The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline 3/4 ton rear brake cylinder

Hey guys, on a '53 3/4 ton, I need to replace the rear brake cylinders. I'm thinking I probably need to pull the rear axle to do this by removing the hub bolts. If that is the case, when I go to put this back together, am I going to need to replace any gaskets in the re-assembly? I am not wanting to replace wheel bearings. What will I be getting into in this project that I should know about before I start? Anyone who has done this before, a walk-through would be appreciated. Thanks.

I think you should be able to pull the brake drums off the hubs without pulling the axles. They might be stuck good, but with some work should come off the hubs. You should not need to pull the axles.

Someone will correct me if I'm wrong...

Uhhh... If this is the same "full floater" axle as my 58 1 ton (more or less the same, and I think it should be) then pulling the axle shaft is easy. Undo the 8 bolts holding the axle shaft flange to the hub and pull the axle out. There was originally a metal gasket between the axle shaft flange and the hub. People regularly don't save these. I've heard they can be purchased. Same as the "GM 14-bolt" axle shaft flange to hub gasket (a VERY common axle). I just cut some paper ones out from some gasket material I had. They work fine.

What's going to be more of a problem is pulling the hub / drum piece (they are connected with the wheel studs) off of the axle. Just remove your grease cup and take off the big nut / washer / nut holding the hub onto the axle. Hope your bearings are in good shape!?. Now how tightly adjusted are your brakes. If they are loose, then you can pull the hub / drum off easy and get to the brake guts. If they are tight then you can't pull the drum off yet. You have to remove your little brake blocker thingy (don't know the name of it) from the bottom of the back of that metal plate that holds all the brake guts. Then you have to back off that little thumb screw looking thingy (don't know the name of it either) so your brakes are far away from the drum.

Now everything should come apart and you can replace your wheel cylinder. A picture is worth a thousand words, and the words I've typed won't replace having a manual lying around.

My rear bearings were in great shape, so I did not need to replace. I had plenty of brake pad left, so didn't need to replace. My cylinders where shot and rusted out.

Pulling the brake drum off the hub is a bit more involved and requires a shop press and some new wheel studs. Unless your studs are in bad shape, I would NOT recommend doing this.

rick, on my 49 3\4 you just remove a couple of counter sunk from the face of the brake drum. then take the drum off and you are there. like oldsub said , they may come easy or may need a little sweet talking.

I'm with OldSub.

Just adjust your shoes in, pull the screws that hold the drum on, and pull the drum off. You CAN get at the cylinder with a minimum of muss and fuss.

I changed all of them out on my truck and there were no problems whatsoever working around the hubs.

If you're working on a "Farm Fresh" truck that has been sitting for a while, I still think it will be easier to pull the drum off. You will need a big hammer, though.

Hey guys. I think it depends on whether the brakes are Huck or Bendix. My 49 has Huck, and the sensible method of removing brake drums: two flat-head screws hold them to the hubs. My shop manual is for a 54, which has Bendix. They use the questionable rivet-and-press-the-drums-on method, so total disassembly of the hub is required just to check the shoes....

Yes, I'm prejudiced. I don't think there was any good reason to make the brakes so difficult to service.

Some interesting posts and differences of opinion here. There is a difference I'm thinking depending on the year of the vehicle. Mine is a '53 and it has Bendix brakes. The shop manual isn't showing disassembly of the rear drums, so I can't figure out for sure what is required here. I don't want to pull the axles if it isn't necessary. I've backed off the shoes and I'm not feeling any play that would make it seem possible to remove the drum without removing the center 8 bolts and the hub assembly. What I'd like to do is see if anyone out there with a '53 3/4 ton can weigh in on this and tell me from experience what to encounter. I appreciate all of the responses for sure, but I haven't seen anyone yet with a '53. That would be helpful for sure. Thanks again to all who have posted and we'll see where this saga goes.

After I sent the last post, I went further into the shop manual and found what I was looking for under the rear axle section as opposed to the brake section. It appears the drums can be removed without taking out the axle. I'll give it a shot.

I'd hate to think you had to remove the axles to do a brake job. While I'll concede its possible I'd be real surprised if they were designed that way.

Keep us posted!

Success! For those interested who have a '53 or thereabouts 3/4 ton, it took me about 30 minutes to remove both rear drums. No need to pull the axle. Just back the brake shoes way off, remove the two recessed screws from the face of the hub and strike the back side of the drum on each side. They slipped right off. From there it is easy to access the brake shoes, wheel cylinders, etc without having to mess with pulling the axles or screwing around with the wheel bearings. One paper gasket on each side to replace and that's it. I had a little rust on the surface of the drum where the shoes make contact and am hoping they have enough surface left to be turned one more time. Thanks to all who posted replies and maybe this will help others who need to replace shoes or wheel cylinders on a 3/4 ton with Bendix brakes.

Thanks Rick, I have a 55 1st series that I am restoring and I will need to do the same. looking forward to reading more of your questions and responses as I talkle my project.

sounds lucky to me on my 64 3/4 ton i had to remove hub and drum and remove the screws and drive, and i mean drive them apart. the full floating axles are so easy to remove i wouldn't worry about them. i had to take my hubs off anyway to change bearings. the joy of a 3/4 ton is most parts are about twice as high, but you can carry about twice as much so i guess it works out.

Here's what it looks like for those needing to do this job on a 3/4 ton.
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s161/Rick_53/IMG_2457.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s161/Rick_53/IMG_2438.jpg
RIck

I agree with old sub and Brendan. I did the wheel cylinders and brakes on my 53 3/4 ton without pulling the axle. Adjust the shooes in. remove the 2 screws on the face of the drum. (hardest part). I hammered mine with a big screw driver and a regular carpenters hammer to loosen them. Then I hammered the drums off with the same hammer.