Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

So we're working on a cool ol '82 sab, and the truck came with a brand new set of custom deep 15" steel wheels that we're really anxious to get installed...but they're just barely not fitting!

Our existing rear drum brakes have a drum with a tall exterior lip that is just BARELY keeping the rear wheels away from seating as they should be.

Does anyone know if we can get a slimmer rear drum?

Or do we have to convert to disk brakes to get these bad boys installed?

Hopefully you can see what we're up against in these images:

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Easiest way is with wheel spacers.


https://www.speedwaymotors.com/Unive...nch,28323.html

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Then my wheel studs won't be long enough...

Do I need to swap them out as well, you think?

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

I'm afraid that the remaining half inch might really make a right difference in that rear wheel well.

The wheels are 10" wide, so it's going to fill that rear wheel well completely, I think. Width-wise that is.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Ooops!
True enough!
Adaptors then.



https://www.summitracing.com/parts/c...SABEgIM8_D_BwE

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

The adapters would work, in theory. That may be what we end up doing.

However, I think we'd be bumping up against the outer fender lip - or darn close to it.

Wondering about the brake drum option. Anyone know if I can get a flat-topped brake drum?

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Define BARELY. Is it the whole height of the raised rim or just a 1/8 of an inch or so? If in is really BARELY, maybe you could have the fraction of an inch machined off. Taking off too much might weaken the drum too much.

For some years, there were different sizes of brake systems depending on GVW rating. If you have the larger one maybe you could sub the smaller set in its place.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Auto parts stores have .250 wheel spacer in stock so you could try them, FWIW

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Bring your drum down to the parts store and compare to a new one. That doesn’t look like an OE drum.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

The truck was originally equipped with the 6.2 diesel...so it may have very well had larger rear brakes - but I can't find anything to validate that online. Looks like all of the half ton trucks all shared the same rear brake setup. At least according to what I've discovered in service manuals at this point. But it's been a long time since 1982!

I'll see if my local parts guys can find something different. The spacers are a great thought, but I think I'll need that additional quarter inch if I can figure out how to get these wheels to fit over that drum.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

There were at least two different size brake options, but it was the width of the shoe that changed, not the drum diameter. I don’t think that helps your situation.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

You most likely have the HD brake package which is wider shoes and drums. They were ordered with various combinations.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

the diesel had the hd brakes. you will need backing plate out to convert to the thinner brake shoe setup. I'm sure someone will trade you.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Should I just make the transition to rear disks?

I see the kits for $350ish just after a very quick and dirty search. I'm guessing that to swap from the backing plate out would be close to half of that, if not more. Might be a good time to make the leap? Any thoughts?

Anybody tackled this swap recently?

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

I would buy 1 replacement drum and try it and see if that works first.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Ahh - I gotcha.

For that matter, I could toss one of the rear wheels into the truck and run it down to the parts store. A quick test-fit of the different style rear drums would let me know right if they would work or not.

Good ideas!

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

I think you're on to something here.....

From a quick check on Rock Auto, I see two different rear brake widths....one is 2" wide, and the other is 2 3/4" wide. I bet that's what I'm up against!

So can I just swap the shoes and the drum, you think? Or will I need to swap everything from the backing plate out? That's an interesting question....one that I'm afraid I'll just have to dive right into before figuring it out. I'm guessing that's the hiccup I'm up against at this point. I'll know more, soon enough!

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

The backing plates are different also. I was going to up grade from the 2" to the 2 3/4 and I would have had to swap backing plates.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Dagger. I was afraid of that.

So at this point I'm guessing a rear disk swap is the way to go.

I am going to play with some wheel spacers to see what comes of that just in case, but I'm betting things are going to be too tight for that to be the answer.

All of this points to why the PO never got around to installing these brand new wheels! Lots of hassle involved.

What's the rear disk swap like? Difficult? Can it be done in a weekend? I'm nervous about it, having never tackled a brake swap like that.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Can a guy even order just the backing plates?

EDIT: looks like the backing plates are readily available, if I can just figure out which one is the correct one to make things work.

I'm going to price out both ways and see what comes up. Prob much simpler to keep the rear drums if possible. May not necessarily be any cheaper, but likely a much easier job.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

What about swapping out the complete rearend?

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

One thing to watch for is not all disk brake conversion kits include a parking/emergency brake feature.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

This thought crossed my mind....but I didn't want to get that involved. At least not yet!

The truck has a Spartan locker in the rear, so it's set up nicely right now. I'm just trying to squeeze in these large wheels and tires. But it's turning out to be quite the chore!

The disc brake swap looks pretty involved as well, at least at first glance. Not sure I can do this without some coaching.

The drum swap (to the smaller width shoe size) is probably the way I'll have to go. Again - that's without playing with the spacers or anything as of yet....

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Depending on the design of the backing plate you might need to pull the axles to change them out.

Maybe wheels that fit are the best option.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Washers...before you buy spacers
all you need is to stack some washers on the wheel studs to see if a spacer is gonna help you any
But before you commit to discs, I'd talk to the manufacturer of whichever one you chose to make sure itll work..

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

And then after all the planning, swapping and hair pulling you find that your chosen wheels and tires don’t fit your truck. Tires rubbing everywhere isn’t good.

Show us these wheels you’re wanting to use.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

This is the best answer.

Here's why I'm pushing on this so hard: the PO purchased these custom wheels at tremendous cost based on his research with Squarebody Syndicate. According to him, the cost of the wheels and tires were right at $2200 for the set. He never got to use them, as he ran short on time trying to address this rear-wheel fitment issue...and when I picked up the truck, he just handed them to me, explaining what he had already run into.

SO - different wheels may be the only answer - but gosh, I'd sure love to see these bad boys on the truck. I'm hoping that I can figure it out without throwing the bathwater out with the baby....or something like that!

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Post some more pics of the wheels.
Free stuff isn’t always free.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

If you’re not even willing to perform the simple task of comparing your current drum to a new one from a local parts store to check for additional clearance with a new part, there’s not much left we can help you with. Sorry to sound rude, but that and other simple steps have been offered here by multiple members and you appear to ignore advice given.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

You're correct - it's all stemming from the wheels.

I think he mentioned that they were 10" wide, but I haven't measured to verify that. They're big and wide, for sure. The matching fronts are 8" wide, and they fit on perfectly.

I'm including a few more photos of the wheels, so as to give you an idea of what I'm working with. You'll see me pointing to the points that are rubbing on the brake drum; I started to take a grinder to the raised section this eve but just ran out of time. I'll keep working on it. This could be the absolute best solution of them all! Haha!

And hey - THANK YOU for all the great thoughts and suggestions! I'm getting closer with every passing post. I love this place!

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

I've also rounded up some 1/4" spacers to play with as well. That will help fill in the gaps that I'm chasing...

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Hope your grinding doesn’t destroy the strength and/or balance of your rims.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

I feel confident it won't change the integrity of the wheel itself, as I'm only touching the folded section of steel that is folded up and near the center of the wheel hub....however, it most definitely might compromise the balance of the wheels. I should have them rebalanced if this all comes together. That's actually a great idea - I appreciate you bringing that up!

I'm not sure I can even grind off enough to gain that clearance that I need....but I feel like it's worth a shot. The wheels aren't worth much as it is, and perhaps this will afford me just what I need to get this train rolling! Other than changing the shape of the extra steel inside the wheel, I think they'll be just fine.

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Why even try? Is the auto parts place 100 miles in each direction that you cant go and look at a replacement drum?

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

It's official: I have the 2 3/4" rear brake shoes!

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

It's not quite that far...but it's a decent distance.

A few more days and the parts store should have the drum. Then we can compare to what I've got now.

I can't help but believe that my current brakes are oem stuff. Not sure the replacement drum would look any different - but it's worth the look, just in case. It's a former state highway dept truck, so I feel confident that the brakes are factory-style stuff. That being said, let's have a peek at the replacement! Who knows? Maybe that's all I need!

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

Re: Smaller/thinner rear brake drum? Deep rear steelies won't fit!
 

I imagine so.

That's what....37-38% more braking surface than the standard 2" shoe? I would imagine it's much better.