Rear brake drum stuck.

[Michael G]

Hi all,

Am attempting to remove my right rear brake drum off my 1973 240Z but it has turned into a major mission.

Have tried penetrating oil, heat, hammering (with blocks of wood) but the drum refuses to budge - or even look like moving.

Have followed the suggestions at Eric Neyerlins site http://www.zparts.com/tutorials/brkdrum/brkdrum_remove.html

but still no sign of movement.

Today I heard a suggestion of drilling some small holes through the brake drum in the area of the wheel studs which would let some WD-40 type fluid be sprayed into the problem area.

Anyone have a comment on this?

Michael

[2ManyZs]

I wouldn't drill any extra holes in the drum unless you are planning to replace it. You will certainly weaken it to the point of it being unuseable.

If you have unhooked the emergency brake cable and backed off the brake adjuster as far as it will go and it still won't move, there is one other thing to try first before you destroy the drum. Try using a narrow flat file along the edge of the hub in the center of the drum. Sometimes this will get swaged to the point that it will be very difficult to mount or dismount the drum. There should be a very small lip there you could run the file around if the drum is completely seated against the hub. This will get rid of any lip the drum could be hanging up on and may possibly let the penetrating oil get in behind the drum to loosen it.

Also, you can use a wire brush or one on a drill to remove any rust from around the wheel studs on the front side of the drum. Sometimes the studs will have a large amount of rust build up at their base where they meet the drum. Getting this off will allow the penetrating oil to get in around the studs and will aid in removing the drum.

Good luck.

[59ghia]

Had the same problem, ended up using a monster puller. You may be able to rent one. Don't forget to put on a couple of lug nuts because when it pops it pops big time!

Good luck! and don't forget after you get it off to clean the seating areas real well and apply some anti-sieze

Dave

[hmsports]

I got so fed up once with one of mine I took at 12# sledge and cracked it good - popped right off!

Now, I wouldn't recommend this - unless you are replacing the drums.

[billcapp]

2MANYZs had the best advice. I too had a problem drum. I just cleaned up the studs, applied penetrating oil and rapped it all around from behind and on the sides with a hammer and blocks of wood. Just keep at it; it will eventually come loose.

Bill

71

[EScanlon]

Friend of mine had the same problem, he said he finally solved it by smacking from the front. Yes, the front. This is how he did it.

Align the studs so that they are in a "diamond", i.e. one at the 12, one at 3, 6 and 9 as if they were the points on a clock. Then smack with a dead blow rubber hammer at the 2 o'clock position and if necessary at the 7, then the 11 and 5. Rotate about an "hour" and repeat. The point you are smacking is the outermost flat part of the drum just as it starts to curve back towards the differential. The intent is to get the drum to "****" itself and when it does to smack on the exact opposite side. This movement will get it dislodged.

A preventative measure he did, and have no news yet as to how good it is, nor what the long term effects are, is to apply a thin coating of Never Seize compound around the center hole in the drum and very lightly on the flat face of the lug hub where it comes into contact with the brake drum. I emphasize that he said a LIGHT coating, just enough to get it to not rust and not stick.

Hope this helps.

[mdbrandy]

Originally posted by billcapp

2MANYZs had the best advice. I too had a problem drum. I just cleaned up the studs, applied penetrating oil and rapped it all around from behind and on the sides with a hammer and blocks of wood. Just keep at it; it will eventually come loose.

Yup. Just finished removing the drums on my '70 240Z. Cleaned up around the studs and center, soaked with Kroil. Did it again. Did it again. then pounded around on the front outside of the drum with a 2 lb rubber mallet, and then from the back around the fins with a block of wood and a three pound sledge. They came loose within about three revolutions (pounding from the back about every 90 degrees) on both sides.

EDIT: Beandip's post (next one) reminded me that I also backed off the adjuster quite a ways before doing any of this. The drums spun freely before I started beating on them. Also, I had to push DOWN on the adjuster arm, not up. One small screwdriver under the cylinder to push down on the arm, and one beside it to turn the knurled wheel.

[beandip]

bingo the last two posts have it in the nose. If you havent turned the adjuster to loosen the linings from contact do so through the hole in the face of the drum . look in the manual and see how the adjuster works and if you lift the adjuster high enough it will catch and then you can turn the star wheel. My adjuster wouldent stay up and I ended up destroying the drum by drilling wholes around the studs unitill I loosened it and broke the cast iron sleve with a sledge . It's not easy to get the drum off but you can save it . and yes striking the drum like scanlon said really will loosen it only I used a rubber mallot under normal conditions , and they come right off. Use anti sieze around the center and a little on the face of the axel when you reassemble it. You can drill out the access hole to 1/2" and not hurt anything and will help .

[beandip]

mdbrandy, what do you think about kroil ? I have been using PB blaster and found it was vary good . I heard of kroil and I think it is the best with out a doubt + it dosent stink. Gary

[mdbrandy]

Originally posted by beandip

mdbrandy, what do you think about kroil ? I have been using PB blaster and found it was vary good . I heard of kroil and I think it is the best with out a doubt + it dosent stink. Gary

It seems to do a good job, although as you might imagine, it is still not a magic bullet. It seemed to help with a number of stuck or stubborn fasteners/fittings in the brake system. I still have a couple I am working on though, after soaking for a couple of days. Bottom line is that it seems to do the job, but I don't have anything other than WD40 to compare it to - and it is definately better than that!!! The last three fittings I have are connected to the rear pressure/balance valves on the car. I took the valves and their pipes off as an assembly, and I'm soaking all three. Strangely, the fittings broke free with no real problem after application of kroil for a couple hours, but then after about three turns, they started to bind up again. I thought they were binding on the pipe, but with the assembly off the car, I can spin the fittings on the pipes as they bind up on the threads again . Anyway, we'll see what a couple days of soaking will do.

One place it seemed to do a little magic was on the left caliper. The pad pins were rusted solid - couldn't punch them out, couldn't grab and turn them, nothing, even after applying Kroil to both ends of the pin as it goes through the caliper. Luckily, I could get the caliper out of the car with the pads still on, so I put it on it's side and soaked the pins with Kroil from the ends, so it would soak down the length. After an overnight soak, the pins punched right out of the caliper.

my 2 cents.

[Marty Rogan]

Mark,

Once you push down on the wheel cylinder arm, which way do you turn the knurled wheel? Toward the center of the car or away from the car?

TIA,

Marty

[mdbrandy]

Originally posted by Marty Rogan

Mark,

Once you push down on the wheel cylinder arm, which way do you turn the knurled wheel? Toward the center of the car or away from the car?

TIA,

Marty

Toward the center of the car at the bottom of the wheel. Here's a pic of the drivers side on mine. Note how the serrations on the wheel will "catch" on the bar at the bottom if the top of the wheel would turn toward you. Thus, it will "click" over the bar and adjust the brake if the top of the knurled wheel would turn away from you. So, to loosen the brake, use one screwdriver to push the lever arm down, and another to push the BOTTOM of the wheel AWAY from you, toward the center of the car. Hope that makes sense. Note that these are really early wheel cylinders too. There are some changes over the years, but hopefully a '71 will be similar.

Good luck.