I have an 96 Nissan Sentra that hasn't moved for a number of years. I retracted the front brake piston easily. I whacked one of the rear drums free with a little trouble. The other drum I cannot get to move.
What is the easiest way to free the rear brake drum?
There should be two holes in the front of the drum that you can put two bolts into, tighten them, and simply extract it off.
I would spray some good penetrating oil around the hub/drum area, whack it with a hammer, and repeat the process a couple of times over a few hours before cranking the bolts. Take the other drum with you to the store to get the proper thread for the extractor bolts.
I'm assuming you've backed the shoes down already.
8 x 1.25 MM. Mine are about 1.5 inches long and kept in the tool bag.
You mean the car won't move/roll because the shoes are frozen to the drum? If this is the case, you just have to rock it back and forth (sometimes you have to get pretty rough with them) to get them to release. Like you tried, sometimes smacking the drum with a hammer will help.
Done that. I put the lug nuts on and whacked it plenty hard. It was good enough for one but not the other.
May have to get a manual and disassemble. I was hoping to avoid that. I just want to roll it out of the way.
Torch the wheel off.
The bitch is you aren't going to be able to "disassemble" if you can't get it to turn, the drum isn't going to come off if the shoes are stuck to them without destroying a bunch of stuff. Try heating the drum up with a propane torch and then smack it some more. Been down this road with Z's that have been sitting for decades, sometimes the only "good" solution is to either torch the drums off or break them off with a sledge hammer. It's cheaper than trashing all the stuff inside the drum.
You have been down this road. I'm going to trash it.
The sheet metal is excellent, but that is it.
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