Next question, here now: Girling brakes

[Chris KC]

In my own experience, I have found that new bushes and cams together with carful adjustment, standard Austin Seven brakes are perfectly adequate.

Driving style also plays a part, I tend to drive with very little use of the brakes and a lot of forward planning.

That's exactly it. Too many people think that the brakes on their Seven should be like the brakes on their modern. They aren't. Once you've got them set up as good as they can be they're still cable operated Austin 7 drum brakes and need to be used as such. Like Ivor, I don't, really, use them that much but when I do, they're perfectly adequate.

Steve

This question has recently arisen in another post. 

Many drivers are unaware, or have forgotten, that the brakes on their modern car are operated through a vacuum servo (or similar device) which amplifies any force you apply to the pedal by a factor of perhaps 8 or 9 times, depending on the application. Furthermore, servos are tuned to give an initial "bite" of braking to instill a feeling of confidence. 

There is no realistic way to replicate this feeling on a simple mechanical system operated through cables. Instead the aim should be to ensure that the system is operating as efficiently as possible; in which case it should be possible to lock the wheels, if sufficient leg-power is applied. The brakes should be adjusted so that the front wheels lock a little in advance of the rears, and adjustment should be checked on a fairly regular basis. 

In nearly 45 years of A7 motoring I've never driven into anything, though learning to ride a motorcycle before I owned a car probably contributed something to this record.