rear brake issues

[customcabby]

okay, this was my first time doing the rear brakes on my 2000 montana and boy did i ever exercise my vocabulary. everything came off just fine and then when it came to reassembly i had trouble with my drum going back on. so dummy me, i started it and put my lug nuts on and drove it all the way to the hub (because it was so tight going on). now, i could not turn it at all. even tried to beat it back off and that didnt help. one parts place told me i would have to have a specialist un-do it for me and redo the whole thing. another told me i could get a tool to draw the drum back off. and finally another told me that there is an adjustment "screw" with a "gear" under/attached to it and i should be able to adjust it with a screw driver to loosen the shoes and should be able to pull off the drum and start over. i cant find this stupid thing he is talking about. and if you are wondering, yes... i had to drive it and it has loosened but i can tell there is still some drag to it and i can smell the wear. please help!!!

[dewaynep]

Yes, there is an adjuster on the shoes, but I don't believe they are accessible from behind the backing plate. Most vehicles have a rubber plug you can take out to reach the adjuster and loosen it up, I don't think these have the hole. You may be relegated to breaking the drum off and putting new ones on along with new shoes. That's what I would do if I were working on this for a customer. Next time you do the shoes (on this or any vehicle) make sure you adjust them so the drum will just slide over the shoes with a slight drag. You should be able to spin the wheel by hand with a slight drag.

[rkvons]

So you can't get it off, even though it has loosened? Try placing the end of a piece of 2 by 4 on the lip of the drum towards the rear of the vehicle and hitting the 2 by 4 with a heavy hammer to knock the drum outward. Then turn the drum and repeat. It should come off.