Brake drum question

[gbarber]

I am trying to rebuild the rear drum brakes on my '66 8-inch rear. I bought new drums at NAPA, but the center hole is too small to fit over the center of the hub on my rear axle. The hub is approximately 2 3/4" in diameter. The new drums have a center close to only 2 3/8".
The drums are 10" diameter. The shoes I took off the car were 1 3/4" wide.
Is 2 3/4" the normal size of the hub for a '66 V8 car? I don't know all of the history of this car, and I wasn't sure if maybe the rear axles had been changed at some time.

 

[rbohm]

sounds like you have later model axles. the early cars had smaller center holes. try getting a brake drum from say a 68 mustang with the same settup as your 66.

 

[19stang66]

I bought rear 10" brake drums for my 66 from NAPA. I have the 8" and had no problems.

 

[gbarber]

I checked with NAPA. The drums they have listed don't show the I.D. of the center hole. They ordered a different set today to see if the hole is larger. I don't know if that will work though, because I think these are for 2" brakes.

 

[gbarber]

Well, 10" X 2" brakes weren't the answer. They have the same smaller size hole.
According to NAPA's tech line, the drums that I need are probably off a '74 Maverick. They have the larger size center hole.

Now, I just realized that the previous owner must have replaced the passenger side axle with a different style axle. My driver side axle is the original 2 3/8" center, and the passenger side is the larger 2 3/4".
Should I replace the axle with the correct, smaller axle, or should I continue to use the mismatched set?