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Can't Fit Rear Brake Drum Onto Shoes (1983 320i)

2K views 2 replies 3 participants last post by  bad man working 
#1 ·
Hey guys. I own a dark blue 1983 320i, and decided to replace the brakes a few days ago, as they had started to make some noise upon usage. I bought new discs for the front, and new shoes and drums for the back. Being a college student like I am (regarding my budget), and not liking to pay other people to do maintenance jobs on my most beloved belongings (car, computer, etc), I decided to undertake the task myself. I've done brake a few brake jobs in the past, specifically on a Honda CRX and a Chrysler Concorde, but had never really gotten deep enough to replace the drums/rotors.

I jacked up the car, and started on the rear passenger-side tire. I took some digital pictures of the set-up, just in case, and was very happy I did. I replaced everything no problem(although those springs for the shoes can be a pain without the tool for it), up until it was time to pop the new drum on. "Pop" is completely the wrong word, because I am unable to fit the drum onto the new pads. The parking brake is off, and I've adjusted those two bolts on the interior side of the entire brake saucer (or whatever you want to call it) that move the 'anchor' pins towards the center, but still find myself unable to fit the drum over the shoes. It's very close though, and I've even tried putting the old drum back on (to see if the new drum was possibly the wrong size).

I have to drive to Jacksonville tomorrow, which puts a bit of a time limit on getting this done, but I need to fix it regardless. Taking it to a pro is not an option, as any money I spend right now comes out of my living expense check, and I've already exhausted it almost to the limit with the purchasing of the parts themselves. Has anyone run into this, or have a tip to help me conquer this headache of a problem? I'd be eternally grateful, as I'm getting a bit tired of having to bike to campus, especially with some of my labs being from 1-5 in the morning this month :/

Thank you thank you thank you to anyone who has any advice.

Cliff Notes:

1983 320i
Replacing shoes and drums
Everything went fine until trying to put the new drum on over the new shoes
Ensured that parking brake was off and that 'anchor' pins were adjusted
Plz help

Thanks again
 
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#2 ·
Try squeeze your wheel cylinder pistons back in.

If I were going through all that , I would replace the wheel
cylinders as well, they get sticky rusty and leak.
 
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