Brake drum problem

If you look from under the vehicle at the brake back plate, you will see four bolts with 13mm heads. Undo these, and the whole drum and hub assembly come away. This gives you easy access to the shoes, and avoids disturbing the bearings.

This method is the one advocated by both Haynes, and Ford TIS.

HTH

Chris

The shoes are holding it on. Back off the shoe adjuster behind the drum and then give it a few goods whacks on the rim with a hammer. It should just fall off.

"Dave Baker" wrote

I thought that, but the wheel is spinning freely. It does have that rubber plug on the back that allows access to the adjuster, so it wont do any harm in trying, but I thought you only had to back off the adjuster until the wheel could spin ?

"Chris Whelan" wrote

I dont think there are 4 bolts? I'll take a picture later of the rear and post a link for you to see.

Not if the shoes are in a wear lip in an old drum and a bit of rust sticking things together for good measure. 30 years ago I was a callow youth trying to remove my first set of brake drums off my Morris Marina outside my uncle's garage in Derbyshire. I got the first wheel off, backed the shoes off, the drum was rotating freely but no matter how I pulled and levered at it I couldn't budge it. Just then a wizened old man walking his dog came by and paused to watch me sweating. "Avin trouble lad?" he asked. "Yeah", I said "I don't know what's still holding this drum on." "Nowt but ignorance lad" he opined and asked me to get a big hammer. I found a claw hammer which he looked at distainfully. "Nay lad, a big 'ammer." So I went back into the garage and found a 4lb lump hammer which he seemed to approve of. "Now giv't drum a few whacks onth side wi that" he suggested.

I tapped at it tentatively a few times afraid I'd break something. He tutted and sucked air in through his teeth. "Gi'it me lad" he said and proceeded to beat seven types of crap out of the rim of the drum, turning it the while, while I looked on in horror expecting it to shatter into a thousand pieces any second. "Now try it lad" he said and it just fell off into my hands when I pulled at it.

He wandered off with his dog and I found the second drum a much easier proposition with my new found knowledge. It was 20 years later before I finally twigged what "nowt but ignorance" had meant which I didn't understand at the time and wasn't sure if I'd heard correctly. He was quite right though.

Not if the drum has worn. If the shoes have worn the drum then there will be a ridge which is why you have to back the adjuster off even more.

-- Malc

Haha. When I was training as a mechanic back in the late 80s, I started working in a small local garage run by a mate of my grans. One Saturday morning a woman brought in an old mini for new shoes - a pre arranged emergency job. She was stood there watching as my boss did exactly the same to her "baby" with a look of horror on her face :-)

Mike P

If there are not four bolts as I've described, then it must be an Escort van!

Chris

"Chris Whelan" wrote

Hi Chris

is this the bolts you mean ?

Does it look to you like there is one of the top 2 bolts missing here ???

The 4 big bolts are the ones to undo, they look as though they are 17mm in your case.

The missing upper bolt are the ones that retain the wheel cylinder to the backplate. If both the holes are available and threaded then there should be a bolt in each.

Mrcheerful

What Mr Cheerful said.

Chris

I have just spent several days welding up an old carlton estate for a customer, it wasn't really worth doing, but the customer decided it was better the devil you know.......

So I do work some of the time, just not all the time!!!!

Mrcheerful