Thank you for the feedback :) You'd be amazed at some of the ignorant comments I get, some people have absolutely no respect or appreciation for free information.
This video explains how to lose the self-adjusting star wheel. I think this is a very important step in the drum removal operation if you are dealing with wear and stuck drums. The drum wear is creating a leap on the interior, backside, which is gonna work against the brake pads when you try to remove it. losing the star wheel is contracting the pads releasing the drum. Thank you for this great video.
A trick I used today on a 75 blazer sitting in a feild on a farm since 2001 . I put a floor jack under the drums edge with the lip of the jack saddle just behind the drum. Floor jacks lift up and slightly backwards. Then cut the nails with a chisel and hammer and unbolted the brake line and wheel cylinder bolts. Then jacked it up a little more while beating the bolt circle with what I call a housewife hammer. Presto . Don't forget your Jack stands as the truck will drop a little when it breaks Free. Great video bud. Probably the best on the subject I've seen 👌 I tried the jack and chain method and ruined a scissor jack and couldn't find my bottle jack so I made do.
Probably the best video on the subject. I'm in the process of removing my rear rotors on my 02 Tahoe and i still can't get them to come off. I'm not dealing with drum breaks but similar. My E brake pads are stuck inside my rotor.
I just removed both my rear brake drums for the first time ever! My secret. I used my $200 rubber sledge hammer from "Mac's Hardware." It is a 12 lb. Deadblow hammer that is 36" long. The drum had rust welded itself to the shaft that centers your wheel on the hub. 5 good whacks all over and it came right off!
Easy solution (but most people will still argue, they prefer brutal methods later: hammer, puller, torch etc.). 1. Paint the hub with zinc (or aluminium-zinc) spray. No rust. 2. Chamfer (ideally on a lathe) the drum, so the lip does not form.
Mine was rusted to the hub in the center. I ended up placing a chunk of 2x4 across the studs, then used 4 F-clamps to pull it off. Saved me a bunch of time having to drive to the auto parts store and rent a puller.
VERY GOOD video. My 93 GMC has an access hole to the side (never seen this before) - wouldn't think the adjuster is on the side, but I'll pull the plug to see - there's no adjuster access hole at the bottom. I can tell the shoes are hanging up on a ridge on drum. Never heard of the trick to dissemble (clipping pins, removing wheel cylinder bolts), but now I know how to do it. THANK YOU.
@@4DIYers Got it just by loosening the wheel cylinder. Great to see no ridge on drum and almost new shoes, but springs rusty (had some new pins). Ordered spring kit.. now just need to get air out of RWAL system (will try to disassemble iso/dump valve). The plugs on my backing plate (93 GMC Sierra 10" drums) are for lining inspection.. star wheel can't be adjusted.
With wheel on, back off lug nuts, get wheel spinning and slam on brakes. This will break rust between hub and drum. May need to back off brake shoes. Works every time.
Good idea, thank you for sharing! I actually did this years ago to break a rust on wheel from the hub. Was 2hrs away from home, minimal tools, and the tire rubber separated.
Does this work for drums that have been rusted to the hub for I think 19 year now? there is no rubber grommet on the back, no access holes, not goddamn screw hole thing for a bolt in the front, like, this damn this could hold together a fucking tractor trailer to a fucking penny at a rest stop and nothing I do will make this thing come off.
1st method turn the star wheel. 1) try pushing the star wheel in both directions; the one it will move in is opposite to the way to turn it too loose the shoe. 2) look for a lock that loosens the star wheel - a lock??? so you "push back the lock" -- then you have to keep it pushed back? IT is on a spring>?
A wood block tapped in between outside edge of drum (rear of drum) and the leaf spring lower plate or other part on rear end that is solid. Apply some heat on drum around axle flange...POP! Clean up that inside bore of drum with a file to remove any corrosion, clean up end of axle flange. Apply some anti seize to prevent is getting frozen on again (very light coat!)
Thanks to for mentioning something about the e-brake, which of course I have on for safety, my hours of screaming and yelling and prying on this fucking thing are finally over, I put some bricks in front of the tire, turned off the e-brake and it fucking came right off...
Outrageous that most cars need this kind of struggle! Delighted to find on my toyota a threaded hole in the drum, between the studs. You just borrow a bolt from under the hood, and drive it in. It forces the drum off the spindle. Cheap and beautiful solution! Reply
I usually try to avoid drums, never been a huge fan of them lol. With age, you normally have to worry about these problems. Rust and dirt can cause these issues.
I have drums that are stuck fast on a classic auto. 5 lb hammer and propane did nothing. I got a three arm drum puller from Harbor Freight. It started ok but now the whole drum spins when I tighten the center bolt. I put the jack under it but that didn't work. Had the gf apply brakes but the brake cylinders are shot. Any more ideas? I'm ready for the tnt and nitro described below.
5th method: 1) SEE IF there is play on the lever (play means stuck possibly), 2) jiggle the cable. 3) adjust? how? Is there a mid point in the cable from the driver's seat to the rear brake where the wire is joined by some kind of bridle to 2 other wires which go to left & right rear brake? Can't it be detached at that mid point?
Is it like that for every make and model that each wheel turns different direction than the other? I can’t get my drum off because it’s stuck on the lip and I keep turning the adjuster the same way I turned for my other wheel to get off.
i love rust. tried to inspect my drums because i heard grinding. jackpoints collapsed from rust while jacking up the car. couldnt check my drums because the covers are rusted onto the hubs
Thank god we have disc brakes, by far this is the most hated task as a mechanic to perform, i rather do an engine or transmision rebuild rsther than dealing with old drum brakes
Haha, I know the feeling. Disc brakes only have a few bolts where a drum brake assembly has springs and levers you need to fight with. Literally takes double the time for a replacement.
my car is 99 hyundai elantra station wagon an I'm having problem with getting or pulling hub off drum brakes on mine) I've tried tapping round on front and side of drum n yes tries pulling it loose doesn't seem to want turn loose emergency brake the wheel is turning freely have even tried using pry bar or flat head screwdriver
I tried the pounding of the hammer but it would not budge. Then a thought occurred to me, what if I pounded on the outside of the drum from the engine side? I had two hammers, one with the ax blade on it. So I rested that on the top of the drum but on top of the brake flash plate. Then I gently used a second hammer to pound on the first one towards me. Very limited space so you can not swing to hard. It worked though. It took about 7 of 8 hits before I noticed the drum moving. I also moved/turned the drum around so I would not lock up the drum going sideways. Good luck and I hope this hint helps someone else.
Where did you find a puller like this and this size? I've tried renting from auto parts stores but they don't have one big enough for my 14" drum. Checked harbor freight as well to no avail
My brake pedal is stuck even if i turn on my car and my emergency brake is only working on one side , in other words my rear left tire is locked up .. i might try the first ,4 ,5 method
Nice job 4D. Very informative. Having problems with my rear drums on my 2004 honda accord. Replaced the shoes and now I cant put the drum back on. I took one side off at a time to use as reference. Im at a loss. Have any suggestions? Thanks for your help.
I have rusty brakes so i used the puller and i worked for me.. so if anybody else wants to remove drum brakes. This is the easier way.. buy a 8" jaw puller if u have a truck
Instead of buying a puller, some car parts stores have a tool loaner program. I know Auto Zone and O'Reilly Auto Parts both loan tools. You just put down a deposit, borrow the tool, get your job done, return the tool and the nice clerk will refund your deposit. I had a REALLY stuck crank on my old Schwinn. I borrowed a 3 jaw puller from O'Reilly. It didn't work. I borrowed a ball joint separator, stuck it behind the crank and pounded on it with a dead blow hammer. That worked! The crank popped right off!
I have a stuck adjuster and I cut the pins. Brakes shoes are stuck out so no spin. I disconnected the wheel cylinder and still no luck. I just bought a puller and it’s too thick to fit in the crack around the drum. I’m feeling real defeated right now. Anyone got any tips?
Good video. New subscriber here. I am restoring a 1954 Fargo 1/2 ton. My front right break is stuck on. I can turn the wheel if I use a bar between the studs, but it is hard. I can't figure out how to back the brakes off. There is no adjustment window on the back of the plate. Any ideas how to back the brakes off?? Thanks
Excellent to hear and thank you for the support! Sounds like a cool project, unfortunately I haven't worked on anything from that era. However after a little searching, they appear to use a cam adjustment instead of an automatic adjuster such as what is shown in the video. Here's the adjustment procedure www.ply33.com/Repair/brakes and then a little info for front and rear drum brakes for Fargos p15-d24.com/topic/35746-drum-brakes/
Full blown seized 60 f100 front driver side. Might be torch time... Not crying yet.. Just might have to disassemble it from back to front it appears. Sigh
Trying to disengage the star lever and move the star wheel at the same time is a bitch. Worked for 90 min yesterday and no luck. My disc drums have about a 3/4" lip on the backing plate so usimg a drum puller does not see possible in getting on
@@kingcarlos4348 I ended up having to cut off the two pins holding the pads to the backing plate. After I cut them off, I was able to pry the drum off. Took some time, but it finally came off. Had to also release the bottom spring at the bottom of the pads after I was able to get some space between the drum and backing plate.
@@Samson-EC well at least you got it done. I ended up using a thinner screwdriver and that did the trick. While pulling off the drum on the passenger side I broke the wheel cylinder and had it replace that. Replacing the wheel cylinder was also a pain bc the nut started rounding. All in all it’s all done now
I think anyone who can operate the adjuster with two screw drivers {blind[ probably has as much experience as you and knows how to get a stuck drum off. otherwise good video.
yes and no because I didn't know you had to undo the center peace first that was what held it all together and that was my first time working on a trailer but keep up the good work I've got alot of help from your videos their really easy to under stand when you don't know the terminology