I have a "stuck" front hub brake drum and am having some serious issues getting it disassembled. I was wondering if someone can share how to separate the wheel mounting hub from the brake drum. The nuts behind the wheel mounting hub have been removed since the picture was taken as well as the dust cap and crown nut/cotter pin. The wheel mounting hub has been beaten on with a sizable sledge but it doesn't appear to move at all. Brake Drum has also been "sledged" without results. Next step is to try a gear puller unless someone has a better suggestion.
'50 GMC 1 Ton Dually - Barn Find (sort of...no barn)
Have you backed off the brake shoes? Many times these old brakes will have grooves cut into the drum. The shoe wears with the grooves, causing the shoe to "lock onto" the drum. You have to back the shoes way off to get them to clear so the drum will come loose.
if you're referring to using a screwdriver or prybar to loosen the adjusting wheel via the slot in the back...yes, I've tried that but it doesn't seem to loosen...in fact, it kind of feels like there aren't really any teeth left for the screwdriver/prybar to grab. Thanks for the input !
'50 GMC 1 Ton Dually - Barn Find (sort of...no barn)
It's possible, then, that the brakes have fallen apart and are in a jumbled mess that's jammed the drum. If you tap on the bottom of the drum with a hammer, can you hear anything moving around inside the drum?
I just finished doing this job on my '48 dually today. Right front wheel locked, brake adjusters frozen. Unscrew the cap on the hub, pull the cotter pin from the adjusting nut, remove the nut, use a good three jaw puller and slowly pull the assembly off. You'll have to fish the outer bearing out as you go but it's pretty simple. On mine there was rust on the shoes under the brake material that caused the material to separate from the shoes and jam everything up.
Hit the drum in multiple locations and keep wiggling it. Paul is correct that the drum could be hanging up on wear grooves. Hitting the drum will help it in getting past those grooves by vibration making it jump over them. Jim [img]https://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthread...A51D456-217E-4102-8B54-993B3C647DB7.jpeg[/img]
Last edited by 53 green 1- ton; Mon Aug 15 2022 02:21 PM.
Stuck as in won't come off or stuck as in won't rotate, either? Sledging your hub won't do anything. If it DOES NOT rotate, sledging the drum will, but it takes 2 people. One to sledge the drum at the locations of shoe contact, and the other person standing on the 6 foot spud bar between the studs trying to rotate the drum. Install your spindle nut and snug it before trying to rotate it. For a one man job, you can use a wrecking bar (or equivalent) between the studs and put a floor jack under it to achieve the same effect. If it still won't rotate and you have a cutting torch available, evenly heat the entire outer surface while under tension. It will have to get pretty hot to pop, though! If your shoes are rusted to the drum, the expansion of the drum from the heat will cause it to break free of the brake lining. Let it cool to ambient temperature before you do anything else, or you'll warp it, though
If it DOES rotate, then there is a ridge on the drum that you'll have to get it past. (As Baldeagle mentioned) The star wheel just rides against the spring, so it may feel like there are no teeth in it. Get a light and look inside to see what you can see. Reference the position of the wheel, try to move it and look again to see if it has moved. If it moves, keep moving it until you can see that the threads are either appearing or disappearing. (You want them to disappear) Most likely the threads will be rusted and if it does turn, it will only collapse so far.
If it's rotating and you cannot get the adjuster to release, then get the puller. Remove the spindle nut. Sledge the drum while you have it under puller tension. (It helps to put a jack under the hub to maintain the proper height to avoid binding. If you still can't get anywhere, release the tension and cut the heads off of the hold down pins and try again.
