2009 C50 with Lehman tramp kit rear brake adjusting issues

[Thundrkiss]

Hey gang,

I recently picked up a 2009 boulevard c50 with a Lehman tramp kit and I can't seem to get the rear brakes to work properly . I pulled the rear tires and expected to have difficulty pulling the drums but they came right off and everything inside looks brand new,( the previous owner must have just replaced them) My e brake works fine and I adjusted the shoes to what I believe to be the correct friction but I still have little to no rear brakes at all.

is there any adjustments under the frame that I may be missing with the linkage?

[Gorilla]

charles i would look next at a fluid flush and good bleed. if still poor then look at maybe a need for a residual valve for drum brakes be installed. good luck

[rhino 2]

Charles..........Welcome To Trike-Talk.............

[Marc H]

Shoes installed backwards?

[Jack Klarich]

Jack the rear off the ground, have someone hold the brake on, can you turn the wheels? If you are close on the adjustment and the hydraulics are working you should not be able to turn the wheels.

Also with the trike still up and holding the brakes down, slowly crack the rear bleeders lose 1 @ a time and see if a good burp of fluid comes out. This will tell you again that the hydraulic system is capable of working.

Finish up by doing a complete bleed of the system with the correct type of fluid.

When bleeding brakes use 1/2 slow pumps of the pedal,( pumping fast can cause more air bubbles in the master cylinder) also if the pedal is spongy, avoid using full length pumps. This can cause a cylinder seal tear or roll over of the seal, you will then need to rebuild the master cylinder.

[Lee H. Mann]

Hey gang,

I recently picked up a 2009 boulevard c50 with a Lehman tramp kit and I can't seem to get the rear brakes to work properly . I pulled the rear tires and expected to have difficulty pulling the drums but they came right off and everything inside looks brand new,( the previous owner must have just replaced them) My e brake works fine and I adjusted the shoes to what I believe to be the correct friction but I still have little to no rear brakes at all.

is there any adjustments under the frame that I may be missing with the linkage?

Charles, Welcome to Trike Talk from West Virginia.

Most of the problems with those systems in the C-50 is the lack of use with DOT3 brake fluid. Low usage of the brakes, long intervals of setting unridden seems to be a common theme.

DOT3 is very corrosive and create contaminants and need to be flushed out. When this occurs it appears to cause a failure of the o-rings sealing within the master cylinder and not allowing pressure to be built.

If you have properly adjusted the brake shoes and properly bled the system and still cannot attain a full pedal, it is time to replace the master cylinder.

I have replacements in stock if all else fails .... for the do-it-yourself-er I have internal cartridges as well.

www.mjtrikes.com under brakes/hydraulic parts

[Thundrkiss]

Well I’m happy to say that I got the brakes working good but I had the shoes adjusted a bit too tight and apparently broke my transmission trying to pull it out of the driveway.

Grrrrrrrr....