trying to find front drums for my 54' M-H 4by,,,mine are nearly done ,no one seems tp have a listing ...what the heck else used this setup.anyone know?

 

Ken - Nobody else used that set up. They are M-H drums, and unless the ones on Owen's (1952's) spare F-250 axle would work you're gonna have to fix yours. When I bought my first truck Chuck described to me the rarity of my drums. When I found my spare donor chassis he told me the drums were "golden". He also told me that on another F-3 M-H he had worked on he had to turn the old drums down then have a set of liners made to go in them. Then, as you'd imagine, the drums went into the oven and the liners into the freezer for a while before they were pressed into place.

I've now got two sets of drums that I'll someday have to do this with as well. I did have one drum set that was within factory specs so Chuck used them on the restored axle. Someday I'll be in the same boat when I get to the point of redoing the other drums. Stu

 

well I guess I'm gonna have to learn to watch for anything for this orphan,,um what years interchange for this ..beast,,the parts guy told me the stepped wheel clynders were 40's vintage nothing in 54 matched what I have..I guess ..WE have..how long have you been hunting parts??

 

I bought my first truck in North Dakota in the fall of 2002. I've been watching for parts and donors since. I found a donor chassis in Virginia a few years later, and my second truck in Arizona a couple years after that. I missed out on a truck in Utah once while I was traveling, and missed out on a complete drive train once when an ebay seller wouldn't separate it from a disrelated truck. Then learned that Chuck ended up buying that front axle from the guy. But the guy must have scrapped the transfer case, linkage, etc., because Chuck never saw that stuff.

If anything your challenge is greater than others because we've only seen your F-350, and one other one I think I told you about. We've seen F-250s, and have several members here with them, but not F-350s. Stu

 

Stu,who does that type of specialty work you referred to, lining drums?Is it costly/effective?I don't need it done,but would love to hear from someone who's had to do it.

 

All I have to go on is what Chuck told me. I've not had to have it done myself. To add some detail, he said he had his machine shop take new F-250 12" drums (don't know year, etc) and machined away everything except the insert. Then they machined the old drum to size. He told me he wouldn't warrant them for on road use, but said it did work. And the unspoken thing here is cost. There is nothing cheap in any of this. Stu

 

so what your saying here is ..i have a bit of a challenge before me..

 

Well yes. Any time you're dealing with extreme rarity that's what's in store. Stu

 

NEET now I can claim rare and extreme ...and not just non-compliant...got a warning from a cop about no turn signals and I pointed out no switch no wires ..and my arm signal still works,,no wonder I get along with this truck so well...I hope to have all 4 breaks working this week..one more problem done!!

 

Having slept on this, I recalled reading somewhere that brake drums can be renewed/repaired using the splatter weld, or spray weld, process. Searching the AACA site I found this thread on the subject. The responder says the technique can be used on any drums. He calls it the Metco Spraysteel LS coating. Probably not inexpensive either, but it's another option.

Alfin brake drum repair / replacement - AACA Forums

Then I also remembered that I went to an estate auction a few years ago of a noted Marmon-Herrington woodie collector. The early M-H cars and half ton trucks, even through to 1947 if I remember correctly what Chuck told me, continued to use the "wide five" bolt pattern of the 1930s. I don't remember details, but the drums on the M-Hs were special and, given the value of these cars/trucks today, this man had made molds to reproduce these rare brake drums. This probably isn't an option for Ken, but it came to mind.

Here's a couple more that I Googled. Stu

http://www.hcca.org/BOARDS/viewtopic...86f17489f5a2a7
http://forums.aaca.org/f169/help-bui...ne-263329.html

 

1953/65 F250's came with 12 1/8" x 2" drum brakes front and rear as did some 1966/72 F250's (all 4WD's, some 2WD's-it depended on the GVW).

Some 1966/72 F250's have 12" x 2 1/2" brakes front and rear-it depended on the GVW. With optional front discs, all 1968/72 F250 2WD's have 12" x 2 1/2" rear brakes, as do 1973/79 (and later) with standard equipment front discs.

 

By the drums being done, are we talking about them being past the service limit for resurfacing? Or are they cracked, warped, broken or what? I'm wondering if thicker pad material or custom shoes could be used if they are just to the surfacing limit.

I recently tracked down and had a conversation with a prior owner of my truck (1953 F-250 Marmon-Herrington 4x4). He owned the truck from 1969-1989 and informed me that the brakes did not work the whole time he owned it. I'm just wondering what I will find wrong when I get into the brakes.

On a side note (and similar to Ken's axle predicament), the former owner told me that the passengers side axle shaft and joint assembly had been rewelded, rebuilt, and patched several times during it's stint as a logging truck.

Dave

 

This makes me glad I'm using a newer chassis on my project. Mine might not be as cool as a original M-H but atleast I can walk into any parts store to get my parts.

 

Not sure if you realize this so, the surfacing limit is not for clearance on the shoes, it's where the drum surface is too thin to utilize safely. Wouldn't need thicker shoes anyway, the shoes in it could be adjusted out to meet the surface.

Adding material to the surface would thicken it. Using thicker shoes won't help because they would continue to wear the contact surface thinner and eventually when the metal got too thin it would warp or crack.

Dismiss this if you already knew it.

 

I guess I assumed Ken meant they were beyond turning. One of my sets is like that, paper thin. If he can get his shoes relined, though, and call it done it'd make his life a lot easier.

The Ford Service Manual says the max F-2/F-3 overbore is .020 on the front, .060 on the rear. I just looked through my M-H manuals (R3-4, R32-4, and M-254) and don't find it in print anywhere what the M-H overbore standard is on the fronts. Chuck checked mine when I dropped the axles/transfer case off at his shop and the good set was right at the Ford standard. As I remember, he said the Ford standard is correct for the M-H front drums. Stu