1966 c-10 brake help

[AMF]

I was going to replace my brakes today, but I ran into a problem. I got the the drums off and got new ones, but I need to know how to get the hubs off the old drums.

Thanks,
Joel

[Chevy Fleetside]

You have to press each lug bolt out and the hub should come out.. You might have to take it to a machine shop and have it done. You might have to have the new drums turned after the hubs are pressed back on as they may not be true and that makes for some shakey stops...

[AMF]

I did press each lug bolt out (prior to posting) but the hub still didn't come out. Wanted to post and see if there was some sort of trick to it that I was missing. Guess i'll work on it a bit more and see what happens. Thanks for the reply, I appreciate it. =)

[chevy_mike]

I don't recall having to take the studs out to pull the drum off the hub. Normally the hub stays on the spindle and you remove the drum when you would have to replaces the shoes. I am assuming you pulled the hub/drum as one unit, correct?

Most likley the hubs are rusted to the drums. I have had that happen before. It most likely will require a BFH and a block of wood (or metal) to protect the face of the hub and beat the crap out of it. Some good pentitrating oil and a wire brush will help loosen the rust.

Good luck.

[AMF]

Right, I pulled the hub/drum as one unit. I've sprayed some wd-40 on it and let it sit for awhile, and used the hammer/wood approach to no avail. I'll go after it with a wire brush here shortly and some more wd-40, then i'll get a bigger hammer =D

(As for the drivers side, I pulled it off in 2 units: The face of the drum/hub as one piece, and the ring of the drum as another. It came apart while I was driving and that was the reason for me doing this bit of brake work to begin with...Never seen that happen before, lol)

[AMF]

1/2 a can of wd-40, a wire brush, two 2x4's, two 4x4's and the help of various hammers of different sizes...and i've still got nothing apart. It's like the hubs are welded to the drums, they haven't budged at all. I'm kind of at a loss here...

[rickf]

WD-40 is really a very good penetrating oil. Get some real penetrating oil. I am currently using some stuff called Pyroil (or something like that). I "won" this stuff at a vintage dirtbike gathering, it works great.

That wood is absorbing a lot of you impact force. I use some hefty copper pins for punches, something like 7/8" dia and 5" long. I got these at a farm "yard sale". A copper hammer or brass hammer, or any suitable sized piece of any metal softer than your steel hub. Except lead, which is too soft.

I had the same helluva time getting one of my hubs separated (on a 64 C10). It took very literally a week. Each day, I applied more pentrating oil, whacked it some more, applied more oil, then let it set til the next day. Once in the morning before work, again in the evening after work. Started the process one weekend, it finally came apart the next weekend. When you're whacking it, it could be moving imperceptively. This opens cracks to allow more oil penetration.

If you're in more of a hurry, go to a machine shop and hire their hydraulic press, a few tons of pressure ought to move it.

[rickf]

OOPS I meant to say WD40 is NOT really a very good penetrating oil ...

[AMF]

WD-40 is all I had on hand, so I figured i'd give it a try and see if it did any good. I'm doing the same thing you did, though. Spraying it, letting it sit, hammering it, repeating. I'll do that for a couple days and if it's still not off, i'll just take it to a machine shop.

Thanks again for all the help, everyone =)

[PrerunnerRob]

If that still doesnt work, I use this stuff called Rust Buster that I get at one of my HVAC suppply shops for work. I have no idea what is in this evil concoction, but it works miricles in just minuites. Just my 2 cents!

Oh yea, the secrect to breaking rust is letting the solvent sit for a minuite, then tapping what ever part you are working on gently every once in a while to allow it to break down the rust and penetrate further, and add more as needed.

[PrerunnerRob]

Never mind part of my last post, you already got the hammering thing figured out!

[AMF]

Oh, definitely...I can make (almost) anything work so long as there's a large hammer involved
Come morning I should have it all figured out, I guess we'll see.

[PrerunnerRob]

Not to be a tird, but someone didn't do you the favor of welding the hub and drum together before, right?

[slorio]

Can you post a picture of the drum/ hub? Mine had rivets that had to be ground off to get the drum separated from the hub. If there aren't any rivets and if the hammer has not been successful, I would take it to a parts store that has a press. It is not worth damaging the hub for the few dollars that a store would charge you to press the old one off.
Regards,
Steve

[stsalvage]

i would take a torch and heat up around the drum and bang on it a few times it should brake it lose just us the torch go all the way around the drum as close to the hub as you can be sure not to stay in one place to ling and make sure the torch is showing the blue flame not the orange fire flame and get that thing nice and simi glowing and move on arounf the drum the rust hates Heat

[AMF]

Good news. I finally got the hubs off last night. Ended up just taking a torch to it and heated it up, banged on it, heated it up, banged on it....finally, I heard the glorious "thud" when it fell out of the drum and onto the cardboard below it

Once again, I do appreciate all of you for your help. Good day and God bless

[SkylineNXS]

Nice job, i actually had the exact same problem today while working on mine. I ground off the little pressed things that hold on the drum. Now i have a problem, i was wondering how the brake cylinder comes off of the brake assembly? I took off the shoes and springs and all that, and my brake cylinders shot, so i want to replace it. Do i unscrew the stud thing that is all the way at the top of the assembly? This is for the front brakes. Thanks......

Brad