1975 Ford Bronco Brake Drum Removal Issue

[MerganserMaster]

How do I go about removing the front, driver's side brake drum on my 1975 302 Bronco? It spins freely and I have hit it with a hammer a few times, is there a bolt I'm not seeing or something? The rear drivers side one came right off without any fiddling. Attached is a picture of the drum,

Front, Driver's Side Brake Drum:

https://flic.kr/p/2psuvwQ

 

[Broncobowsher]

Yes, unlike the rear that just slides off the front are press fit on the studs. To get the drum off...

Remove the lockout. Looks like 6 allen head screws, and large expanding snap ring and small contracting snap ring on the axle stub.
Use the correct tool to remove the outer wheel bearing lock nut
Remove the lock ring
Remove the inner adjusting nut
Remove the outer wheel bearing so it doesn't fall on the ground.
Pull the drum, hub, inner wheel bearing, and seal as a unit.

 

[MerganserMaster]

Does this mean that the whole "unit" has to be replaced instead of just the worn parts inside (like brake pads/cylinders)? Also are there any parts in particular that I should replace (such as the wheel bearings)? The car has sat outside for half of its existence so I'm assuming most of the stuff is still OEM. The rear brake pads and drum looked good, and as the springs were "colored" I assume they were replaced sometime in their existence, although they may need replacement down the road, they look good for now. Any YouTube videos available for this?

 

[67sport]

No. Any single piece can be replaced once you get it apart. Once the front drum assembly is off the truck, you drive the studs out to separate the drum from the hub. Not sure if there are YouTube videos, but a search for brake rebuild on ford 4x4 drum brakes should turn up something. They are all similar and simple once you've seen it once.

 

[m_m70]

Any YouTube videos available for this?

Go to Google and type this in the search bar:

early bronco brake drums youtube

or just click below:

https://www.google.com/search?q=ear...ajBqMTWoAgCwAgA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#ip=1

 

[73azbronco]

heat can be your friend here, be careful, heat the drum around the studs, not the studs, then wack the begesus all around drum.

 

[Broncobowsher]

Does this mean that the whole "unit" has to be replaced instead of just the worn parts inside (like brake pads/cylinders)? Also are there any parts in particular that I should replace (such as the wheel bearings)? The car has sat outside for half of its existence so I'm assuming most of the stuff is still OEM. The rear brake pads and drum looked good, and as the springs were "colored" I assume they were replaced sometime in their existence, although they may need replacement down the road, they look good for now. Any YouTube videos available for this?

No. This is just to get the drum off to access everything inside. Many vehicles the drum just slides off the studs, including the rear on the Bronco. But in order to get smoother braking and keep the drums concentric to the bearings the Bronco (and most all Fords with front drums) have the drum and the hub as one unit. When the drum is turned it is true to the axis the bearings ride on, removing as much tolerance stack up as possible. No need to remove the drum from the hub unless it is being replaced. If the drum is just to be turned, keeping it on the hub will result in a more accurate turning.

Some people don't know, or don't care about keeping the drums true to the hubs and will hog out the stud holes on the drum to allow them to be pulled off without removing the hub. Allow the drums to slip off like the rears do. Not the best, but works. But don't forget that the wheel bearings need servicing about as often as you need to get into the front brakes anyway. So it really doesn't make much sense to undo good engineering.

 

[B RON CO]

Hi, you want to remove the drums as Broncobowsher said, and repack the wheel bearings every brake job, or more often if you drive hard and ford streams. Get a Ford or Chiltons manual. Good luck