My new ‘64 Imperial convertible

[detmatt]

Put some Kroil on it last night, came in today, put the puller on, loaded it up with as much torque as I could give it, added more Kroil, walked away to mess with the fronts, came back a bit later to give it some gentle taps around the hub with a ball peen and they popped right off. The passenger side was a bit more stuck the driver’s side but they really came off quite easy. One thing I always practice on these old cars is patience.

 

[saforwardlook]

Put some Kroil on it last night, came in today, put the puller on, loaded it up with as much torque as I could give it, added more Kroil, walked away to mess with the fronts, came back a bit later to give it some gentle taps around the hub with a ball peen and they popped right off. The passenger side was a bit more stuck the driver’s side but they really came off quite easy. One thing I always practice on these old cars is patience.

Thanks, I will have to give Kroil a try - haven't heard of that brand before. Thanks Matt. Good advice.

 

[LeBaron1973]

Thanks, I will have to give Kroil a try - haven't heard of that brand before. Thanks Matt. Good advice.

Www.kanolabs.com

 

[commando1]

Put some Kroil on it last night, came in today, put the puller on, loaded it up with as much torque as I could give it, added more Kroil

There's smart thinking right there. It's all about wicking.

 

[detmatt]

There's smart thinking right there. It's all about wicking.

I’ll soak projects down for days in advance if I even remotely think I’ll have problems.

 

[cantflip]

Got rid of the Auto Pilot and made my way to the 4 corners to see what all I’m going to need for the brake job. Both of the linings on the primary front shoes fell off when I removed the drums.

Passenger front.
View attachment 372475
Driver’s side.
View attachment 372476
Luckily The right tool was available to borrow from a fellow local Imperial guy.
View attachment 372477 View attachment 372478
driver’s side.
View attachment 372482
Passenger side.
View attachment 372479 View attachment 372480

I haven't seen that in all my years yet Matt - so much for bonded linings! But they are good in that they don't ruin a drum as easily as riveted ones that do their damage before one realizes it.

That Mopar style drum puller isn't the best for those cars rear axles (ask me how I know with all my Forward Lood cars!) as with only three legs, they don't apply the load evenly when trying to pull those bastards. There is a guy that is discussed on the Imperial site that sells a more simple and more effective tool than that one that applies the load more evenly to help the drums come off easier (they are inexpensive too). How I hate those tapered axles - just an unnecessary hazard when they suddenly give way and come off with a dangerous force. A really stupid design that was the worst of Chrysler's screw ups.

The problem with the linings is rust related. A little rust underneath loosens them up and they want to come off. Should be taken as a cautionary tale for so many of us who have found cars that were out of service for long periods.

 

[detmatt]

Just ordered shoes and cylinders for all four corners as well as front and rr hoses and front wheel bearings and seals from @mobileparts
Thanks for the nice package deal Craig!

 

[detmatt]

Thanks again Craig! @mobileparts the parts showed up a day early and I can’t wait to get busy on this project.

 

[patrick66]

What I hated about doing the front brakes on my '66 Imperial was the necessity to remove the backing plates, in order to access the two bolts for the wheel cylinder. Extra work for no real reason, other than a non-mechanical engineer (or just a non-mechanic!) likely designed that.

 

[detmatt]

What I hated about doing the front brakes on my '66 Imperial was the necessity to remove the backing plates, in order to access the two bolts for the wheel cylinder. Extra work for no real reason, other than a non-mechanical engineer (or just a non-mechanic!) likely designed that.

They were coming off anyway on this project because I have to put at least a couple of new boots on the ball joints. I’m hoping to not have to replace the originals unless I have to.

 

[detmatt]

I took 2 full sets of drums, the originals and a spare set, to be turned and all but one of the spare rears were in great shape and are ready for use. The one that couldn’t be turned was somehow bent or warped beyond repair.

 

[saforwardlook]

1 out of 7 being bad is a good ratio with those old drums. The turned ones look great!

 

[65sporty]

I took 2 full sets of drums, the originals and a spare set, to be turned and all but one of the spare rears were in great shape and are ready for use. The one that couldn’t be turned was somehow bent or warped beyond repair.
View attachment 375020

I would store the spares somewhere humidity free or coat them with something so they won't rust

 

[detmatt]

I would store the spares somewhere humidity free or coat them with something so they won't rust

Already done.

 

[bluefury361]

I replaced the entire rear axle on Virgil with a 8 3/4 out of a 68 Newport. Total 5/8th" of a difference in width at the mount brackets which, when split between sides, equaled a direct bolt in swap. No more tapered axles for me. Even the ratio was the same and the drive shaft bolted right up.
I just closed off the e brake cable holes and eliminated the hardware as I retained the drum ebrake on the trans.

 

[detmatt]

Well I had a distraction or 2 over the last several days so I’m back at it but only for a couple of hours this afternoon.
I removed the spindle, confirmed the original ball joints are not in need of replacement so I just replaced the boots on them and reinstalled the spindle.

 

[garyh]

"I just replaced the boots on them and reinstalled the spindle."

Where did you get the Boots ?

 

[detmatt]

"I just replaced the boots on them and reinstalled the spindle."

Where did you get the Boots ?

Craig @mobileparts has them. Different from the originals but the way we use them(these cars) is vastly different as well so I feel pretty good about them and they fit very good.

 

[garyh]

Would you mind if I asked the cost of the boots from Craig ? thanks

 

[detmatt]

Small update. Flushed all the original hard lines with brake parts cleaner and compressed air till clean and clear and installed the new rear brake parts including the rear hose. After putting the new ball joint boots on the driver’s side I moved over to do the same on the passenger side and quickly discovered that the UCA bushings are shot on the passenger side so now I’m waiting for parts in order to finish this project. There’s other things to do though so I’ll keep plugging away.