow.

screwed em to this here board so they sit pretty, then tacked up the tops.

2fb69bd3.jpg


then burned these little suckers on the bottom.
that's a better view of the cotter pin thing too I mentioned up top, you can see there's a pin in one side and not in the other. The whole arm thing is a press rivet in later years so you can't remove it.

9385a91a.jpg


then hit the tops more. feel free to comment on the welds. I'm aware of how not beautiful they are.

4467d24b.jpg
 
Detour said:
Thankyou, if you're going to do something, do it well.

Yes, one to each drum.
I run an ARB in the rear.
You can infact grab both at the same time if required.

I could give you some tips, but everything within my center console area has been moved......my advise would'nt be of much use......
Click to expand...
when I first saw this thread, your name came to mind!
 
Ive seen this quite a bit. competitions where only one locker is allowed in the class you are running in.
 
Ok, life got in the way of this for a little while, but I didn't abandon the project.
I just swapped a pair of 4.10 axles in, and now that I have new brake hardware, and new cable lines ran, I'm back to this mission.
I found that the cable's body mounts in the rear floor area are pretty rusted, and from using the brake pulled part of the floor off. So I patched that, and made new cable mount brackets.
I also test fit the dual handles in the console. Everything mocked up good, I'll get better pictures tonight when I do the install and it's not raining...

dualwielding.jpg
 
Here's the parts.
The cables used to hit the one equalizer bracket which rides on the adjuster rod. I have 2 adjusters now, and split that cable bracket in half.
2 rods are from the levers I junkyarded, with the cotter pins out, I made sure they spun nice and good.

05df9e6d.jpg


Here's what the undercarrige looks like
I had to make new body mounts for the cables cause rust/lift had ripped mine out.

c3a7ccc9.jpg


82c73bde.jpg


Tough to see but this is the rear footwell, with the bolt through plates for the new cable hangers.

4610be15.jpg


This is what's left of the equalizer bracket.
I cut it up and used the cable holder portions of it.

0996f70e.jpg


Still need to tighten it all up.
I switched my newish drum setup over and pulled the shoes & adjuster and all in 1 piece, which turned out to be a bad idea cause the adjuster is siezed so I gotta pull it back apart and set that right before I set the cable.

3bf0a7bc.jpg
 
This is a cool idea, but I did have a bad experience with XJ D44 drum brakes that may affect you at some point. I once ripped off the drum brake shoe "pin" on the passenger side on my rear brakes (XJ D44). This is the pin that both brake shoes ride on and the springs mount to at the top/center of the backing plate above the wheel cylinder. I was winching someone out of a hard trail, basically dragging them sideways. I had put my e-brake on AND was standing on the brake pedal. It bent the pin over and tore the bushings out of the wheel cylinder and my brake fluid was just freely leaking out each time I hit the brakes. I drove it 10 miles back to a campground in 4L with ONE tire having brakes (e-brake still worked on drivers side). I learned a lesson that day about hard winching too... double up the winch line and/or tie off the back bumper.

Just be aware that the other wheel may hold... to a point. Then it may start breaking parts.

Silver lining... It gave me a good excuse to upgrade to discs:D
 
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