EZGO breaks

[Joe Fetterhoff]

Here I go with another golf cart problem. this time on an EZGO 2001 cart. I need to replace the brakes but I can not get the drum off. I have the cotter pin removed and the castle nut off but the drum is as "tight as a drum!" I pounded on it with a hammer, sprayed liquid wrench on the axle, used a bar with a hook on it to pound between the drum and the back plate but all to know avail. I do not see anyway to loosen an adjuster like on a car. can anyone help? I watched U-Tube videos and they all pull the drum right off with no problem at all. Thanks, Joe

[usgicollector]

Have you removed the pin on the brake cable? It's on the back side of the hub.

[jacannon]

If the drum turns freely, loosening the shoes won't help. The spline is probably rusty and you will need a hub puller to push the hub off the axle.

[polocheck]

Not sure how brakes on a cart work (rxv owner)compared to a vehicle. Make sure you have your parking brake off. If so then spray it with pb blaster and let it soak several hours.

[gadavis]

So that you won't break the BRAKES!

A hub puller is going to be necessary for this job. It should mount to the lug nut studs and push against the center axle which needs to have the castellated nut removed and turned over so that it is flush with the end of the axle threads and will prevent damage to them. Some auto parts store rent these type of tools. I have one that uses the ram of my porta-power and makes it easy.

Often it is best to just remove the heads of the shoe retainer pins on the backside of the backing plate to let the shoes come with the drum when the adjusters freeze up. Be sure to clean and lube with some type of anti-seize when reinstalling the adjusters and other stuff as necessary.

[chloe]

A puller will do the job, of course. You can rent a good one or spend some good money for one. The cheapy universal puller from Sears or Harbor Freight ain't gonna cut it.
However, a brass drift, or even a good section of steel pipe of rod will do the job too. If you go the rod method. Make sure your contact is solid before you strike. Then make sure you visually separate the drum into thirds or even quarters and strike it like you were tightening in a torque sequence. Strike the top, then the bottom, then side and top again. Don't try to do it all at once. The drum is pretty solid, but it is a cast piece and therefore can fracture or chip.

[yurtle]

Once you get the drum off, you'll see what caused the problem. The shoes wear a groove in the drum, but since the shoes don't go all the way to the edge of the drum, it leaves a ridge, just like piston rings do to a cylinder. To fix this in a cylinder, you use a ridge reamer. For the drum, you can use a Dremel. If you remove the ridge, it will make reinstallation, and subsequent removal, much easier.

[kogieblack]

Have you released the brakes?