Greetings,
I'm hopefully getting the duett brakes up to par.
Front shoes have a self adjusting mechanism with a metal plug that goes through a hole in the lining of the shoes. (Same as the 444's.) I broke one of my metal plug things and don't know if I'll be able to obtain another one. Green book says to replace these when re-lining anyway.

Question is--Does this self adjusting mechanism thing work well anyway and is it absolutely necessary for decent braking? I think the book mentions something about it keeping the shoe centered. If it is absolutely necessary--can you point me in the right direction to obtain another one? I've checked all the normal on-line parts sights and there isn't really much available for the early type brakes.

I just want the car to perform the basic art of stopping after replacing all the clogged hoses, frozen wheel cylinders and worn out front shoes.

Thanks for any guidance,
Sam