Re: IML: Brake Drum Removal - 2 questions addressed

[randalpark@xxxxxxx]

What's keeping it on is the tapered axle and the square key. If the car 
only has 40,000 miles on it, the rear drums may have never been off. 
You need to have the most heavy duty and correct wheel puller 
available. With that tool and your safe persistence, the drum will come 
off. I have had them come off after sitting with full pressure for a 
number of days. I once foolishly didn't leave the axle nut as a safety. 
The drum flew across the garage and put a hole in the wall. If I'd been 
near it, I would have killed me. It takes a lot of pressure to get the 
drum off. Its made that way on purpose.

Here in Washington, we just had a serious freak accident on I-5. A 
large freight hauler flat bed truck lost one side pair of dual wheels. 
They came off, rolled into a van and killed the passenger. The picture 
of the truck showed the brake shoes, backing plate, and axle still 
intact on the truck. The picture of the loose dual wheels showed that 
nothing had come undone from the outside, and the drum was still 
attached to the inside wheel. I suspect that they might find that the 
axle nut broke, or possibly the cotter key used to lock it was left 
out. I don't know if modern big rigs still use tapered axles, but if 
any of them do, you can bet that they are a lot harder to remove than 
our older style Imperials.

Paul W.

-----Original Message-----
From: a1web@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Sat, 12 May 2007 12:26 PM
Subject: Re: IML: Brake Drum Removal - 2 questions addressed

Thank you for your advise its all very good. First off the minute I 
heard what i thought was metal on metal in the rear I parked the car. 
So I am pretty sure there is no grove. Like i said i have applied all 
the advise that has been given to me. I have a impact wrench, i used it 
for so long that i feel Ive weekend the wrench. i don't see how the 
brake would be keeping the drum on since the wheel spins freely. i have 
backed off the adjustment screws. i welcome your help though bro i am 
curios at this point on how and what is keeping this drum from breaking 
free. i live in Santa Rosa ca. 3774 Kansas dr. i would like to meet 
another chrysler person in person. i never have. i have never even seen 
a car like mind in the 20 years ive had this one. It only has 40,000 
miles on it . It had 26,000 when i bought it.

Kenyon Wills <imperialist1960@xxxxxxxxx> wrote: Mark,

If your shoes are metal on metal, you have a potential
problem. If the shoes were run that way for awhile,
they might have gouged out furrows in the drum surface
that would result in a trough that the shoes sit in.
The wheel would spin freely, but the shoes would be
inside of the gouge with a lip that would hook the
edge of the brake pads that will keep the drum from
sliding off. If the XXX is the shoe, you can see how
the "wall" of metal (I) would prevent lateral motion
if the shoe were down inside a valley that it had
carved for itself.

I IXXXI I
I IXXXXXI I
I___________I
I___________I


I presume that there is no hydraulic fluid in the
line, but cutting the flex hose and releasing any
pressure would be one step that should not be
overlooked.

There is an adjustment port on many models that has a
star-wheel. These things get crudded up and often
don't work well to back off the adjustment, but the
star wheel or whatever adjuster there is to move the
shoes closer to the drum should be backed off.

Jumping off the roof is pretty inventive. I'm sure
that you're one of the few people alive that has that
in their resume, since it's pretty unorthodox, but my
hat's off to you for coming up with that one.

When you jumped on the breaker bar, you applied one
strike on the threads in your attempt to spin the
center part of the puller.

This is opposite of how I see the tool being used
best.

I suggest that you throw away that dog-bone extension
that you use with a hammer, and skip using all hand or
manual tools. Move to a pneumatic or electric impact
wrench. I have a crappy, old one that pulls these
things off for me just fine, but there are newer,
expensive ones that put out at least 1200 foot-pounds
of torque:

http://www.homedepot.com/prel80/HDUS/EN_US/diy_main/pg_diy.jsp?CNTTYPE=PROD_META&CNTKEY=misc/searchResults.jsp&N=2984+3918&cm_mmc=hd_goog-_-SearchRedo-_-D-25X-_-bid20767702-impact_wrench

These would presumably be rentable, so a visit to your
local commercial tool rental place would be in order.

The deal here is that the rotary wrench will apply
repeated blows over time. You can sit and hold the
trigger for 10 minutes if you have to, and apply
hundreds of pounds of repeated blows in a very tight
sequence. You can also repeatedly apply the pressure
in a consistent way if you take breaks.

I'm not much of a fan of the heat solution, but if
you're holding the wrench and driving it while your
buddy applies heat to the drum near the hub, you'd
presumably expand the drum faster than the steel
spindle. The blows would also work on any rust that's
in there, breaking it free that way.


Lastly, if the drum isn't removable, the axle
certainly is, and at some point or another, you're
going to have to make a decision. There are enough of
this low-wear item around to make a replacement a
viable path around something that you just can't get
removed.

Mark, I'm in your area and my offer to help remove
your drum removal stands. I've done about 15 axles
worth so far, and will help you if I can.



sorry it's hanging you up so.


-K




--- Mark Battesby wrote:

> Hi Don I live in california the northern area 60
> miles north of san francisco. This is my second
> puller I snapped the first one in half after I put a
> extention bar on it and jumped off a ladder on it .
> 200 lbs from five feet . I have banged on it so much
> that I probably have damaged it . the rear brakes
> are on metel to metal so untill i change the shoes I
> really cant drive it. If i releast the e-bake the
> whell does spin . should i have it in gear or does
> that make a difference ?
>
> DON SAVARD wrote:
> Put the Hub puller as tight as you can without
> breaking/busting anything. Jack up the affected
> wheel and leave it alone. Check it once a week and
> retighten as necessary. Like Morgan Freeman said on
> Shawsank Redemption" Geology is a science of time
> and pressure". You are trying to break something
> free that has been setting up for years if not
> decades. Give it "time and pressure" and it will
> ultimately "pop" off. When all else fails-time and
> pressure. You've had this car for 20 years and it is
> an Imperial which proves you have patience. Don't
> get impatient yet. In what state (besides
> frustration) do you live?
> Imperially
> Don Savard
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Mark Battesby
> To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Sent: Friday, May 11, 2007 5:27 PM
> Subject: IML: 1961 chrysler imperial brake drum
>
>
> I wrote about a month ago asking how to get off a
> stuck rear brake drum. I was given allot of advise .
> Ive been very carefull to follow everyones ideas on
> how to get the drum off. First let me say that this
> car is in excellent condition and is garaged and
> driven all the time. It shows no rust or ware of
> anykind. Ive been trying for a month to get this
> drum to brake loose and so far nothing. Ive soaked
> it in tran fluid, I back off the nut a half inch and
> put the wheel back on and drove the heck out of it
> slamming on the brakes even doing burn outs and 180
> degree spin outs . still nothing. Ive try banging on
> it while useing a impact wrench . Ive got the best
> puller money can buy what is left to do. What in
> heck is keeping this drum on . I am at the end of my
> wits. I am either going to sell the car that I have
> restored for the past 20 years or check myself into
> a mental hospital any final advise on this ??


Kenyon Wills

























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