Mechanical brake drum/sprocket repair, sprocket is loose on the drum

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Panacea
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Mechanical brake drum/sprocket repair, sprocket is loose on the drum

#1

Post by Panacea »

When I was lubeing the rear star hub on my pan I noticed the sprocket is loose on the drum, one of the 4 large rivets is gone and hole smeared. Would a new dust ring and rivet set be in order or the whole drum/sprocket assembly? And is there a special tool for "peening the rivets"? Mike
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#2

Post by 57pan »

Panacea,

FWIW, I gave up on the rivets. I just couldn't get the rivets to expand enough to fill the hole. Then they would very quickly work loose and bugger up the hole.

I got some stainless screws and used nylock nuts to fasten my sprocket to the rear drum.

Some guys eliminate the fasterners altogether and just put 3 or 4 welds on it.
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#3

Post by FlatHeadSix »

Panacea,

You can screw or weld the sprocket to the drum as 57pan mentioned but you can also do a good job replacing the rivets if you have the correct rivets and the right tool. If the holes in the brake drum flange are wallowed out you can also drill a new set of holes half way between the old set, use care in center punching the hole locations, and then a good bit of the correct size. A drill press is highly recommended for this task.

I have had great success using a screw-type rivet tool clamped in a vice with a short cheater pipe on the handle. The critical thing about the whole setup is having the proper punch and anvil in the press. The anvil (die) should have a recess or dimple to position the rivet head and the punch should be a hollow (cupped) type to evenly expand the shaft of the solid rivet and sort of "mushroom" it tight against the parts.

If you go to all the trouble of replacing the rivets you should probably replace the sprocket while you're at it. If the sprocket has been running loose the rivet holes are more than likely elongated.

The rivet press can also be used for brake lining replacement and other jobs as well. I think they're only about $26.00
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#4

Post by john HD »

and where did you find such a nice tool? i need one!

john :D
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#5

Post by Panacea »

Thanks for the help guys, and this rivet press is just what I need. Do they come with dies? Mike
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#6

Post by Cotten »

Let's not weld on brake drums,...okay?

....Cotten
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#7

Post by FlatHeadSix »

John (and Mike too),

The rivet tool is distributed by an outfit close to you called RAPCO Inc (Replacement Aircraft Parts Company) in Hartford, WI. They are kind of like Tedd's V-Twin, but for guys that retore old airplanes. I wonder if they have as much trouble with their re-pop stuff as we have? I can only imagine what happens when the float in a Piper Cub carburetor quits floating! Makes me think of something Cotten once said: "aren't you glad that Harleys don't REALLY fly?"

They have a bunch of distributers, I bought mine from this place out in California, they were the cheapest. Mine came with the die and the punch.

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/t ... oBrake.php
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#8

Post by Kuda »

Another option: Hot riveting. You can use a hollow point punch to peen, but you'll still need to make or buy a simple anvil for the bottom. Just heat the fivets until they're nice and cherry, then *squarely* smack the crap out of them. The heat softens the rivet enough to fill up the spaces for a nice tight fit. Folks have been doin' 'em that way for years and I've never seen one loosen up. Plus they're removeable for when the sprocket wears out...

-Kuda
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Re: Mechanical brake drum/sprocket repair

#9

Post by tickface »

My apologies for resurecting this old post, have a quick question about the rivet press. Just bought one and can't for the life of me figure how it can be used on the sprocket rivets? The body of the press hits the drum making it impossible to line up. What am I missing here?
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Re: Mechanical brake drum/sprocket repair

#10

Post by Panacea »

Tickface, can you flip the drum/sprocket so the threaded part is alongside of the drum? So sprocket down. I wound up picking up a nice drum at a swap so I never did replace the sprocket on the old one...Mike
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Re: Mechanical brake drum/sprocket repair

#11

Post by 58flh »

Panacea wrote:When I was lubeing the rear star hub on my pan I noticed the sprocket is loose on the drum, one of the 4 large rivets is gone and hole smeared. Would a new dust ring and rivet set be in order or the whole drum/sprocket assembly? And is there a special tool for "peening the rivets"? Mike
Hey bro 58flh here, I ran accsoss the same situation a few times,& trust me it will happen again!. Take her apart ,& check if any of the other rivets are loose!-There just might be. AS far as the special-tool you asked about,-what I always did was make my own like everyone else-when you make it yourself you get to grind it just perfect where it needs it! Sure there are tools you can buy but nobody I know has ever had luck with them in this particular situation!. Also after shes all riveted and running true--no wobles here-you will wear-out the chain quick-& possibly throw-it off at high-speed! chain-wheel must run-true!!!. Know after you have gone this far ,another thing you can-do so it never happens again is weld the sproket to the drum -1 inch welds are suffice about 4 or5 welds around the drum!. OOOOOH! here that all those guys cringing at the thought of welding a chainwheel in place!? If your bike is 100% stock in that department then by all-means dont weld-it!--but if you find some backing plate that says paughfco or what have you--by all means I would weld-it & be done with that problem!. Hope I shed a little light on it for you!. Remember (KEEP IT UPRIGHT & IN4th GEAR & JUST ENJOY THAT BADASS MACHINE) 58flh
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Re: Mechanical brake drum/sprocket repair

#12

Post by fishican »

Good Morning,

I have a loose sprocket on the 64 that I'm putting together. I found this helicoil method on the net and was wondering if anyone has tried it as described here:

http://www.caimag.com/wordpress/2011/11 ... of-rivets/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

As always, I appreciate any information that you all can give.

Joe
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Re: Mechanical brake drum/sprocket repair

#13

Post by Bigincher »

That repair with the helicoils was done by none other than Ray, aka Saddlebagrail. He recently signed up here, and may be best known by the transmission o-ring spacer he produces, and also his replacement generator/alternator.
I personally wouldn't hesitate to use any of his methods.
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Re: Mechanical brake drum/sprocket repair

#14

Post by saddlebagrail »

fishican wrote:Good Morning,

I have a loose sprocket on the 64 that I'm putting together. I found this helicoil method on the net and was wondering if anyone has tried it as described here:

http://www.caimag.com/wordpress/2011/11 ... of-rivets/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

As always, I appreciate any information that you all can give.

Joe
Hi Joe

I see that some here are looking at other forum :) ,Yes I did this thread on changing rivets to socket head cap screws,you do not have to drill the drum just use the helicoil tap and that's it,if you want to come back to rivets (which I doubt), you only have to take the helicoil from the drum,I personally prefer my method over the rivets,plus I use 4 roll pins instead of the regular pins,it is also a lot faster to change sprocket next time,hope this help,Ray

Thanks Bigincher for the kind words :D
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Re: Mechanical brake drum/sprocket repair

#15

Post by fishican »

Thank you, Saddlebagrail and Bigincher,

I enjoyed the math explaining the shear-strength improvement versus the rivets so I am stopping after work to pick up the helicoils and I'll give it a go. I also like the idea of a roll pin over a dowel. I chiseled off the old rivets tonight and the holes seem to be in pretty good condition. I'll let you guys know how it turns out.

As always, I appreciate your help.

Joe
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