i went to get my car inspected and the guy said everything was find except the wheel cylinders where leaking and needed to be replaced. so i ordered them and of coarse autozone screwed up my order and i only got one and im still waiting for the other one. i figured id just go replace the one and wait for the other one to come in. i took everything apart and one bolt on the cylinder was stripped and i messed with that for a while and ended up drilling through the cylinder to get it off. so finally i put the new one one and put the shoes back on and then i ran into another problem. i cant get the top return spring back on. one end is in but i cant pull it to get the other end in. i tried prying it with a screwdriver but that didnt work. then i hooked a wire around it and pulled it as hard as i could and i got it over the hole and i had a friend try to push it in but the brake shoe was in the way. i tried a bunch of different stuff but i gave up after a while. do any of you that have done this before have any tricks as to getting the spring back on? thanks.

 

Try either gabbing it with a pair of pliers and just pulling, or getting a screwdriver and prying on it from somewhere. It can be a bitch, but it will go on , you just have to get a little brutal with it

 

That problems been around forever. Some auto stores have a funky one piece tool that you use to pry it into place.

B

 

where at in Pa are u i have the tool u need

 

oh sorry, im currently in the NE PA area

 

Napa parts stores sells the tool, and most part stores too. they are called 'spring plyers' for drum brakes.
don't cost very much either. they make a difference.
the job is make 'easy' with the right tools.

 

cool, ill go looking for one of those tools, thanks guys. 79seven, im in Sharon, PA. its right on the ohio border.

 

Jeez.. I just managed it with needle nosed pliers

Jon

 

You gotta be smarter than the spring... Or at least that's some bullshit that my dad would spout...

Yeah. Drum brakes are a bitch... Especially the ones on some GM cars with this fucked up W shaped spring...

The best tip I can give you is tie some string to the spring so that if it goes flying across the garage, you can find it...

You can stick a screwdriver through the hook and put the tip in the hole in the shoe, then pry... but then you gotta get another screwdriver to push the tip in the hole... It's hard to explain.

I usually use pliers and put a deathgrip on em.

It makes me wonder why drum brakes are used anymore or were even invented in the first place...

Disadvantages:
Bitch to work on
More parts
Less effective
More complex
Expensive
No way for heat to escape
No way for dust to escape
Needs adjustment occasionally

Advantages:
None.

 

thanks for all the advice guys. ill probly go out and go wacko with the pliers again this weekend. ill get it eventually. i really want to do the gsl-se brake&suspension swap.

"Advantages:
None." - haha