The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline Remove stuck front brake drum ?

1952 3600 4speed … I went to take the truck out Sunday and the right front wheel wouldn’t turn , tried rocking it no luck
Jacked, took off wheel …. Tapped around edge and on face . Loosened adjusters (pull down ? ) and removed nut/bearing (well greased ) does anyone have any tips before I hit it harder ?
Could I loosen cylinder nuts some ? There is a big nut on top that if I remember correctly is a pivot point ? Loosen it ?
Thank you

You can bang on the drum a little harder than tapping. Use a rubber mallet. Are you sure you loosened the adjusters instead of tightening? Does your truck have Huck brakes or Bendix brakes?

A 52 3600 would have Huck brakes if stock. There are two adjusters on the wheel cylinder, so you would need to loosen both of them. And one you pull down to loosen and the other you pull up to loosen. The service manual says clockwise looking at the end of the cylinder, so counter-clockwise to loosen each end. You might also open the bleeder valve in case there's fluid trapped in the cylinder from a collapsed brake hose.

Here's a diagram of the Huck Brake wheel cylinders and the direction the adjusters need to turn.

https://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthread...adjustment-guide-huck-brakes#Post1499231

Nice Huck diagram.

Like Klhansen says above, especially if this came on suddenly, crack your bleeder. Brake hose may well have collapsed inside.

I've had trouble with even new brake hoses failing within only a few years' use. New parts are "not great".

I once heated a stuck drum with a propane torch, runinng it around the circumference to free a stuck drum. It went sprange and got loose. It wasn't an old Chevy.

I was trying to expand the drum away from the shoe.

Is there on adjuster on bottom and on on top ? I appears it is the back shoe is sticking , going to loosen bleeder and find other adjuster , will let all you know how it goes 👍TY

No. The wheel cylinder is at the top of the drum and has 2 adjusters - one on each side.

Here is an exploded diagram of a Huck brake wheel cylinder. The "covers" on either side of the cylinder are the adjusters with the tangs sticking out to use your tool to get them to move. Use this diagram with the one linked by Otto (added here for easy viewing) to turn them the correct way to loosen and you should be able to get that other shoe to release.

Another picture with more of the pieces you'll see once you get the drum off. This taken from the 1939-53 GMC Master Parts Book. The GMC 150 model has the same brakes as your 3600. The red V points to the adjuster wheels.

Ok the BFH worked great. Just had hit it!
Turns out by pulling down on adjuster I was tightening it .
It only hard on adjuster on the bottom and there was no apparent reason for it sticking outside some “rusty “ build up on pads and drum , was happy not to find a shoe separation . Some emery and re-grease and I am back on the road .
Thank you all 👍

If you only had one adjuster on the bottom, then someone has changed your brakes from the original Huck to Bendix.
Or maybe the Vehicle Info Kit for 1952 is incorrect. GM went to Bendix brakes in '53 on all but the rear of the larger 1-1/2 and 2-ton trucks if I'm reading the fuzzy 1953 Vehicle Info Kit correctly. Definitely that way on the 1954 trucks.

On cars, the swap to Bendix brakes came in 1951. I'm not sure about the pickups. I worked on a 1950 2 door hardtop coupe a while back with the 235 spray oiler hydraulic lifter engine, the Powerglide trans, and Huck brakes. A real oddball!

Half ton trucks swapped over to Bendix brakes for 1951. It took a little longer on larger trucks. I'm getting my info from the Vehicle Info Kits. Here's a snapshot of the 1951 Chevy Truck Vehicle Info Kit brake page.

If you still have it apart, put a little anti-sieze on the adjuster threads. Clean 'em real good first.

Just an aside on stuck brake drums... grab the drum. If it is frozen in place get a 2 or 3lb hammer and frail away as you turn it. Hit it 3/6/9/12 some good stiff licks. Never broke a good drum. The broke ones usually needed turning bad and had stress fractures where it broke. Good riddance.
Using a rubber mallet is like a slap on the wrist. The object is maximum vibration to break the bond form when two objects stick together.
You need to clang the bell!