The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Chevrolet Loadmaster, wheel stuck?

I have had a 1948 or 49 chevrolet loadmaster sitting under a tree. It was road leagal in the early 1980's and that was probably about the last time it was ran. I recently hooked it up to a tractor to pull it out from the tree so I can work on it. I put it in neutral and started pulling and the right rear wheels were locked up and not turning. Does anyone have any advice on want might be wrong?
Thanks,
Kyle

I say the brakes are froze to the drums.

I moved a '57 6400 today that the left front drum had been half buried for who knows how long.
I had to cut a hole in the backing plate with a cutting torch then cut out the adjuster. And that's just one of the problems I had with that bastard.

Could also have lost (rusted away, snapped, disintegrated, exploded, imploded, etc.) the brake retainer spring, which would let the brake pads rest against the drum, and dig in when you try to move it.

Another, prob. less likely possibility, is maybe the emergency brake mechanism is failing to release? Depending on your truck model, you may be able to tell if the e-brake releases when the lever is released (nice to have another body to help with this!). If this is a '48-55 6400 series, I can tell you from VERY recent experience that you can hammer forward and backward on the parking brake lever on the back side of the backing plate, where the cable clevis attaches, to help loosen it up.

I don't know that you've got much to lose by being agressive with this, since you'll almost definately have to do a brake job anyway, to get the truck roadworthy, IMHO. I'd say work the truck back and forth with the tractor, nudges at first, then more aggresive as need be. I don't think dragging it will hurt much, other than wearing the tire some, if it's on hard surface.

The RIGHT thing to do would be to take the wheel(s) off and see if you can get the hub off, but that gets rather involved rather fast, especially if you're "out-standing in your field". And BE SAFE! Getting rolled over by a big truck that doesn't even run is a silly way to end up handicapped, or worse.

Let us know what happens. I LOVE hearing about old, ignored and forgotten stovebolts coming back to life!

-Michael

Thanks for the replies. Later today I am going to try to add a little weight to the back of the truck with a couple round bales of hay and then try pulling back and forth with a tractor to see if I can free up the brakes. Ill let yall know how it went.
Kyle

Sometimes you have to get a little rough with rusty drums. Here's links to a couple posts where this has come up before.

Link

Link

Well, I ended up comming from behind the truck and taking the front end loader of a tractor I pushed down to add weight, and then pulled the truck back and forth. Thankfully the wheels didnt slip at all, they rolled just as they were supposed to . Thanks for yalls help.

I had the same problem with my '48 4400. I pushed it around the farm with a tractor and loader pushing down on the back of the truck to no avail. Someone parked the truck 20+ years ago with the emergency brake on. The only way I could get the drums loose enough to remove was to get the truck running and run the truck on jack stands. Took a long time, working back and forth, and I had to chain one side to the frame when it became loose enough to free wheel. Then I cleaned and treated everything to prevent rust and corosion in the future. There's alot of work in your future,
Scott

OK . . . so NOW I have to add a TRACTOR with a FRONT LOADER to my tool list . . . great.

haha, they do come in handy. I have even used a front end loader to pull up on a wrench after two people together couldnt anymore to tighten a track on my 1949 Allis Chalmers Model S dozer. It was a big bolt, over 6 ft long and at least 2 and 1/2 inches wide. I wouldnt recommend that process on smaller bolts.