brake drum adjustment problem

[68AMXGOPAC]

Well , I really knew you were serious, but they are so prone to breaking, I would fear to hit them. I usually soak them with PB Blater for a couple of days ahead.I also will hit a phillips or a bolt straight on to " shock" it, with the driver or socket in place, it does work well, or even try to give it a jolt in the tightening direction to.Alot of the bikes I work on are from the early 20's to 30's , takes alot of patience to get some fastners out.I have trouble getting sockets/wrenches for the BSF applications. ( British fine thread).

[Jurjen]

Yes they are prone to breaking. So when you plan ahead, soaking is a good idea.
I didn't say you have to hit them hard, but you need the mass of the hammer to shock them loose. Easy does it, Germans call it "Fingerspitzen Gefuhl" (fingertip sensitivity).

[kajsdf]

i was able to use a socket wrench on mine. 

managed to get the cylinders pretty much completely compressed but now i have a new problem -- the drums still don't fit. managed to get one on, but that one is worn to just barely outside acceptable specs...and it still rubs on the shoe.

i am now thinking e-brake tension is not allowing the shoes to get as close together as they need to be...thoughts?

[68AMXGOPAC]

could be, did you put that ebrake bar that goes between the shoes back on right ??It lays across the top of the axle and is notched, fits in a slot in each shoe.......there should be a blow up picture I would think in the Eaglepedia?? Not sure.

[BenM]

Well , I really knew you were serious, but they are so prone to breaking, I would fear to hit them. I usually soak them with PB Blater for a couple of days ahead.I also will hit a phillips or a bolt straight on to " shock" it, with the driver or socket in place, it does work well, or even try to give it a jolt in the tightening direction to.Alot of the bikes I work on are from the early 20's to 30's , takes alot of patience to get some fastners out.I have trouble getting sockets/wrenches for the BSF applications. ( British fine thread).

I've some of those "Witworth" sockets in my box. Occasionally they work for worn bolts, but I've never used them on a British fastener.

Lots of good ideas for freeing the bleeders. You might as well replace them if they're hard to remove, they're cheap. I've pulled them out of cars and seen a little anti-seize on the threads too, but I don't know how it would affect brake fluid and parts.

[Jurjen]

I found a picture of a typical AMC rear brake lay-out.
You can check wether you have all the parts in the right location.
http://www.marlinautoclub.com/marlin-guy/images/rear/image037.jpg

[kajsdf]

everything is as it appears in that picture, except for where the e-brake bracket sits on the left side of the picture -- it is not nearly that close and i believe that to be the issue...any ideas how to remove that tension? i have tried the brake release switch in the car

[Jurjen]

You can undo the e-brake from the balancer near the left rear wheel and work from there
(see if you can slide it in and out).
Last time I did the rear brakes I removed the rear e-brake cables completely and gave them a good lube job.

[maximus7001]

I would just replace the cylinders while you got it apart. They are real cheap and can be a serious safety concern.

[kajsdf]

i think i will probably do that...

jurjen, what did you use to lube the cables?

[Jurjen]

To get them going again, I used WD40 (you could probably use PB blaster).
Them I lubed them with a thin engine oil (5W40 or whatever you have in store).

[kajsdf]

finding time to work on this is tough....got too much going on...kinda sad that a job that should be done in an afternoon has taken me over two weeks...

anyway the cables are frozen basically from the T plate where they attach to the pedal-cable to the wheel itself.  using the e pedal in the car i can tension them properly but upon releasing the pedal, the tension releases up front like it should but the cables do not 'spring' back where they should inside the wheel itself.

i replaced the cylinders as well so i know they are not a problem.

any ideas?

jurjen, eggs to you for your help so far...

[Jurjen]

Thanks for the Eggs. Frozen E-brake cables are a common problem.
When the cables are frozen, it can be difficult to get them going again.
When time is on your side, you can remove them and hang them vertically and spray PB blaster (regularly) from the top. You then have to wait until it comes dripping from the bottom.
This may take a few hours, but may also take two weeks.
New cables are still available from Rockauto and cost about  $20 each.