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Modifying rear drums to separate from the hub?

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  • Brakes: Modifying rear drums to separate from the hub?

    I removed 1 of the drum and hub assemblies from the rear of my 53 Commander last night. I followed all the tips I could find, but didn't have to resort to heat. Anyway, I remembered seeing a post some time back about modifying the studs so that the drum comes off the hub w/o removing the hub from the axle. I found the post at http://forum.studebakerdriversclub.c...=drum+separate

    What can anyone share for real-world experience on this? Shoud I do it? I am not out to win any "factory'-correct" awards. I just don't want to go thru again. Are there other posts about this?

    PS. I used the O'Reilly rental tool 67032. It worked well. If I don't mod the drums, I may just keep it. $22 if I don't return it.
    Rob in ND
    \'53 Commander resto-mod (work in process)

  • #2
    The drums are swedged onto the hub. My good ol boy detroyed three good drums trying to get the hubs loose. If it's a Dana 44, you can upgrade your rears. My 55 has 10 inch rears, but those are getting hard to find, too.
    Dave Warren (Perry Mason by day, Perry Como by night)

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    • #3
      A PO modified my Lark by cutting the swages, then peening the stud openings so that the drums would be centered on the hub. I haven't changed this, because it seems to work OK - the car drives and stops well, and it's certainly convenient until I do the Fairborn axle swap. But the key is getting the drums to center - if they're eccentric, you will have tons of drivability problems.

      Clark in San Diego | '63 Standard (F2) "Barney" | http://studeblogger.blogspot.com

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      • #4
        Well, since I own the puller, I think it's kind of pointless. Once you've used the puller a few times, it becomes easy. Usually the drums that are hard to pull are the ones that have been neglected a long time. A car that is a current driver usually will be easy to do.

        But if you want to do it, first drill, tap and countersink two holes between the existing studs. I'd go with 1/4-28 NF flathead brass screws, and you have to countersink enough that there is no possibility of the screw heads interfering with the seating of the wheel. And the screws can't be too long, either for obvious reasons. The screws will act as dowels, and center the drum on the hub. Japanese cars used to use them a lot.

        OK. Having set up your dowel screws, now use a swage cutter (try to find one!) to cut the swage off the studs. If you can't find a swage cutter, maybe an old-time brake shop will have one, and be able to cut the swages for you. Failing that, I'd use a zip disc cutoff wheel to cut each stud off above the swage, center punch it as accurately as possible, and drill it with a succession of larger drills until the metal of the drum just appears in the drilled hole hole. Then you can drive out the remainder with a suitable punch, supporting the drum on a piece of pipe that just clears the head of the stud.

        You cannot simply drive out the studs as they are. The swage will stretch the holes in the drum, warping it, and it will stretch the hole in the hub enough that new studs won't fit properly. You really, really don't want to have a stud come loose in the hub with a lug nut still attached to the threads.
        Gord Richmond, within Weasel range of the Alberta Badlands

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        • #5
          Originally posted by gordr View Post
          Well, since I own the puller, I think it's kind of pointless. Once you've used the puller a few times, it becomes easy. Usually the drums that are hard to pull are the ones that have been neglected a long time. A car that is a current driver usually will be easy to do.
          This is what I was hoping to hear. I will keep the puller and leave the setup as is.
          Rob in ND
          \'53 Commander resto-mod (work in process)

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