JL axle parking brake
- Thread starter Djames
- Start date
I'd make quick work of that little cable retaining bracket should it need to be moved in order to use whatever cable necessary. Also, I'd be happy to share a cut file for the bracket I made.
Pay close attention to that pull ring and lever. They are hardened and do not tolerate much off axis flex or they will break. I broke a few of them before I figured out they only handle straight line pulls.
Definitely not the ideal setup, by any means, but it gets the job done. Had I planned it out more carefully, I should have drilled & clocked the backing plate mount a couple degrees to clear the shock bracket.
Another reason for using the jk cables with the oem end. I went in circles on this small issue for far too long. Needed something that1) fit the axle, 2) fit the tj hardware, 3) had the right length to not limit suspension travel 4) not be another $500 “fix”. Making semi-custom cables addressed all 4 for about $50 and an hour of time. Plus side, I can duplicate it in an autozone parking lot with hand tools if needed.
We have vastly different build philosphies. I prefer the TJ or TJ Unlimited rear disc parking brake cables because they are off the shelf and all it takes to use them is a grade 8 1/4" nut and bolt.
OEM cable snaps into the hole with the washer, rectangular cable loop lands at the ring on the brake actuator, bolts right up.
The tj cables only bolt right up if you already have that rear swaybar bracket you’ve fabbed on the axle tube and it’s in that location, which I do not. I’m using the oem JT lower control arm mounts, so no fab work was done there. The gladiator oem cable bracket on my axle is in a very different location. Im sure the JL 2 door cables might have bolted in, but they were about $100 each and hard to find at the time and I still couldn’t confirm they’d work with the tj handle. The options were to mod a new cable, or cut/grind/weld a new bracket onto the tube. After18 months of fab work to get this back on the road, I took the weld-free option.
I understood what you did and why you did it but for others with a more discerning palate who agree with my build philosophy, I posted a solution for them in case they were not aware that nothing on the axle dictates what you do other than where the pull ring is. That and my preference will always be to make use of non modified parts that tend to fail or wear. I have a buddy who modified unit bearings to do a WJ conversion, I modified other stuff to be able to use off the sheld unit bearings. Differences in philosophy, nothing more.
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