Hello Iggy,That
mark's original intention was to let you know when the brakes need to be relined. When you press on the brake pedal and the notched marks line up or nearly line up, the pads are worn and should be replaced.
Perhaps the PO was dumb enough to move that lever. But Honda went to the very limit for the position of those marks. You can have the marks line up, from normal wear, and still not hear metal eating metal. After that many miles (say 30,000 to 35,000) I find it hard to believe someone is that bad off that they are going to take apart and move that lever. New brake pads are usually somewhat oversized.
If you move the positions of the two, follow CBCAFE'S advice and keep the 80 to 90 degree reference, otherwise the brake marks will not have the proper relationship to let you know when your brake pads are wearing out.
I believe if you cannot compress that spring to get it on without the brakes actuating, a proper solution would be to grind/sand some of the brake pad material off until fitting is proper.
Just a thought.
~ ~ ~ jaknight ~ ~ ~