Brake drum removal

[bjbrownie]

An old tip I was told many years ago but only used once or twice, was if the brake drum is difficult to remove even after backing the adjusters off, was to pour a kettle full of boiling water over the brake drum and quickly use a rubber faced mallet and a sturdy pry bar to remove it (my puller wouldn't fit over the drum)-I removed a stubborn rear axle drum this way tonite, I suppose in the age of disc brakes and modern car technology no one hardly ever messes with these things!
Pleasantly surprised when the drum came off, recent new shoes were in place and only a slight wear lip on the drum internal surface-the previous owner must have renewed all the brake shoes along with the bottom trunnions to get it through its last mot.

[bmcecosse]

But the drum would only be tight if the cylinder(s) are seized......check before refitting the drum.

[bjbrownie]

The cars front & rear drums were 'dragging' slightly, but the brake pistons weren't seized-I had backed the adjusters off when inspecting the brakes before doing the bodywork,it had new shoes and pistons on the rear and new shoes front-a layer of rust had formed on the inside surface, possibly from when I jet washed Martha before dismantling the bodywork, but the boiling water trick worked.
Incidentally, I was impressed with the fact that all off the slave cylinder bolts came off relatively easily!