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Thanks Max.

Be really cautious about those brake shoes, both front and back, if they are original they will have bonded on linings, this bond starts to fail with age, and ultimately the lining will part from the shoe with disasterous results, I know this through hard earned (ouch!) experience. If the linings are good a cheap repair for peace of mind is to secure them with standard brake shoe rivets.
Cheers,
George

Hi Colin, reading your post with interest. Making progress slowly but surely. If you decide to reline brake shoes I have used Villiers Services and have been pleased with results, Reasonable prices.
https://villiersservices.co.uk/index.ph ... x&cPath=66
I think things will improve when tank is clean. I cleaned my tank by electrolysis method and out of curiosity kept the rust. Surprised how much there was, pile about two inch's high.

Thank you both Georges. I will get new brake shoes, which I should have done in the first place, but I wanted to just get the little beastie running and gradually iron out problems.

In case anyone has been wondering, here is what my Strada looks like!

That looks lovely!

Ditto,,,

Hmmm not so lovely this morning! I went out for a ride to try out the front brake (which now works!) and a few other changes, but only got about three miles out when the chain came loose again, a problem that I thought I had fixed. I stopped to try to adjust it, but it is just so hot out that I couldn't face it, and rode home slowly.

The eccentric swinging arm adjustment blocks won't lock in place and I'm not sure what else I can do about it. When I put power through the chain, it is turning the adjustment blocks in their housings and slackening the chain. The design must be ok, because Ducati used the self-same parts on the Darmah which must have three times the power of a 250. The only idea I have is to wrap some shim around the adjustment eccentrics to take up play and make them tighter in their housings; any other suggestions are most welcome.

Have found them too tight in the past, Colin, but never too loose. Most strange ... . As you say, the original design allows for a normally 'more than adequate' clamping surface.

Thoughts, FWIW:

Is there anything to indicate that some clown in the past has jammed a wedge into the slots, possibly to get seized blocks moving/out? I've heard of it being done on a 860. And given some of what you've already discovered on your poor little bike ...

You said before that you thought the fault might be that the pinch bolts weren't tightening up enuf ... Is that still your thinking?

Or do you now reckon it's more just a poor fit between the frame and adjusters blocks? In that case, why not try shimming the little darlings? You've nothing to lose.

Hi Craig,

It is possible that someone has driven some sort of wedge between the lugs, although they look parallel. I have tightened them as tight as I dare, because I don't want to bend the lugs, but there is a gap between the lugs, so in theory they can tighten further. It must be down to too much clearance between the aluminium blocks and the steel housings, although with the locking bolts slackened off the eccentrics are not loose and take a reasonable amount of force to turn....I think shimming will be the only solution, assuming that there is room to fit the shim in there.....When the weather cools down I'll give it a go; its unbearably hot at the moment.