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I was told by my garage that they coudn\'t get one of the rear brake drums off to check the brake linings, as the linings had probably scored their own groove into the inner of the drum. The handbrake now doesn\'t seem to work on this side. Can anyone tell me if this means that the whole drum assembly will have to be renewed.
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What make and model of car would that be then
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It\'s a \'92 BMW 518. Passed it\'s MOT in December last year, but for the past few weeks, applying the handbrake when moving slowly or doing a hill start causes the rear to squat down on the nearside only, so I\'m assuming there\'s no friction on the offside. Tightening the adjuster on the handbrake itself doesn\'t help.
{car details duly added to subject header, and spelling of break substituted for brake. DD}.
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It can get pretty difficult if there is a large groove, but it's not beyond the wit of man - first time I did it was on a 12 year old car, and it was the first car work I'd ever done. It's not _that_ hard. :-)
Suspect they couldn't be bothered wiggling it.
-M.
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Difficult they can be to remove.impossible no.drum will have to come off anyway and may damage the brake linnings in the process.bearing in mind if the wear in drum is severe they will both need replacing.with the brake shoes.
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Was mech1
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Ensure car is safely supported on 2 axle stands.
Remove wheel and expose offending drum.
Take one 14lb (6.5kg) sledge hammer and after a couple of practice swings clout offending drum on a sharp corner: preferably where the face which touches the wheel meets the diameter of the drum.
Continue to hit until it smashes.
Buy new drum..
Warning cast iron is dangerous and sharp.. I would wear saefty googles, hard shoes and baggy overalls.. and ensue no other cars were in vicinity.
madf
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Steve o's got it right. Make sure you release the handbrake cable adjustment though.
If the drum is loose but trapped by the shoes you might well need new shoes / springs / adjusters as damage is inevitable when forcing the drum off.
A tool I've used for many years is a cross pein hammer, the pein is about 5mm thick and about 35mm long, the 5mm enables it to be slotted in between the drum and the backplate, and twisted using the handle to move the drum 35mm. It works a treat!
By the way DD I used to work in a garage that had a Crypton Brake tester, and across the front in the makers decals was Crypton Break Tester !
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Bit drastic madf.I have never had to smash one off.
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Was mech1
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Are these the big drums or handbrake drums built into discs?
On BMWs and other RWDs, I have found the drums built into discs have to be adjusted by turning a cog with a screwdriver, this is accesses through a wheel bolt hole and is near the top. If you have big drums (no discs) , maybe these are similar?
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You took it to a garage so you may not be the sort to do your own work.
The drum might need replacing anyway, and a couple of drums isn't going to break the bank.
Make sure the hand-brake cable is disconnected, and follow instructions for inserting a screwdriver through a hole to make sure they are fully wound back inside - or use screwdriver to unhook an internal spring as per instructions.
If it still wont come off, hit very hard with hammer to see if it moves.
If it still doesn't come try attaching a three arm puller and apply heat to the central part of the drum on the outer face, where the drum meets the hub. Best to use an oxy-acetelyne torch for this, get it red hot. If no puller just use hammer.
If it really wont come off, you could try smashing it as that guy above suggested, (not sure that is a good method as more damage could be done with those blows) maybe better to use an angle grinder to cut through it, and then cold-chisel a crack through any remaining bits.
was kev_is_here
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Thanks for the replies. Yes, all this hitting with hammers and cutting with torches sounds a bit too much for me, but at least now if the mechanic says it'll need a whole new drum assembly I can ask him if he's sure he can't get the present one apart. Mind you, this is the same garage that ran the car's battery flat by accidently leaving the ignition on for 6 hours.
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Thanks for the replies. Yes, all this hitting with hammers and cutting with torches sounds a bit too much for me, but at least now if the mechanic says it'll need a whole new drum assembly I can ask him if he's sure he can't get the present one apart. Mind you, this is the same garage that ran the car's battery flat by accidently leaving the ignition on for 6 hours.
It HAS to come off to be able to change it, make no mistake about that. One way or another it will have to come off. Your garage will have their own way of doing things, but as you say they have given up once allready. I don't see why they gave up in the first place, because, as I said it HAS to come off.
They may have to damage it to get it off, but if I was them I would try heating the mating surfaces (where it is sticking) before I decided to break it off.
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was kev_is_here
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I suspect they were worried about causing damage.but I think they should have told you damage may occur during removal of the drum.I doubt they will use heat on it in case of damaging wheel bearing.puller would seem best bet including a lot of leverage.and as I said before damage will occur to shoes.it has also been said nothing else can be done untill it is removed.
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Was mech1
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If the oxy-acetelene gear doesn't work, the sledgehammers don't budge it, and the angle grinder won't do it - all I can suggest is one of those large iron ball thingies that are swung from cranes.
Be very careful though, ear defenders and goggles are a must.
I've been removing stuck brake drums for the last 40 odd years and never yet had to resort to some of the methods described. A bit of patience and 'know how' always works.
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