Technical Thoughts on welding grooves in drums and then turning them true.

I've got a 1963 chrysler newport here at the shop that I actually used to own twelve years ago. The new owner drove it for a few years and then parked it and brought it to me to get it going again. The problem is the rear drums Is that the customer drove the Car until the rivets ground into the drums and they're junk. These are kind of hard to find as they are 11 inch drums with the tapered axles. I was thinking of welding up the grooves and then turning them again. What are your thoughts on this?

 

I've seen it done in the past by a old school mechanic, usually when they are hard to replace or not available.

Just take your time. HRP

 

Hollander says 63 Dodge 880 rear drum fits 63 Newport.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/192707053944?

 

So with those new drums, I would have to cut the studs off That are swaged to the hub. And get new studs. I wonder if that's a possibility.

 

Don't worry about the grooves. The linings will wear into them. But if it is also worn beyond usable diameter, better to find another drum. I found an NOS '38 Dodge car left front drum on ebay for my '33 Plymouth hotrod. 1 year only item.

Dave

 

it looks like 2 piece, hub and drum, in the picture.......

 

I think you can cut off the swage with a hole saw, without the pilot drill, using one that just fits over the stud. And not bother swaging the new drum in place.

 

I think you're right, and the hub is actually a little loose from the drum right now on one of them. The thing is for 2 drums with shipping to my shop is 336 bucks. Guess I'll talk with the customer.

 

be sure to confirm all the dimensions before you get too far...

 

Yep, I sent them a message with some specs and asking him if it was the same waiting to hear back.

 

I'm guessing having them relined us cost prohibitive?

J&G Brake relining McHenry IL. 815-276-2578.
https://www.jgrelining.com/

 

I have used these to cut a swage
$10-20 Lows carried in store at one time

 

Maybe have them spray welded then cut down. The lathe may have an easier time as it would be the same hardness.

 

Thinking I got nothing to lose. So I'm gonna weld one up and see how it comes out.

 

Not claiming it for 100%, but drums in the OP appear to be ‘62 (& earlier) type brakes and the ones available from Kanter are ‘63 & later type.
These setups are significantly different, including offsets, etc and drums will not be interchangeable.

As for fill welding the drums, I’m sure people have done stupider thing, but nothing pops into mind right now.

 

...which is why I suggested checking the dimensions. Thanks for the tip

 

Aren’t they cast iron? Or are they cast steel?

 

Lotta balance weight on that drum. When you add up hourly rate and materials there's as much or $$$ than just getting the drums. Look at it this way, it's not like they gotta be swapped out every year. With care and maintenance they'll last a lifetime. Rivet grooves aren't care. Just another view from the outside looking in. $336 is cheap.

 

Cut the studs out, find some other studs to press in and make it a slip fit drum (new or old ones).

Also might check with the heavy duty truck brake shops to see if anyone does liners.

 

If its cast iron (I bet it is) your weld will pull a lot of carbon from the iron and get very hard and brittle. You will have a hard time without a grinder to shape the weld. The weld itself will tend to break of the drum once there is enough heat and/or friction. The lose pieces inside the drum might lock up a wheel....

 

If still in spec , leave the grooves. They will not hurt anything. Skim cut to true and go . Just call them water displacement grooves .

 

Though I did weld up A drum to see how it would turn out. I may have a line on a complete rear end. I went to a local Mopar hoarder and dug around his stuff, but he only had 10 inch drums. He did have a 61? Mopar with the crossram that he bought in 65 that fired up with a touch of the key

 

@wheeltramp brian If the car in question is the one shown in your second photo, it appears to be a 1963, but the drums appear to be 1959-1962 type, which could suggest the rear axle might've been changed one time or another or the possibility of car being a very early production example for 1963 and manufactured with a (left-over ?) 1962 axle ?

As suggested by others, rather than waste time & effort on welding and if the car owner is not willing to pay to get the job done correctly, just turn them lightly & call it a day, but ask him/her never to come back or to reveal who did the work, especially if you charged money for it.

 

The car is in the second picture and is a 1963. Definitely Could have had the rear end swap at some time.

 

I'm currently rebuilding two of those engines, although both are 413" in Chrysler 300F's, one convertible, one hardtop.

P.S. The car in your photo is also a 1960, but a Dodge Polara (likely) with a 383". Super rare if original with that engine configuration (more than a few have been faked over the decades).

 

Just now watched another pakistan truck repair video, the best one yet. You know what those guys would say.

 

I have welded on lots of stuff the is terrible to repair , nasty cast iron , is one of the worst . Cracking when cooling is almost a sure thing . I think the weld surface would work harden so badly the lathe cutter would skip over the top . They would need to be ground to be trued correctly . Is it worth the effort , not for me and I’m a believer in old is best .

 

How about MIG brazing?

 

My dad used to tell me the groves in the brake drums add braking power. It provides more brake shoe to drum contact area. You just have to learn to back way off the adjuster when you want to pull the drum off. He never had a brake drum turned, the brake shoes do eventually wear to match the drum surface.

I would assume that since the OP has already welded on one of the drums, he now knows that doesn't work, or he is going to find that out just after he puts the car back on the road.

Now he needs at least one replacement drum. Hopefully the one shown above will work.