The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline 1972 C10 - Frozen/Rusted Brake Drums

I'm trying to rescue this truck, but it's fighting me! The brake drums are rusted and I can't get the truck to move an inch from its current resting place. Any ideas out there?

Thanks,

Andy, the first question is have you tried the brake adjustment to loosen the shoes. Getting the shoes to brake loose from the drum can sometimes be done by hitting the drum with a hammer to "jar" it loose. Sometimes putting pressure on a couple pry bars while someone else hits it with a hammer will break it loose.
Can you hook a chain to it and pull it. Did this once with a 40 Chevy. It slid then broke loose.
I'm sure someone will give you and easier answer???!

Is it all or just a couple of brakes. If you try pushing it in place and have someone watch the wheels you can tell which are stuck. My son and I rescued a 240Z from his father in laws house and while pulling it up the hill I noticed the rear wheels weren't turning so I jacked it up and removed the rear brake drums. The wheels turned then. Just look and see which are the culprits.

Oyeah. A big hammer and pribar were the tool of choice.Larry

Achipmunk and LarryW,

Thanks for your replies and suggestions. Due to a family emergency I haven't been able to get back over to the truck (about 85 miles from home). Hopefully, I can next week. I will keep you posted on my progress.

Thanks again,

Okay,

I spent several hours removing rusted lug nuts and front wheels. After applying more penetrating oil than I care to admit, I went to hammers (large, BIG, and a sledge). Nothing seemed to budge on these front wheels and hubs. I think the back wheels and hubs are locked-up too.

The truck is in a precarious place with poor access at best. I had my 4X4 truck chained to this one and couldn't budge it. I don't see any brake adjustment holes in the backing plate? I've thought about drilling off the brake shoe clips and pulling the entire hub or cutting the brake drums off.

Any suggestions will be seriously considered!

Thanks,

You could drill the pins out but you'll still have to deal with the springs that hold tension on the shoes. You need to look a little closer for the adjustment holes. They may still have the rubber plugs in it so it could be hard to see with dirt and rust hiding it. If it's in a bad place to work on it try to move it out so you can get to it. You just need to use your imagination. Jack it up put couple pieces of plywood under the wheels with grease under tires and you'd be surprised how easy it is to move it. Heck you could even get it up on a rollback or trailer that way. once you get it home you'll have all the time in the world to figure it out. Larry

adjuster holes likely in the drum face with flat metal hole covers

Bill

Don't forget the front hubs/drums have a spindle nut to remove first. At any rate, it is a big battle of banging, prying, pulling...don't worry about damage, you are going to replace shoes and all the guts. If you can see any of the shoe, smack on it at various points with a chisel or equiv. to "brake" it loose. the drums can rust to the center or the studs so keep that in mind. Hit the studs and axle centers only hard enough to vibrate the rust, not damage. That will also work the liquid wrench in between places like that. An air chisel on 30 PSI with vibrate all the parts also and help loosen things up.

You're right Bill. My 65 GMC had them in the face of the brake drum.Larry

I have whipped the holy living he** out of brakes that are frozen before. And I mean hours and hours. It's about as frustrating as trying to beat out kingpins by hand with hammers. You cannot get too rough. I have found if you can chisel off the pins that hold the shoes to the backing plate, that will help you get some slack. Tractor Supply has a nice set of large pry bars for like $17. I have used about every spray known to man to try to help. It is a very serious fight. I have never broken a drum, but I have sure wore myself out on many. Swollen hands, shaking arms, etc., you're really in for a fight....

I have seen adjusters completely rusted and frozen out that would not back off at all.

Thanks to everyone for your comments and suggestions! It looks like I need to get ready for round three!!

As has been mentioned by Bartomos: The dust cap and the big nut at the spindle must be removed. The drum is attached to the Hub and it will not move until the wheel bearing can move. The drum is not expensive.
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=3871815&cc=1497871
As you can see under 30.00 for one. With the hub loose and some pry-bars you should be able to get it loose. Pressure from the pry bar, and a good shot with a big hammer should do the trick. Don't worry about cracking that drum, easy to replace and cheap too. Gloves now and aspirin for afterwards. Not a finesse job for sure. With the pry-bars you can lever the drum off even with the adjuster stuck. The last thing holding it all together are the pins through the backing plate. And they are cheap to. One one bad stuck truck, I pulled the bolts that hold the wheel cylinder to the backing plate, The shoes, adjuster, 2 broken pins, and the wheel cylinder came out as a unit. Then all them parts fell out of the drum like they had never been in there in the first place. I put The drum now empty and the hub back on and It moved easy. No brakes but it would roll. let us know how it goes.