I've got a '39 Plymouth that's got a LR drum that's seized to the spindle. I've tried PB Blaster, heat, pounding, etc but to no avail. Anybody ever go through a similar deal, and how did you solve it? Right now this is the only thing keeping the old girl from hitting the road to take my dad for his first ride in it for Father's Day, so any help would be appreciated...
You tried heat, how about cold? Spray some freon or nitrogen on that puppy. Heat expands metal, cold contracts it. Then keep tapping on it...
I use a 3 leg hub Knocker from snapon. Worked every time and only once that I can remember I had to use a torch along with the removing tool but some times you do what you got to do. Below is an article I cut and pasted in reference This is a common complaint with cars that use the tapered hub system - which includes all Chryslers up to 1965. The way to get it off is to do just exactly what you did, but make sure you have a really sturdy hub puller - the 3 leg type with dogbone shaped knocker handle, one that bolts on using the wheel lugbolts. Lubricate the threads in the center of the puller and the tip of the puller center bolt where it pushes on the end of the axle. Leave the nut on the end of the axle, reversed so the castellated end points in, and back it out to where the puller center bolt contacts the nut and axle end simultaneously, so that you don't mess up the axle threads, and pound on that puller with a 3# hammer until the neighbors complain, and leave it sit overnight with the extreme pressure on it. Maybe it will pop loose during the night as the temperature changes - they often do. If not, pound it on tighter in the morning, and just keep it up, it will come off - I promise! As a last resort, get a torch and heat JUST THE DRUM HUB, quickly so that it expands and the axle doesn't get too hot. Be sure not to heat the drum as you can seriously warp it that way. Keep going through heat and cool cycles, tightening the puller each time you think of it, and it will pop off with a loud bang sooner or later. If you have a choice, try to get a Snap-On brand puller -they are the strongest, and with my older Packards which use the same system, I could never get them off until I bit the bullet and got a Snap-On puller. But they are VERY expensive!
sure it isnt the brake shoes holding it on from inside? ive got a cure for this..but will wait to see if thats the reason or not.
Ray has the plan! You might find the bolt-on puller at the local rental. Don,t use the gearpuller style it will warp the drum. Heat the hub and spray the keyway w/pb or jb80 or the gibbs i just read about on the grinderart thread all the while keeping the puller torqued. be patient be carefull than wack the puller bolt with a sharp blow. good luck
Nice name jimbobb! Gerg, I'm glad I'm YOUR hero! I'm doing the PB thang, the part of the drum that contacts the shoes has been removed, so that's out...I'm gonna try a gear puller tonight, we'll see what happens...Any more ideas folks?
A gear puller won't work unless it is a gear puller from the Queen Mary. You need a manly puller, and do it EXACTLY the way that RAY With said. He has it right.
I cheated!! http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=286434 JimBob, you were my hero, till I found you were 2 timing with Gerg. For shame, for shame!
Using the style of puller that 440Roadrunner showed is the correct method of pulling the hub/drum. Even then few of them come off without a big fight.
they pop up on ebay all the time for pretty cheap if no where else. also another trick they use over on the plymouth forum: **i should add i've never actually tried this, but a lot of the experienced guys swear by it.
Make your own puller. 2" x 2" x .250 wall square tubing. I" bolt, nuts, 1" puller plate, etc. Use bolts and coupler nuts to adapt to lug studs. Bring it up to tension, heat the hub with a gas torch. Only takes 3-4 seconds until things pop loose. Be very careful around the gas filler neck, check for fumes at the connector hose etc. Few more pics. In use. All the accessories. This puller - name of Mongo - is also set up to use an 8 ton bottle jack.
It works, but that post is a little misleading,(to me), Loosen ONLY the AXLE nut, and re -install a cotter key, and drive it around(slow, neighborhood speeds work fine), slight zig, then some zags........no violent maneuvers needed.
My local rental outfit has one, and it IS the Snap-On unit. Try them, though if the counter guy is less than 70 years old, you'll have to look for it yourself. Oh, and he is right, smack the dogbone tighter, then smack the nut into the axle, the shock of one or the other will remove it. Don't be afraid to leave it tight and go get lunch, it may take awhile. Cosmo
The WHO had an interesting way of removing drums...........er..................you do mean music.........right?
Just picked up a K-D Tool puller identical to the one in the pics off Ebay except it ony had 3 arms with it but I will only ever need 3. Took it over to my friend's tranny shop where they're rebuilding a Dana 44 for me so they could use it on the second parts diff I took down. They loved it over there, said it was 10 times better than the one they had used on the first rear end. Got mine for $65 B-I-N, my friend said it was worth every penny and then some even if I only used it once. It will get used more than that since I have to repack the axle bearings every 25,000. If you own a car with the old tapered axles and work on it yourself a GOOD puller of this type is an absolute necessity. When that hub finally comes loose it's probably going to make a heck of a bang so be prepared. Also when you put it back on it must be absolutely clean and DRY. The torque spec is for a DRY assembly, if you lube it it can pull on too far when you torque it and either split the hub or pull it on the taper so far it will never come off. That's straight from a Studebaker factory service manual and so far everything I have seen tells me they wrote their manuals from first hand experience.
Jay. My day is now wrecked just knowing I'm not yer hero any more...What can I do to get your love back? Well folks, with a 3-jaw 5 ton puller I FINALLY got the damn thing off! Luckily I didn't hurt the spindle, we'll see if I can get the castle nut back on, the threads are a little boogered up...
You can buy thread files to clean them up. As I recall we used to start the castle nut backwards to clean up the threads. Next time remember to always leave the nut at the end of the threads before banging on the bolt.
There is another old timer trick, too. Remove the cotter pin and back off the axle nut a couple of turns. Jack up the other side of the car. The higher, the better. You want the other side rear wheel up in the air. Now, the weight of the car is pushing sideways on the wheel that is still on the ground. Go to the high side rear wheel and push the car sharply sideways. The off center push will free the drum from the taper of the axle.
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