Removing Stubborn Rear Hubs - Drum Brakes

[Batfink 201]

I am swapping a rear beam and i've come across a problem. Basically I cannot remove one drum. I've released the brakes inside so they are not pressing on the casing, but i've broken a hub pulling tool with the amount of force I was trying to use to pull the hub apart.

Basically I think the cover over the hub nut was not on while at the scrapyard so the outer bearing may have rusted...either that or its just a real git.

I dont mind destroying the bearing so whats the simplest solution to remove it. I'm thinking heat it with a blow torch and smash the bearing to pieces? If I can remove the outer bearings I think it will come off.

[pug_ham 243 3 Cars]

Could you drive the stub axle out the back of the radius arm & through the bearing to remove it?

 

Graham.

[gowmonster 2]

is there not a toothed catch on one of the brake shoes that needs to be released by poking a screwdriver through one of the wheel bolt holes? i'm guessing that the wear on the hub has lipped it so the shoes are preventing it from coming off.

 

Edited March 22, 2010 by gowmonster

[Anthony 1,002]

Could you drive the stub axle out the back of the radius arm & through the bearing to remove it?

This. I've had to resort to this on an extremely stuborn drum before that just would not come off by any conventional method.

[Batfink 201]

gowmonster - the drum spins freely so its not a problem with the brake shoes holding things in place. The hub is solid on the bearing.

 

Pugtorque / Anthony - I'll try to hammer the stub axle through!

 

Kev

[Anthony 1,002]

Pugtorque / Anthony - I'll try to hammer the stub axle through!

If you're planning on reusing the stub axle, be sure to put a nut on the end so that you hit that rather than the stub axle itself, as it's very easy to deform the end of the stub axle and render the threads useless. If it's anything like the one I had to do (and breaking a hub puller suggests that it is) then you will need to hit it repeatedly as hard as you can with the biggest hammer you can before it'll move.

 

Alternatively, if you can get the arm off the beam, pressing the stub axle out with a hydraulic press is a much better/easier/quieter way - if you were closer, I'd offer to press it out for free for you if you bought the arm over.

[welshpug 1,645]

That would be the only thing I could suggest if you don't have a puller, guess you don't have a press?

[Batfink 201]

Sadly I dont have a press. I'll add it to the tools I require in the future list! The good thing is I have spares from the knackered beam I took off all ready. I will get a hub nut on and i've got an appropriate hammer in mind!

I didnt particularly want to remove the trailing arm and disturb the seals but we will see what happens and whether I have to....

[pug_ham 243 3 Cars]

is there not a toothed catch on one of the brake shoes that needs to be released by poking a screwdriver through one of the wheel bolt holes? i'm guessing that the wear on the hub has lipped it so the shoes are preventing it from coming off.

It depends on what beam Kev is trying to remove the hub from.

 

The picture you posted is for the Bendix rear shoes of lower spec models & not the Girling rears as fitted to the 1.6 GTI.

 

Graham.

[Batfink 201]

The beam is from a low model 206 so has the girling rear shoes I think. Looked the same as in the 205 haynes manual anyway

 

an update!

Hammering the stub axle did nothing so I resorted to the anglegrinder.

I cut around the drum until I could remove the main casing with a lot of bashing of the BFH. This left the part of the drum the bearing sits in.

This required a lot more cutting away until I could get the grinder onto the bearing itself. I destroyed the outer bearing and got the rest of the drum off but the metal sleeve over the stub axle still would not move.

I used a dremel to weaken the sleeve, then applied a lot of heat onto the parts before drifting the sleeve round and off.

The inner race had the same problem so I used the dremel to make a notch on it and I drifted that off.

Took an afternoon.

I'll snap a few pictures of the destroyed drum tomorrow

The stub axle seems to be ok. I've burnt off the seals but I will be able to get replacements from the other beam, as well as another drum with an ok bearing.

 

Good times

Edited March 24, 2010 by Batfink

[welshpug 1,645]

sounds like good fun