handbrake - 91 mazda protege

My 91 mazda protege comes in a 4 disc brake variation. My mechanic
replaced the brakes about 6 months ago, and the handbrake stopped
working ever since. He told me that all I need to do is keep on
pulling on the handbrake up and down and eventually it will
self-adjust.

Looked on forums, talked to other mechanics, and each one told me the
same thing in different variations, such as go in reverse and keep
pulling on the handbrake, go forward pull on the handbrake a few
times, go reverse and pull on the handbrake and so forth. None of
these methods work.

When I get someone to pull on the handbrake, I can see looking at the
rear calipers that they're trying to squeeze the disc, but it's not
touching. I adjusted the handbrake cable, still doesn't work.

I went back to my mechanic and he replaced the rear calipers, which
didn't do anything, so he's putting my old ones back.

Any suggestions on why my handbrake is not working, keeping in mind
that it
worked perfectly fine before my mechanic replaced my breaks.

P
komiero *nospam* at hotmail dot com

On 12 Jan 2005 20:39:25 -0800, (p) wrote:

>Any suggestions on why my handbrake is not working, keeping in mind
>that it
>worked perfectly fine before my mechanic replaced my breaks.

On 13 Jan 2005 21:06:00 GMT, "TeGGer®" > wrote:

>Lawrence Glickman > wrote in
:
>
>> On 12 Jan 2005 20:39:25 -0800, (p) wrote:
>>
>>>Any suggestions on why my handbrake is not working, keeping in mind
>>>that it
>>>worked perfectly fine before my mechanic replaced my breaks.
>>
>
>
>
>The "new" calipers are low-quality remans, I'll bet.

You're probably correct.
Were it myself that had this broken fitting problem, I would take the
caliper apart on my work bench, machine out the broken part, attempt
to put another proper fitting in there, clean and re-assemble.

Then again, I have a garage and a basement where I can do stinky work
without being exposed to the elements here in the Frozen North. And a
lot of tools, and more time than money.

Lg

On 13 Jan 2005 21:06:00 GMT, "TeGGer®" > wrote:

>Lawrence Glickman > wrote in
:
>
>> On 12 Jan 2005 20:39:25 -0800, (p) wrote:
>>
>>>Any suggestions on why my handbrake is not working, keeping in mind
>>>that it
>>>worked perfectly fine before my mechanic replaced my breaks.
>>
>
>
>
>The "new" calipers are low-quality remans, I'll bet.

I think I had what's know in the Biz as a *senior moment*
We're talking replaced brakes here, not broken fittings ;-\

You're referring to the parts the mechanic installed when he re-did
the brakes of the OP. No doubt he used parts that would give him the
highest profit margin. Another reason to DIY. Buy the best parts you
can afford, but as other posters have suggested, aftermarket parts are
often as good as OEM, and a hell of a lot cheaper. E.g. the radiator
replacement thread earlier. Same part, different boxes, different
prices.

Daniel Stern will shortly make an appearance to refute what I just
said, the Senior Moment part notwithstanding.

Lg

> >The "new" calipers are low-quality remans, I'll bet.

He said he paid $175 (CDN) each (350 for pair) and since my handbrake
was working 6 months ago before he fixed the break, he said he
installed them free of charge.

My dad's been going to him for the last 25 years, I don't think he was
trying to rip me off, but you never know.