uhh, im trying to get get the drums off my 56 olds (front/rear)... are you suppose to tap it out with a rubber mallet, or is there some other more gentle way of doing it? the manual doesnt say anything special about it, so iam assuming its just me being an airhead.... THANKS ps - there isnt damage or excessive rust
Make sure brake shoes are backed off. If there is wear in the drums, sometimes the shoes hang up; making the drums hard to remove.
What diggerdave said is good, but as there seem to be a lot of these type of posts on the HAMB it might be good if the people asking the question could tell us a little about the condition of the car, because the recommendation I would give would differ if say...the car had been a driver til' recently, or the car had been a driver until a year or so ago and then was stored in a dry garage or a dry part of the country (like CA or the Southwest)...OR, if the car has been sitting outside in some swampy junkyard, or under a tarp in someones backyard for a few years in a wet or rainy part of the country. I have seen guys try to get drums of rusty junkyard project cars that had been sitting in mud with no tires or wheels on, and they eventually found out (after sledge hammering the cast drums to smithereens) that it appeared that when the car had been junked, someone had been driving it so much without maintenance that most or all of the linings were gone and the metal brake shoes had worked a groove into the drums, and then from sitting in a moist junkyard for a few years, the drum and shoe had "become one" through the miracle of "rust welding". Even if the car is in good condition, like diggerdave said, the shoes can get hung up on the inside of the drums. If you plan on re-doing the brakes anyways, spraying a mess of penetration oil or PB blaster in through the adjuster window and waiting a spell can help. Also if someone left the emergency brakes on and the cables are seized, you might as well cut the cable at the backing plate as you are going to have to replace them anyways. By the way...if you ever want to sledge hammer a drum to bits, wear eye protection and probably long sleeves & gloves as the chips of flying cast iron can do some severe damage to humans.
good points.. - the car lived in central california all its life (bay area, san francisco area), climate is generally dry.. - car has been sitting with small stints around the block, however the car was being sold as a parts car, so its condition is poor. we took it around the block before tearing into the suspension, still has power brake functionality. it was a driver back in 1980, which was the last yr it was reg'd... - the old guy said he pulled the drums off the back, and the pads were worn. the problem is the fronts since i havent tried the back yet. - i dont think the e-brake works at all, and i wll try to back the pads off even more with the adjuster thanks for the tips... ill include more details when the next round of questions come to light the drums on my 67 camino and burb werent this difficult, but they were drivers.... quick backing off of the adjuster and a little soft taping with a rubber mallet disloged them easily
Sometimes they can also get a little hung up on the wheel studs (and I have run across a few cars that had quite small star type washers that went over the studs and somewhat held the drum on...those had to be removed. If you think a little corrosion around the studs could be a problem, a little drop of penetrating oil at the base of each stud should help and shouldn't contaminate the shoes. I have always had good luck roating the drum and gently whacking it with a hammer whle I pulled on the edge of the drum (starting with a rubber mallet and working my way up to a small ball peen, and gently whacking all parts of the drum including the sides and the face). Once you can get a little movement of it coming off (even if it's coming off in cock-eyed fashion) you are usually on the home stretch and some more rotating and whacking will free it up.
check the other posts from the last few days , I ran it down , Guys, its the same drill for all drums except pressed + keyed ones like early Fords /mopars and even they use the same methods, just need a puller to get em off, first free em up ,then back everything off,If thats not working follow my list, mike
For rear drums, often the center hole of the drum is stuck on the axle flange. PB blaster, tapping to set up vibrations, and heat all help. repeat. after that its lots of prying and banging and cussing. Heat'em and beat'em. I've done a LOT (you know, MANY ol cars) and never had to damage a drum or backing plate.
Naturally, you are aware the front drums are rivited to the front hubs, right? Gotta take the cotter key and wheel bearing nut off to remove the front hubs, bearings and drums, all in one hunk. If you already know this........nevermind.
I was told by a now retired mechanic to use a hammer in between the wheel studs, as if trying to knock the drum ON, if you hit it around the edges of the flange, you will break it for sure. It's the vibration and shock that loosens it. This of course assumes the drum is supposed to come off, ie not rivetted onto the hub like mentioned above. I have had success by knocking the wheel studs through, to take them out of the equation. The above helps if the drum is stuck to the axle flange, if the shoes are stuck to the drum, knocking around the outer surface of the drum cam shock them free. In all the above, I am talking of carefully applied blows, you're not trying to smash the thing to pieces. Mart.
fellers, this is new info to me... thanks a ton for the feedback. rocky - no, didnt know it was riveted... is it riveted to the back plate? all im trying to do is put new wheel cylinders and brake pads on didnt get the anal lube for drums, but i did spend a few miserable, hung over hrs yesterday trying to get them off with as little pounding as possible by backing off the adjuster. as an aside the pads dont seem to be completely worn, i was able to slide a small straw through the adjuster hole in between the brake pad and drum all the way to the backing plate w/o obstruction... no dice. gonna try it again, i blame failure on the hang over. mike L - ill read your post if i can find it thanks for the feedback guys, its much appreciated.
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