New cast iron brake drum rubs on shoes

[Dave in Petaluma]

Recently I bought a pair of cast iron front drums when Mike's had a sale on them. These are the USA made drums (I think). They came with new hubs and lug studs installed, and I had them cut for a better surface and new shoes arced to fit.

On assembly I found I could not tighten the wheel bearings on one side without locking up the drum. Disassembly shows the drum to be rubbing on the outside edge of the shoes and backing plates.

As I see it, I have two options: cut the drum deeper on the inner surface or grind the edges of the shoes and backing plates. A third option occurs to me, though. Can I put shim behind the inner bearing to move the whole drum/hub assembly outward a bit? I was hoping to take a trip in the car tomorrow.

[Tom Wesenberg]

Have you tried swaping the front drums side to side?

[Charlie Stephens]

Option 4, call Mike's. Let us know how they handle the problem. It is his problem unless you are leaving something out. The real measure of a business in not if they make mistakes but how they handle them. Please post the results.

Charlie Stephens

[J Franklin]

Are the shoes centered and in plane with the drum?

[Dave in Petaluma]

I haven't tried swapping the drums, but that is a good idea. The shoes are centered and in plane with the drum.
For now I've put the old drum back on that side, as I've got to go to work, but I'll post when I figure this out, and I thank you for your replies.

[wrndln]

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I had the same problem when I install new drums/hubs on the rear I bought from Mike's last winter. The fronts were OK as is. I ended up filing down the outer 1" to 1 1/2" of the brake shoes. After I went through the process two or three times, the drums tuned OK. I just used a large rasp to file a little off the ends. It may not have been precise but worked fine.
Rusty Nelson

[Ed Northrop]

I replaced my drums with cast iron drums and when I installed them they bottomed out on the brake shoe. I checked my original drums and the inside face was a 90 degree angle to brake shoe area. The cast iron drum was rounded I had to put them back on the lathe and cut that area out. This solved the problem. This was front and rear drums.

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

There are some bearings out there that don't seem to be as deep on the inner race and it allows the hub to ride in further. See if you can get a bearing number off that inner bearing and I will look to see if I have the number of a bearing that works.

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

See if it is a Timken 15118

[peters180a/170b]

Thank you for posting the number...

[Dave in Petaluma]

The inner bearing is marked Koyo 15118, a Japanese brand purchased from my local bearing house a couple of years ago. The races were in the hubs when delivered.

[charlesea]

If the drum is going in too far and scrubbing on the inside have you put in axle shims?

[CarlG]

Originally Posted by charlesea

If the drum is going in too far and scrubbing on the inside have you put in axle shims?

Unless I'm mistaken, that only works on the rear drums. Dave was asking about fronts.

[redmodelt]

Simple fix would be to put a bevel on the outer edge of the lining.

[Duffy1]

Not trying to high jack this tread ,but has anyone had this problem with the drums and backing plate and shoes Snyder sells . Appreciate your input .

[Frank Miller]

The old drum works but the new one does not. The first thing I would do is start measuring and figure out what is different. Then you know what needs to be fixed by how much.

[Cajun]

I found a similar problem. I had to take off .020 from the new drum. It was not quite true (round). It appears that the new brake linings are thicker or the drum has a high spot.

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

Originally Posted by BRENT in 10-uh-C

See if it is a Timken 15118

When I measure a Timken bearing setting face down, the shoulder of the backside measures .825" deep. Does yours measure the same??

[JBill]

Originally Posted by Duffy1

Not trying to high jack this tread ,but has anyone had this problem with the drums and backing plate and shoes Snyder sells . Appreciate your input .

Mine are from Snyder's and I didn't have this problem.

[V4F]

call mikes & get the correct bearings for the races .