I need to replace one broken stud bolt on both rear wheels on my '67. Never have done this before. How do you remove the plate holding the bolts? It looks like the whole drum brake assembly has to be unbolted from the rear axle.(4 bolts). If this is the case, do I need to bleed the brakes? - because I would also have to uncouple the brake line. How is the stud plate then removed from the brakes? (I have a picture - but aren't sure if I can post it here!)
I also found out that the lug nut studs which should be 7/16" are actually metric. Why?

This is a very easy repair.remove the wheel and the drum.Use a hammer and punch if needed,knock the broken stud out of the axle.Put the new stud in place and use a stack of washers with a new lug nut to pull the stud back into the axle.
Who said your studs are metric?What year car are you working on?

It's a '67. I took a lug nut off the front wheel to get correct studs and lug nuts for rear wheel - The 7/16" threaded stud at both NAPA and a high performance shop would not thread on my lug nut. The guy told me it may be a rear out of a late '60s camaro (which some have metric threads - he said.) All I know is that the lug nut will not fit on the standard 7/16" threads - but it fits on the studs on the car. Weird?!

No Chevrolet axle from the 60's EVER came with metric studs. Someone may have put metric studs in it for God knows what reason. I would investigate what the rest of the rear axle studs are. Are all your lugs nuts the same? Maybe you need to replace all the studs and lugs.

There's no way they're metric,the threads are probably galled from 30 something years of overtightening.To check the thread size,find the lug nut with the best threads and see if a 7/16-20 bolt threads into it.Next take a 7/16-20 regular nut and see if it threads onto the studs.Be careful, the gm metric threads are very close to your 7/16 lugs.Threading them on will only strip out your studs.Dennis said it right no metric bolts in the 60's also Camaro rear end and axles don't fit Chevelles.I don,t think your parts guy knows what he's talking about,sounds like he's just trying to make the sale.

I vote for all new studs too graemlins/thumbsup.gif