Date:         Mon, 20 Jan 1997 16:51:12 -0500 (EST)
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         SyncroHead@aol.com
Subject:      Re: Brake Drum Removal (OOPS!)

In a message dated 97-01-19 11:01:33 EST, young@sherlock.SIMS.Berkeley.EDU
(Beth Young) writes:

> > (Beth Young) writes:
> > > Well, you don't HAVE to remove the hub.  The hub and drum on the
Vanagon 
> > > are "split", so you can remove the drum without removing the hub. 
 
> > True.  The drum and hub are seprable.

> > >Besides, that way you don't need a giant socket, a hub 
> > > puller and a breaker bar capable of 360 ft-lbs.
 
> > Sorry.  Yes you do.  The drum can't come off without taking off the big
46mm
> > "castle" nut.  After you remove the nut, you could remove the two bolts
that
> > hld the hub to the drum and then remove the drum without the hub, but I
don't
> > see why anyone would want to do such a thing.

Then, Tom Young (aka Beth Young) wrote and corrected my correction as
follows:

>  Now, think about this a bit....... The drum is a COMPLETELY seperate 
>  piece of metal from the hub.  The drum is held to the hub by the two small
>  bolts and nothing else.  Remove the two nuts and there is NOTHING holding 
>  the drum in place.  YOU DON'T NEED TO REMOVE THE 46mm NUT to remove  > the
hub (in theory).
>  
>  I throw in the "in theroy" qualifier because frequently the hub and the 
>  drum weld themselves together with rust, and it can be a PITA to try and 
>  get just the drum off.  There was a recent thread about seperating the 
>  two in such a condition; get a big hammer and hit the drum hard to break 
>  the bond between the two.  The other thing that can happen is the drum 
>  gets worn away by the brake shoes to such an entent that the drum has a 
>  deep (~1mm) "valley" where the shoe rubs against it, making it hard to 
>  get the drum off without backing off the shoes.
>  
>  Since you just did the year brakes on the wife's car (and, I'm assuming, 
>  seperated the drum and hub while you had them off) run out to the car 
>  RIGHT NOW (I also assume it's nice and warm where you live) and try it.  
>  While you have your drum off, put a small smear of grease where the drum 
>  and hub come together so they don't weld themselves together again.  

Tim Smith also wrote:
>??????????   You have a very unique vanagon in that case! both my '85s and
>the '87 didn't need pulling the axle bolt. Same as all buses back to '72
>that I can remember, maybe further. I don't own a 46mm socket (1-13/16" same
>BTW)  The drum centre hole is ample big enough to pass over the nut.  Tim

I goofed!!  I didn't see that the metal face behind the 46mm nut belonged to
the hub instead of to the drum.  I've never seperated the drum from the hub.
 After taking off the drum and hub as a unit to get to the brakes, I didn't
need to.  I wouldn't want to try to replace the brake components with that
hub in the way though.

Also, Sean & Harvey wrote messages helping to correct my errant ways.

Thanks for setting me straight.

Regards,
Jim Davis
87 GL Syncro
88 GL Wolfsburg