Rear brakes binding intermittently.

Volvo 960 '95 170,000 miles. One rear brake was binding badly, heated up and so lost pedal pressure. Caliper seemed OK and thought it was the clearly faulty, short section of handbrake cable not allowing full release of the shoes off the handbrake drum so renewed that, gave everything a lube and made sure all moving freely. Fitted new pads - also serviced the other rear brake. All seemed to be running fine - no binding, warmish but cooler than front wheels and braking fine. Till a few miles and couple of weeks later. Both rear brakes HOT and smoking pads! Took to workshop...all fine/no binding. By now cool. Run it some more miles, seemed fine. Until today just one brake binds, hot, smoking pads. This being the brake - mind - that did not have the initial problem, did not have the faulty cable. Next thing, it appears to cure itself - running all cool again. My indie is at a loss partly because the poxy thing cures itself before he sees it - but doesn't think the calipers are at fault. Any ideas anyone...PLEASE?

Any ideas for binding brakes please? 

Rear brakes still binding - any ideas anyone please? 

New short h/brake cables to both brakes. new back plates, new discs/drums, new h/brake shoes, near new pads flat-bedded...Still binding. Of course frees up when cooled off. Particularly o/s which gets v. hot. n/s only just warm. Then adjusted h/brake cable a little looser in case it was too tight (was set to start taking up on fourth 'click' on the handbrake - now looser than that.) But still binding just as badly. Flexi hoses look OK so an internal problem with them not allowing release of fluid pressure would be a surprise. ABS warning lights up with key on - off immediately on starting as normal. Any ideas gratefully accepted.

As you haven't had a reply, don't want you to think you're being ignored! All I can say is one of my rear handbrake shoes occasionally sticks when it it parked up for a few days. If I find that it hasn't been released, driving the car in reverse immediately unsticks it. I'm told that is is caused by a spring inside the mechanism that isn't sitting correctly. I hope that is of some use to you...

Thanks Martin - but it's something else I think. 

Thanks Martin. No, I know I'm not being ignored. And thanks again for taking the trouble to reply. I am familiar with the problem you refer to - and the solution - as it used to be a particular bad habit of a Vauxhall Cavalier I had, but it's not causing this. My brakes appear to bind whether or not the h/brake has been used and at any stage of a journey. Of course once they start to bind, heat causes a vicious circle making the binding worse till they cool off. And we're not yet sure if it's h/brake linings or foot brake pads...

Possible Cause - Binding Rear Brake 

It sounds like you have covered quite a bit...checking the rear drum brake mechanism and the calipers. This is just a hunch...but the Volvo 960 has a brake junction valve that is suppose to distribute hydraulic pressure to all four wheels. I don't know how to check it....but this valve may be faulty. Here is a description of the valve at EuroParts.Com

Gavin Do you know if it is the pads or the shoes that are binding? If it is the shoes can you confirm that the horse-shoe spring is fitted to the shoes (it keeps the shoes off the drum)? As for the pads, I did have a similar problem on a 760 and I cured it by pressing the pistons right back into the calipers which freed them up and lubricated the slightly corroded exposed surface of the pistons. No further problems.