The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline Removing Brake Drums

I am working on my GMC 52 1 ton 9430 rear end trying to get the drums off with no luck. Ive given up for the night hoping some penetrant might loosen them up. I have removed the axels and the large slot head screws from the face of the drum, pulled the brake lines off and used a dead blow hammer to try to loosen it up. It is barely moving at all. Is this just a case of strong will and back to keep working it until it is free or is there a trick I should know about?

Mark

Make sure the emergency brake isn't applied if it brakes the rear wheels. If you can hear the shoes rubbing when you turn the rear wheels you may have to back the shoes off some with the star wheel (accessed through a slot in the backing plate).
Samantha

If you can loosen the cylinder bolts and knock it loose that may help the shoes release.

Granted, mine was a 1/2 ton and not a 1 ton, and so perhaps different.

My rear drums wouldn't come off either. I heated the center portion with a torch, and then splashed it with cold water, and hit with a BFH. Big %^$# Hammer. I also had to pry from behind with a pry bar...eventually it broke the rusted area between the drum and the plate behind it.

Good luck.

3 Pry bars spaced at 10, 2 and 6 oclock and a BFH , lots of liquid encouragement some fancy language. Have at it, invite your friends to help swing the hammer. What ever you do, DO NOT CUT the drum off, they are almost impossible to find .

You should smack the drum between or just in from the studs. You want the drum to be supported by the hub. A little movement means big progress. Those drums are almost impossible to find replacements for.

What are the purpose of the two bolts behind the brake cylinder. Looks like some type of adjuster but I'm not sure how they work? I have them loose but they seam to keep spinning.
I'll go back at it tonight hoping the penetrant has worked its way in. Im hoping to use a heated power wash on the frame and would like to do the drums separate from the hubs etc.

Well with a lot of elbow grease I got the one drum off. Definitely the brake shoes hanging up on the lip around the edge of the drum. The other side is really causing grief. I have the drum about 1/2" off the hub and the one brake shoe won't pop out of the drum. I need to find something I can squeeze between the back plate and drum to pry the shoe off. Looks like I will be straightening the back plate bait….its taking some abuse.
Thanks for your replies.

Mark

Back to sweating and swearing now!!

If we are talking about the rear, pulling the hub bearing will give you more freedom of movement but it might make things more complicated too.

Same issues here on one of mine. Took me a half hour and a pry bar to finally get it off. It just didn't want to come off the top of the pads. Is this normal for these old trucks?

The shoes wear a groove into the drum which makes it hard to pull the dram past. My tensioners are seized which makes it worse trying to get the drum off. I only got the rears off. Try the fronts another day when I have more patience.

Mark

All drum brakes have this issue. All of them. Add some years and some rust and..well you get the picture. Just a word of advise, from the school of hard knocks, don't turn the drums. You can remove the "lip" but don't turn the drum. Clean and check for round, use a bit of anti seize on moving parts when reassembling to prevent this kind of hassle later. You can blast the rust off the outside of the drum and paint it with some Hi-Temp satin black, Looks good, just don't use a heavy coat, it will not help with the heat dissipation. Adjust often and clean sometimes. It is kind of a Zen thing but helps with peace of mind.

Hey Steve H, why do you say not to turn them? I haven't checked mine to see how thick they are yet but had figured on getting them trued up.

Mark

Around here it is very hard to find a shop that still turns them. The ones who do, aren't excited about doing it, as it isn't a money maker. Turning drums is from a bygone era when parts were expensive, and labor was cheap. Remember spark plug cleaning machines?
Carl

Some of these old drums are thin when new. Big trucks are better but some drums are hard to find. Cleaning them up each time a new set of shoes is installed will wear them faster than the shoe will. If they are round and not cracked, why make them thinner? Take the lip off and put them back in service. Spark plug cleaners? Just used one last week. International Harvester tractor had fouled all 4 plugs, 1 hour run time. Rebuilt carb, cleaned plugs and it was tractoring just fine.

Old habits die hard. But I guarantee that if I had a spark plug cleaner, I would use it, and never buy another plug.

I know a shop that will do it. I may just get them assets and go from there. Thanks for the advice guys. And yes I do remember spark plug cleaners.

Mark

New to this stove bolt stuff and not a mechanic. Just really like my truck.... I have a 1952 GMC 1 ton 9430. Needing some parts to complete it to keep it as original as possible.

Not into a rat rod, it already has a powerful 92 hp I am told. I may even keep the body the way it is for now, solid original green cab.

The bed has been replaced by the previous owner and i want to find a 9 foot bed to go back to the original, at some point.

I need a few parts, it runs just needs a tuneup. The most important needs are the park brake components within the rear brake drum for me to pass BC Inspection. Anyone have any leads, spares, or could someone trace them to spec so my son can fabricate the parts for me ?

Thanks for the help and comments.

fcfc, welcome to stovebolt.com. Please stop by the Welcome Center and introduce yourself. When you attach to a 4 year old thread that doesn't really have much to do with your question it muddys up our search function. It would have been best to start your own thread. Questions concerning your Big Boy can be posted in the Big Bolts Forum. As a side note, we do not allow buying, selling or bartering parts in the regular "Help" forums. Those requests go in the Swap Meet Forums. Since you are new we want to get you off on the right foot. Again Welcome.