HELP! NEED BRAKE HELP ASAP!

SavageUrge · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 1:07 pm

I CANNOT get my rear brake disk off ('03). What gives? I tried beating (within reason) it off with a hammer and prying it off with a pry bar....AAAARRRRRGH. It won't budge! Does anyone have any suggestions? The Haynes manual is no help either.......

sleeve84028 · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 1:22 pm

Did you take off the caliper?

Edit: If you do have the caliper off try loosening the parking brake... Those pads can sometime drag on the rotor hat and cause sticking.

SavageUrge · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 1:29 pm

Caliper is off - not necessary to remove the caliper adapter, parking brake is off completely, or at least the lever is down all the way.

Another thing - Is it bad to replace JUST the rear brakes when the front needs replacement to? I ask because my front pads aren't in yet.

ATXKJ · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 1:38 pm

As long as you do both sides - you can do fronts and rears seperately

The problem with the rear rotor - is probably the parking brake drum - drums in general have problems with a ridge developing at the edge of the shoe and just releasing them isn't enough to provide clearance,
best bet is to try and turn the parking brake adjuster backwards - i.e. try to turn it in so that you're creating clearance instead of taking up slack, you might have to use 2 screwdrivers - one to keep the rachet lever up and the other to turn the adjuster.

Jeepjeepster · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 1:40 pm

SavageUrge wrote:

Caliper is off - not necessary to remove the caliper adapter, parking brake is off completely, or at least the lever is down all the way.

Another thing - Is it bad to replace JUST the rear brakes when the front needs replacement to? I ask because my front pads aren't in yet.

Doesnt matter.

If you have both the rear tires off the ground with the ebrake off and you DONT have a locker or limited slip, can you turn the rotor? If so, that would let you know that the ebrake is off. If you have a limited slip, lift both rear wheels of the ground and put the tranny in N, that will allow you to turn the rotor freely. Make sure the front wheels are chocked good.

Ive seen rotors rusted so bad that I had the same problem you were. Usually just a few good hits from behind with a BFH brought it right off though.

SavageUrge · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 2:30 pm

Both wheels are off the ground with Trac-Lock (Limited slip?) rear diff. Hitting with BFH still won't make it budge. The hub is turning freely. Ridges inside caliper hat makes sense, because my e-brake hasn't worked for about 2500 miles now. Handle comes all the way up and brake doesn't engage. How do you adjust the e-brake without tearing down the wheel assembly? Haynes manual only shows how to do it with the rotor off, so this doesn't help me at the moment - Thanks everybody!!!! I love this place! Not loving my Jeep at the moment however, lol

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 2:35 pm

SavageUrge wrote:

Both wheels are off the ground with Trac-Lock (Limited slip?) rear diff. Hitting with BFH still won't make it budge. The hub is turning freely. Ridges inside caliper hat makes sense, because my e-brake hasn't worked for about 2500 miles now. Handle comes all the way up and brake doesn't engage. How do you adjust the e-brake without tearing down the wheel assembly? Haynes manual only shows how to do it with the rotor off, so this doesn't help me at the moment - Thanks everybody!!!! I love this place! Not loving my Jeep at the moment however, lol

There should be a rubber plug on the backing plate,remove the plug and insert a flat tip screwdriver to loosen the p. brake adjuster(it has a star shaped wheel on it).

ATXKJ · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 2:59 pm

you're looking for this

you may have to lift the adjuster with a small screwdriver and turn it backwards with another screwdriver

SavageUrge · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 4:01 pm

Wow! awesome pics - you rock! THANK YOU! I'll give 'er a shot and if that doesn't do it, well I guess I'll have to break down and take it to a mechanic

'cuz I don't have anything heavier duty than a good ol' hammer. Thanks again!

65thKJ · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 4:23 pm

Maybe try some liquid wrench or PB Blaster if you haven't already then give it some time and hit w/ a sledge hammer.

ATXKJ · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 4:49 pm

FYI - Jeepjeepster took the photos - I stole'em

SavageUrge · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 5:50 pm

Well I tried adjusting the e-brake to no avail. I didn't know which way to go, so I tried both ways, neither of which produced any results. If I had a sledge hammer I think I would have used it if I didn't need to drive the thing any time soon. Anyway, it's as if the disc is welded to the hub. They move about 1/8 of an inch forward and back, but there is no give in or out. I'm at a total loss, and we'll be running out of daylight soon, so I guess the day's a bust. If anyone has more ideas, I'd love to hear them, short of bringing it to a mechanic. Maybe I'll have better results over the weekend which is the next time I'll get a chance to work on it. Thank you, everyone, for your ideas!

Jeepjeepster · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 6:13 pm

SavageUrge wrote:

Well I tried adjusting the e-brake to no avail. I didn't know which way to go, so I tried both ways, neither of which produced any results. If I had a sledge hammer I think I would have used it if I didn't need to drive the thing any time soon. Anyway, it's as if the disc is welded to the hub. They move about 1/8 of an inch forward and back, but there is no give in or out. I'm at a total loss, and we'll be running out of daylight soon, so I guess the day's a bust. If anyone has more ideas, I'd love to hear them, short of bringing it to a mechanic. Maybe I'll have better results over the weekend which is the next time I'll get a chance to work on it. Thank you, everyone, for your ideas!

Thats crazy. So there isnt any play if you try to pull it off the jeep? If it was the ebrake keeping it on, I would think there would be some play in it. Im not sure what you mean by "forward and back."

No worries ATXKJ.

BlackLibertyCRD · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 6:15 pm

SavageUrge wrote:

Well I tried adjusting the e-brake to no avail. I didn't know which way to go, so I tried both ways, neither of which produced any results. If I had a sledge hammer I think I would have used it if I didn't need to drive the thing any time soon. Anyway, it's as if the disc is welded to the hub. They move about 1/8 of an inch forward and back, but there is no give in or out. I'm at a total loss, and we'll be running out of daylight soon, so I guess the day's a bust. If anyone has more ideas, I'd love to hear them, short of bringing it to a mechanic. Maybe I'll have better results over the weekend which is the next time I'll get a chance to work on it. Thank you, everyone, for your ideas!

Soak the edge of the hub and disc with something like wd40 and then wack it with the BFH front hat side near the studs. Be careful not to hit the studs, its rusted for sure. Do you have new rotors, if not this will not dent the surface like hitting on the back side.

BTW look close at the studs and make sure there no retainer clips on it.

SavageUrge · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 6:31 pm

Took the retainer clips off first thing - I do need to replace the rotors, this is why it is so imperative they come off. They are definitely beyond repair after 65,000 miles, and grooved and pitted, not to mention the ridges are rusted and flaking away. I've done everything short of soaking it with Thrust, but I'm rather hesitant to get that stuff near my rotors in case they still won't come off, in which case I'd be driving around with nicely lubricated brakes.

65thKJ · **Posted:** Tue Mar 27, 2007 8:49 pm

I wasn't kidding about the sledge. If you have 65k miles on those rotors you''ll need a sledge. You need to use PB Blaster or liquid wrench which will penetrate the rust then use a sledge hammer on a piece of wood to hit the disc.(Or if your just getting rid of them anyway you can hit it direct but itll be louder) You don't need a huge sledge like a 16lb one but a midsize one. I have one just for this that I use, its prob ~5 or 6lbs. Just be careful of the studs. You dont need to hit it from behind. Just hit on the outside of the disc on the disc surface by holding the wood block there and hit the block w/ the sledge. One or two hits should knock it loose and it'll come right off. I have had the same problem w/ old discs that have never been changed and a regular hammer doesn't cut it.

SavageUrge · **Posted:** Wed Mar 28, 2007 6:31 pm

Thanks for all the tips! I guess I have no choice now, but to go with soaking the crap out of it with Thrust and beating it off with a maul. I'll let you all know how it goes when I resume this undertaking on Saturday!

LiLredLibby · **Posted:** Wed Mar 28, 2007 9:05 pm

SavageUrge wrote:

Thanks for all the tips! I guess I have no choice now, but to go with soaking the crap out of it with
Thrust and beating it off with a maul. I'll let you all know how it goes when I resume this undertaking on Saturday!

Hey SavageUrge,since you are replacing this rotor,let me tell you after getting about a million of these just like this one,as I do these quite often,the best method is to insert a long prybar behind one side of the rotor pulling with all you have,while smacking the opposite side fartherest away from prybar with a deadblow hammer.If this does'nt work,reach for the gas hatchet. :lol:

Works better with 2 people. :wink:

Ron

SavageUrge · **Posted:** Thu Mar 29, 2007 12:08 am

What is a gas hatchet? I've never heard of this. Otherwise, I don't have a long pry-bar, and even if I did, there is nowhere to brace it against to get any good leverage.

Quote:

If this doesn't work,reach for the gas hatchet.

ATXKJ · **Posted:** Thu Mar 29, 2007 12:17 pm

I never heard it called gas hatchet - but I'm pretty sure this is what he meant

http://www.metalwebnews.com/howto/weld/weld.html

(scroll down to the bottom for cutting)

HELP! NEED BRAKE HELP ASAP!

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