brakes and the sticky out things that the wheels go on then the nuts screw on to.

Sorry - can't remember what they are called

Other half and Dad managed to get the most rusted wheel nut off the Dandy wheel today.  It took a lot of hard work, banging (stretching Dad called it) and cups of tea.

Now............. can these sticky out things be replaced if they are beyond it? I am worried about the amount of rust on them.

Going to get two new wheels with tyres and a new tyre for the unused spare.

What sort of brakes should we be buying too?

As you can tell we may have had the Dandy for a good few years but this is the first time its had serious maintenance.

Thanks for your help.

We think the sticky out bits you are talking about are what are called wheel studs. Yes they are replaceable, we are pretty sure they are 3/8th's studs. If you have messed up the threads getting the nuts off or they have been stretched you would be best to replace both studs and nuts. If they are just rusty they would clean up with a wire brush. They are available here.

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Top of the page.

If you have a local trailer or caravan place near you they would probably have them too and be able to fit them for you if you are unsure how to do it. You will probably need to take the hub of to do them.

They would be able to advise about the brake shoes as well. Mr Itch would know but is away at the moment. Without pictures or knowing what hubs you have we are not sure what ones you would need.

It would be useful if you could post which model dandy you have and the approx age or date of birth.

I'm assuming you have a rear entry dandy. Not sure on the 6s or destinies as they had 12 inch wheels.

There's a small cap which you can gently knock off with a mallet or hammer. Under that is a castellated nut and split pin. Remove the pin and nut (the nut will be only nipped up). Then the whole brake drum should slide off. Watch out for the taper roller wheel bearings, an inner and an outer. The inner has a seal.

The studs are in the brake drum  and you can take that to a local trailer specialist who can supply & fit new studs. Look up Indespension main agents.

Check the wheel bearings because they will also be able to supply new ones and fit the shells in the brake drums for you if needed.

With the drum off, you can see the brake shoes and remove them if you need to as well.

The studs should be 3/8 inch.

We agree with Navver that it would be good to check the wheel bearings while doing everything else.
We would personally remove the drum from the hub before removing the hub though. Without looking we are not sure if it is possible to remove the hub without taking the brake shoes off the back plate.  

By the way Navver sorry, not trying to tell you how to suck eggs but the studs are fixed in the hub not the drum.

Ours must be different, mines a 2005 dark blue. The wheel bearings are in the drum, remove the drum and all that's left is a stub axle and the brake shoes etc. The hub & drum are one casting.

I can well believe they have changed over the years though.

Navver,

Please accept my humble apology. 

I have just been and removed one of Phoenix's wheels to look for myself and you are absolutely right.

In my defence it was 2 years ago when we checked the wheel bearings and brakes and had them all apart. Since then I have had the wheels and drums off my old car which are different.

For others to see what we are talking about and to show the castle nut that you need to undo to remove the drum here are a couple of pics. Prise the center cap off shown in the first pic to reveal the castle nut shown in the second.

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On another note, in the second picture at the bottom you can see a hole through the drum.

To help others that hole is so you can adjust up the brake shoes when the drum is fitted.

That's OK Pheonix no problem. You have high lighted another difference. On mine the adjustment is a bolt head on the back of the brake back plate not a hole in the drum. It means you can slacken it at the side of the road without even jacking it up.

Thanks everyone for all your help.  

We have had our Dandy since 1994, its a 1989 one with the longer lower bed beside the double bed. Think its a Delta.

Its going to be a bit of a long process, going to aim for next year for things to be ready to use it again.  OH is not a DIYer at all.

We do have a caravan supplier/servicer in Chipping Sodbury, forgot all about them.

Regards, K

Ah yes Chipping Sodbury Caravans. I live near them. They can do various things, I can't recommend them highly enough and are always worth a try. But if they can't do it try Honeyfield Trailers in Bedminster Bristol. [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

They are more into trailers (it's all they do) than Chipping Sodbury Caravans and are an indespension main agent as well, although they don't do folding campers. But trailer bits are trailer bits and that's all an FC is after all so the trailer side is no problem at all to them. They will have all the trailer parts you need and more and a workshop to do the work if you need it. Not sure how you'd get it there though if it's not towable, but perhaps they would collect on a bigger trailer for a sum of money.

C S caravans didn't stock my wheel bearings, they were too small for a caravan but honeyfield did and they pressed the shells in for me. All I did was take the brake drum off each side by undoing the castellated nut and took it to them. You could do the same for your studs.

Kingswood Caravan & Camping are also good and are very camping orientated as well.

OH was on about a mobile caravan servicer as an alternative. Found one on the MCEA website at Siston Common.

It all depends on how brave we are because we don't normally do jobs ourself. OH is no good at this sort of thing so the easiest route is usually taken.

I forgot about Honeyfield Trailers were not too far. I was told they had shut down but it just seems to be one of their depots.

I'm pretty much with everyone else here that as far as the studs are concerned rust isn't an issue and a wire brush on a drill will clear things up. With the proviso that if after wire brushing any threads are obscure then the rust was too deep.
Now how much force did they need to remove the nuts? 3/8ths studs are only designed for a tightening torque of 42lb/Ft. If big forces have been used then the studs may have been damaged. Though I'm not as bothered by the twisting force as by the stretch to the stud when it is tightened to over 42ib/Ft with a windy gun. Sorry for not being committal here. I know the issues but I'm not a good enough engineer to say what is too much.    

With respect to the brakes: Unless they had received the mother of all hammerings they will just require adjustment. This is good as pre 1989 brakes can be very costly. You use 160mm X 35mm brakes. See the price difference here: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]  From a kit for a full axle at £64.96  (K16035) For post 1989 to £58.98 for shoes for one side with no springs (WB S22) For pre 1989.


Sorry for this last bit I know you say you are not technical, this is more a book mark for me.
We have seen prices for pre and post 1989 Knott brake components but looking at Knott's own website it appears that there were pre 1988 brakes. 1988 to 1990 brakes and post 1990 brakes.

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Pre 1988   [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]  
MK 2 1988 to 1990   [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
MK 3 1990 onwards  http://www.knottuk.com/fileadmin/Knott-UK/usr/pics/Products/Brake_Shoe___Spring_Kits/Brake_Shoe___Kit_-_160x35MK3.pdf

Wonder why we only ever see two types quoted if they built 3?

For some reason I can't get all three PDF files to highlight together.

Post 1989 to present  http://www.knottuk.com/fileadmin/Knott-UK/usr/pics/Products/Brake_Shoe___Spring_Kits/Brake_Shoe___Kit_-_160x35MK3.pdf