DIY Caliper painting...

[I12XLR8]

As I'm in the midst of painting my calipers after deciding not to powder coat them (mainly due to the cost involved here in Canada) I thought I should take the info I've posted elsewhere and drop it all into one thread. The tear down information is for Brembo's and stock rears (which process should be identical to the stock fronts).

Edit: Not long after I installed my finished brakes I was told of a powder-coater in the GTA that will do all four calipers for $150. I have no experience with this person and have not seen his work but he does painting for some local Porsche and exotic's clubs. PM me if interested and I'll dig up his contact info. Had I know of this deal I never would have done all of this work myself :facepalm2: )

Here we go...

I just used these instructions today to take apart my Brembos and they are exactly right! I decided to take some pics along the way so I'll use SpeedracerX's instructions and just add my pics in...


Been awhile and I don't have pix but let me try...assuming you have the caliper off the vehicle...
DISCLAIMER: do this at your own risk. I am not a professional.

Disassembly:

1. Plug the bleeder hole or even the incoming fluid hole - I don't think it matters which one.
2. Get a 2x4 about 8" long and put inside the caliper (think...if the pistons came out they would touch the wood).
3. Shoot compressed air (air hose) into the unplugged fluid hole. Start with LOW pressure and increase SLOWLY until both pistons jump outward and pop against the 2x4. If 1 pops and the other has not popped yet, that's ok, send some more air pressure and pop the other one. Don't worry, at this point, the 2x4 will NOT let the pistons fly out at you. Keep your FINGERS away from the area where the pistons come out. You are purposely doing this part of the disassembly in two steps so the pistons don't go flying at you.
4. Remove the 2x4.
5. Now use a 1-by. Do the same thing as Step 3. Cover the piston-area with a towel just in case the pistons fly out. If I remember correctly, the 1-by should still not let the pistons all the way out enough to go flying and hurt you. Blow air in until both pistons pop out and hit the wood.


I used a towel to achieve the same results as the wood but the lazy way.

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0197.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0198.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0200.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0202.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0199.jpg



6. Now that the pistons are that far out, you can wiggle them the rest of the way out of the rubber dust boot and piston bores easily by hand.


I didn't have that much luck. As soon as one of the pistons broke free of the dust boot I no longer had any pressure to get the others out. I had to peel the dust boots back to expose the pistons then 'convince' them to come out. It's a good thing that I decided to do this work - one of the dust boots was very weak and was either already torn or tore during the removal. For some reason only that one was brittle as it continued to tear very easily during poking and prodding after the disassembly was complete while the others are very pliable and strong. Considering the ease of this job and the expected low cost of rebuild kits I would suggest replacing everything whenever you receive used parts (in my case they were new!)

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0205.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0206.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0208.jpg



7. You will see the rubber dust boot. You'll see where it starts and where it ends inside the counterbore. Get a mechanical pick or very tiny screwdriver and pry it out from the bottom of it. It will pop out. The flexible-looking thinner boot part is one piece with the retaining ring end. Do NOT pull on the thinner outward boot part or you can rip it. Just slowly pry from the ring-like bottom. Might have to work your way around it but it will pop out pretty easily. It is just sitting in a counterbore. No adhesive or anything is holding it in place. It's only press fit.


http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0207.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0212.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0214.jpg

I had very little room to work on the Brembo's due to the design so hard to pry on the dust boot outer edge to get them to pop out. There is a maintenance groove where the bit is that makes this much easier but it was tough with so little leverage to break them free.

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0211.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0209.jpg





8. Do this for both piston pots (each Front caliper has 2 pots)(each rear caliper has 1 pot.)
9. Looking into the pot, a little more than half way down into the pot, you will see another rubber seal. With a thin, tiny flathead or pick, this too will flex and come right out. These are more flexible and easier to remove than the dust boots.


http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0218.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0222.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0217.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0220.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/101_0223.jpg



10. That's it! They are disassembled. The only parts to "rebuild" I think would be the rubber seals and the dust boots. The pistons and bores should be fine.
NOTE: Before reassembling, everything MUST be free of dust, debri, sand from any blasting you might have done to smooth the surfaces before powder coating like I did, etc. Use compressed air, laquer thinner, etc and GET OUT ANY AND ALL DEBRI. IF YOU DON'T - your pistons WILL stick and your calipers and pads will not function properly and you may drag a pad and wear out a pad and rotor ASAP. Don't take any chances with dirt in those fluid holes, bottom of piston bores, etc!!!!! You'll be RE-DOING the job a day or two later like I had to.

Reassembly after being Clean:

1. With the bleeder hole plugged, lube the piston bores lightly but completely with your brake fluid.
2. Insert the rubber seals that go into the bores. They pop right in.
3. Lube the pistons. Push them straight and back into the bores. Push them down. Do both.
4. Lube the inside of the dust boots that will encircle the pistons. Push the dust boots into place while carefully making sure that a) the inside of the dust boots slip over the piston and b) that part of the dust boot does not twist or bind or fold itself when trying to encircle the piston. Remember, the piston will need to move inward and outward and nicely take the inside of the boot with it as it moves but WITHOUT binding it up or kinking it. THIS IS THE HARDEST PART OF THE WHOLE JOB. Making sure the dust boot allows the piston to move again freely YET the boot seats properly into the counterbore and remains in place. Even if the dust boot allows the piston to move properly; IF IT IS NOT SEATED ALL THE WAY DOWN INTO ITS COUNTERBORE, it will stick out just enough to potentially catch the brake pad holder during resinstallation on the car thus causing the dust boot to rip. If that happens, a caliper piston can stick, a brake pad can stick, or dirt can get in the piston bore and mess up the caliper bore.
5. You're done! Congratulations!

Note about caliper disassembly and reassembly as it relates to Powder Coating: ANY AND EVERY caliper or caliper bracket internal or external THREAD needs to be covered! If it is a male thread, use a cap of some kind. If it is a female thread, use a plug or screw of some kind. If it is a hole (like the one in the caliper bracket that is just a blind hole used for sliding purposes), cap off the end. Protect every hole. Why? A) to not allow sand or other contaminents in there. B) even a coating as thin as powder coating will cause threads to bind or things that slide may no longer slide. You DON'T want your caliper not to be able to slide side to side due to a slider pin binding on powder coating. You'll mess up a brake pad. Yes, you could chase all threads later or retap, etc. But who wants to do that if they don't have to? Also, even with certain threads protected, you may still need to touch up the first thread. Sometimes the first thread is hard to avoid getting powder coating on it.

Oh, and get high temperature, tapered, silicone plugs (McMaster Carr sells some) for the caliper bores. You don't want powder coating in the bores OR on the counterbore where the dust boot sits - that little bit of powder coating can cause the dust boot to not seat properly back down and then interfere with the pad when you go to push the caliper in place over the pads.

I think that's it. Sounds easy, doesn't it. LOL. Have fun.

Disassembly took me about an hour and a half although the second caliper only took about 20 minutes :thumbsup:

Thanks, SpeedracerX!!!!!!!

[I12XLR8]

I just took the rear's apart (graciously lended to me by G8 GT V8) before the weekend following the same instructions that SpeedRacerX supplied above:

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/100_0384.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/100_0386.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/100_0387.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/100_0390.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/100_0391.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/100_0392.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/100_0393.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/100_0394.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/100_0395.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/100_0396.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/100_0397.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/100_0398.jpg

I've dropped these and the front's off at the sand-blaster and should have them back mid-next week. I can't wait to paint them although I still have to wait for the decals to come in.

[I12XLR8]

I got the call from PrepTech - awesome guys to deal with in Ottawa for sand-blasting! - and picked up the calipers earlier today. Here is how they came out:

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0015.jpg

Not sure why the colour is off here...

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0016.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0017.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0018.jpg

I've partially prepped these for painting which I plan to do tomorrow night. I have used bolts and washed I had lying around to plug up thread holes for the painting process. I have blown out any remaining soda but have not taped anything up yet as I plan to hit them with brake cleaner first. Then I will tape them, hang them, brake clean them again then prime and paint.

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0019.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0020.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0021.jpg

What I am going to be using...

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0022.jpg

[I12XLR8]

As for decals I have three styles coming in...

Brembo (but all in white)

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/Brembo.gif

The same V that was on the Brembo's (but, of course, in white):

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/Vlogocaliperdecals.png

and these...

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/HSV.jpg

I ordered the BREMBO with a friend so don't mind that I likely won't use them and the V's didn't cost very much so I won't feel too bad when I put the HSV decals on :brock: I thought I wouldn't be able to find these or find someone to make them so I caved and ordered the V's. Luck for me someone got back to me and said they could make the HSV decals, no problem. I am a happy guy!!!!!!

More pics over the weekend of the painting process...

[MIEngineer]

Please tell me they capped off the bores for the pistons and the caliper pins...

The rear caliper housing doesn't appear to be that way...the bore doesn't have the machined look to it.

I wouldn't have taken them apart for painting like I mentioned before, but that is just me.

[I12XLR8]

Please tell me they capped off the bores for the pistons and the caliper pins...

The rear caliper housing doesn't appear to be that way...the bore doesn't have the machined look to it.

I don't think they did now that you mention it. Is this a problem?

[Call-Me-D]

Looking good so far. .... Im in the process of painting my Camaro Fronts, but I didnt go as far as you did. I just pulled the lines off, plugged the holes, masked the pistons and rubber surrounds then went to town with the paint. Have white brembo decals coming as well. Will prob do the brush on for the rear.

[STL_G8GT]

I don't think they did now that you mention it. Is this a problem?

Those pistons must be machine smooth, or they will bind, not seal, and slide unevenly... that can be a HUGE problem!

Where did they NOT seal them? Caliper slides? Piston bores?

[MIEngineer]

Those pistons must be machine smooth, or they will bind, not seal, and slide unevenly... that can be a HUGE problem!

Where did they NOT seal them? Caliper slides? Piston bores?


I don't think they did now that you mention it. Is this a problem?

...did they do this on the Brembos too...

I really don't know what to say...

The dust boot is not a big deal...that stays fixed at the piston and the end of the bore to keep dust out...not really a problem as it keeps dust out.

But the interior piston seal essentially glides on the machined bore surfaces...you will kill that seal, if it seals at all.

I've seen it...many times unfortunately. As mentioned, you will have issues with binding and that leads to uneven pad wear among issues to put it short.

Not to mention whatever material they used when blasting is now all over the interior of those calipers.

I really hope I am wrong.

I also can't believe they blasted the bleeders also. That will cause problems down the road and I would replace them with new pieces.

Can you post some high res pics of the bores etc...and do you know what the blast media composed of? Looks like sand but was it soda or?

[SpeedRacerX]

Agreed. First, I would have never suggested taking out the pistons for only painting. You only take out the pistons so the rubber stuff doesn't melt during powder coat curing in the oven.

Also, I said this:

"Note about caliper disassembly and reassembly as it relates to Powder Coating: ANY AND EVERY caliper or caliper bracket internal or external THREAD needs to be covered! If it is a male thread, use a cap of some kind. If it is a female thread, use a plug or screw of some kind. If it is a hole (like the one in the caliper bracket that is just a blind hole used for sliding purposes), cap off the end. Protect every hole. Why? A) to not allow sand or other contaminents in there. B) even a coating as thin as powder coating will cause threads to bind or things that slide may no longer slide. You DON'T want your caliper not to be able to slide side to side due to a slider pin binding on powder coating. You'll mess up a brake pad. Yes, you could chase all threads later or retap, etc. But who wants to do that if they don't have to? Also, even with certain threads protected, you may still need to touch up the first thread. Sometimes the first thread is hard to avoid getting powder coating on it.

Oh, and get high temperature, tapered, silicone plugs (McMaster Carr sells some) for the caliper bores. You don't want powder coating in the bores OR on the counterbore where the dust boot sits - that little bit of powder coating can cause the dust boot to not seat properly back down and then interfere with the pad when you go to push the caliper in place over the pads."

Boy, I hope I was clear about this. Even so, I can't fathom why someone would blast the bores of a caliper. Is that the case?

[-Ray-]

I have an engineer contact at Brembo in Homer, MI. I'll ask him, but I don't believe there is any metal to metal contact in the bore.

[I12XLR8]

SpeedRacerX - you gave perfect instructions, not to worry. When dropping them off at the stripper they told me that they would take care of any prep necessary. Guess I should have insisted on knowing how they would prep them :facepalm2:

MIEngineer - they used soda (although to be honest I'm not sure what that even is - I think they mentioned Limestone). The cylinder bores appear to be as smooth as the pistons although that is gauged by my finger...

G8 Ray - If there is no metal to metal contact between the bore and the piston I should be safe...right?!?!?!?! It certainly feels fine in this video...


http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/th_Video1.jpg (http://s1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/?action=view&current=Video1.mp4)

[STL_G8GT]

SpeedRacerX - you gave perfect instructions, not to worry. When dropping them off at the stripper they told me that they would take care of any prep necessary. Guess I should have insisted on knowing how they would prep them :facepalm2:

MIEngineer - they used soda (although to be honest I'm not sure what that even is - I think they mentioned Limestone). The cylinder bores appear to be as smooth as the pistons although that is gauged by my finger...

G8 Ray - If there is no metal to metal contact between the bore and the piston I should be safe...right?!?!?!?! It certainly feels fine in this video...


http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/th_Video1.jpg (http://s1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/?action=view&current=Video1.mp4)

If the cylinders feel as smooth as the bores then you should be good. The prepd areas should have a smooth feel with light texture, the cylinders and bores should have a machined smooth feel with no noticeable texture. Just because there should be no contact doesn't mean you're out of the woods... any sort of surface abrasion will become a place for buildup of particles, etc... over time that could wreck havoc on their operation... although the largest concern would be the sealing surfaces would no longer be smooth and wouldn't let your seals sit properly. Mix a seal not being flush with a surface that will catch debris, and that could really foul things up down the road. Of course we're talking extreme circumstances, but this is a big car moving very fast... and this is the system that stops it. ;)

[I12XLR8]

I just checked them all and the bores on the Brembos (that were not stripped) have the same feel as the rear caliper bores. I then compared the feel of the pistons to all of the bores and they feel the same :rocking:

One of the Brembo's actually has one spot that feel VERY SLIGHTLY off...can I 'polish' this with 0000 steel wool, 2000 grit paper, or would I need something even finer? I'm not too worried about it as it came this way but while everything's apart I'll perfect it if I can.

[MIEngineer]

Ray - the piston is sealed to the bore with the main seal. There is no metal to metal contact. As noted, the piston rides on that seal which is the issue as that seal moves axially inside the bore it will not have a machined smooth surface to move on...I.e. wear. I have brembo engineering contacts but I work in brake development myself. The blaster should have used common sense.

There may be hope to polish them up...but I have never done that personally.

If it were sand...id say you were hosed. Soda is less abrasive and does not pit the surface as bad...but like I said, I have never had to polish bores out.

[-Ray-]

Grant,

If you need to you can send the body's to my office in Plymouth, MI and I can get the surface roughness checked. I can get the specs from Brembo.
Personally, I think you'll be fine.
Most folks don't understand exactly what surface roughness is. A smooth surface that reflects light simply has the machining peaks removed. I have close to 15 years measuring surface roughness on machined parts so I know a little bit about the subject. Including Brembo's.

[I12XLR8]

Ray - I appreciate the vote of confidence (although I won't hold you to it should there be an issue :cool2:)

I am about to paint them and plugged the cylinder bores like I should have before stripping them. Hopefully they turn out nice!

here we go.........

[pha|anx]

Ray - I appreciate the vote of confidence (although I won't hold you to it should there be an issue :cool2:)

I am about to paint them and plugged the cylinder bores like I should have before stripping them. Hopefully they turn out nice!

here we go.........

pics pics pics! :watch:

[MIEngineer]

I am well aware of surface roughness. I ran the measurement lab area in brake development at GM for a year plus.

Personally, I would never run those on a car. I am well aware of the measurements and such. That kind of stuff would never leave me with confidence in the components. I don't rebuild damaged calipers for friends with scratches in there let alone blasted surfaces. Seals are not designed to deal with any sort of rough surface even if it feels smooth to the human touch after re-reading your posts. They need to glide in the bores. Im not getting into specifics but I would be questioning the shop a bit.

Even when shops rebuild calipers they machine bores etc within tolerances. If possible. They would never place seals in that kind of environment.

[MIEngineer]

Ray, I take it you work for a supplier or some such given Plymouth location...I can only imagine ;)

At least you have confidence in them. I've seen far too many things happen on friends vehicles (including an Sti) in the brake area to feel comfortable.

I've ripped apart a lot of calipers in 4+ years to know what I would accept and what I would not for my own car.

Either way I look forward to results and durability down the line.

[-Ray-]

I am well aware of surface roughness. I ran the measurement lab area in brake development at GM for a year plus.

Personally, I would never run those on a car. I am well aware of the measurements and such. That kind of stuff would never leave me with confidence in the components. I don't rebuild damaged calipers for friends with scratches in there let alone blasted surfaces. Seals are not designed to deal with any sort of rough surface even if it feels smooth to the human touch after re-reading your posts. They need to glide in the bores. Im not getting into specifics but I would be questioning the shop a bit.

Even when shops rebuild calipers they machine bores etc within tolerances. If possible. They would never place seals in that kind of environment.

I'm not trying to argue with you. I'm not an engineer in brake development.
I feel the depth and width of the seal ring grooves are more important than de-glossing of the surface.
Here's an image of a lapped surface. As you can see, there are some fairly deep scratches in it. Which I add only to emphasize that looks don't tell the whole story.
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t16/ElecBlueG6GT/heatsink/Roughness30cutofflapped.gif
I currently have a lab grade surface roughness tester in my work shop. This is only part of what I do for a living.
Again, I'm not trying to argue with you, this is only my personal view point. I hope for Grant's sake, the seal ring grooves don't leak.

[I12XLR8]

Thanks for all of the advice, guys. I'll look at the bores again once the paint has cured, reread these posts, and make my decision from there.

Here are some pics of the painting process last night - nothing unexpected but I'll post them anyways :thumbsup:

Here are the calipers, prepped:

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0024.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0025.jpg

...and my 'custom' paint bay ready to take the components!

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0027.jpg

Ready for the primer...

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0028.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0029.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0030.jpg

First coat of paint is on!

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0031.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0032.jpg

Second coat...

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0033.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0034.jpg

And done!

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0035.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0036.jpg

All in all in went very well. I was told that one can would do the trick but bought a second just in case. Good thing I did as I ran out of the first can well before I finished the second light coat!

Now I'm going to let them dry until next weekend, bake them, install decals and clearcoat, then finally put them on the car (if I feel comfortable with the bores).

[SpeedRacerX]

Coming along. Definitely clear coat them.

[MIEngineer]

Pretty slick paint area. Nice idea to hang them like that.


I'm not trying to argue with you. I'm not an engineer in brake development.
I feel the depth and width of the seal ring grooves are more important than de-glossing of the surface.
Here's an image of a lapped surface. As you can see, there are some fairly deep scratches in it. Which I add only to emphasize that looks don't tell the whole story.
I currently have a lab grade surface roughness tester in my work shop. This is only part of what I do for a living.
Again, I'm not trying to argue with you, this is only my personal view point. I hope for Grant's sake, the seal ring grooves don't leak.

I like playing with neat toys like that.

I am in no way trying to argue with anyone here - just trying to raise awareness on this issue so that this really doesn't happen again on or off the boards for people seeing this and if it does, we have some information on what we have here and any solutions or conclusions overall.

I also hope for his sake that it works, but even *if* they seal, the durability and proper operation of the piston can be an issue...we will find out, i suppose.

I think the only way to safely test for comparison would be to try a scrap caliper bore with a piston removed and measure that...against what is present in Grants caliper.

The seal is not very wide on either caliper assembly for several reasons which I would get into, but I value my job :)...which is my main concern in regards to proper caliper function and overall durability given the current circumstances. *If* you get them in Plymouth, and you or Grant wouldn't mind me taking a look, that is not far from me.

I *may* have some calipers [or a caliper] to compare them to that I can split in half.

[I12XLR8]

A quick update...

I let the calipers dry for 3 days then baked them to aid in the drying process:

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0053.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0054.jpg

Please ignore the tourtiere drippings - meatpie for you non-French Canadians. I had one make quite a mess last week and haven't got around to cleaning it.

I did this on Tuesday night and there was very little odour from the oven, just enough that I turned the hood fan on which took care of most of it.

Last night I set up my paint booth just like the pictures above and put the clear-coat on. This was difficult to do as it's hard to tell where you've already painted when the paint is clear ;-(

I received my decals in today and hope to put them on the front's tonight or tomorrow :brock: Once on I'll be able to clear-coat the fronts although I'm in no rush there. This weekend I will re-assemble and install the rear brakes and hope that everything works out.

[G8 GT V8]

Lookin good Grant!!!

My wife would shoot me if she caught me doing something like that in our oven :)

[I12XLR8]

I just couldn't wait and had to put the new decals on tonight...here's a not too subtle teaser. Once Eidolon shows us his I'll show mine ;-)

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0057.jpg

[Eidolon]

I just couldn't wait and had to put the new decals on tonight...here's a not too subtle teaser. Once Eidolon shows us his I'll show mine ;-)
:rofl:

If you can wait until this evening, I should have everything pulled together today to actually do the install, so they'll be going on tonight. :)

[Eidolon]

Alright, I showed you mine...

[I12XLR8]

Alright, I showed you mine...

...and they look great! Nice to have a custom set-up to make it truly original.

I also wanted an OEM look so went with the rarest OEM decals I could get my hands on...

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0058.jpg

I just hope the clear coat goes on well and there's no curling! The caliper looks very pitted in this picture but they look much better in person. I may not have put the paint on thick enough, I guess.

The rears are assembled and ready to be put on the car in a couple of hours.

- Will insert picture here once I get to the shop...packed them away too quickly! -

The piston bore felt fine and the dust seals went in VERY tight so it looks like I should be good...time will tell. I felt a little better about the bores after reading this on ALLDATA:

If light corrosion is present in the brake caliper bore (7), attempt to remove the imperfection with a fine emery paper.

[Eidolon]

Nice! The decals look good! Make sure to post pics once you've got them on. I'm curious to see how the red looks with your black paint and the massive viewing windows onto the calipers that the Camaro wheels will give you.

[LSX G8]

Looks very nice!!

[I12XLR8]

Well, the calipers are on but I forgot to bring the camera and once we got working I'm not sure I would have remembered to take pictures anyways. The install went fine and they operate smoothly without evidence of leakage or binding so far. As I have said before, time will tell.

I will try to get pictures tomorrow in the daylight. The problem with the painted stock rears is that now they are red they stand out and their smallness is accentuated. I guess I knew that would be the case but it still was somewhat of a disappointment. Once the Camaro's are on it will get worse but hopefully most people will be looking at the huge brakes up front :brock:

Edit: I wasn't sure that the rear calipers would work properly so I left the OEM pads on for now. Once I install the front's I'll put the HPS pads on!

[vert]

It is good to hear that they are function OK. Now post up some install pics.

[I12XLR8]

Here are some pics of the rear calipers on the car. This weekend was so crazy that my mind isn't where it should have been...just one of my many oversights was that I took pictures of the brakes (with my cell phone as I forgot the camera, again) but none with the car in view. The car was filthy - damn winter roads.

I'll take some more soon...

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG00415-20120220-1200.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG00416-20120220-1200.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG00417-20120220-1201.jpg

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG00419-20120220-1201.jpg

[Eidolon]

I gotta say, that is a nice paint job.

I'm confused, though. You do or don't yet have the new 4-piston calipers on up front?

[I12XLR8]

I gotta say, that is a nice paint job.

I'm confused, though. You do or don't yet have the new 4-piston calipers on up front?

I have them but not on the car. I had to wait for the decals to come in before clear coating them so I only did the rears for now. Left the old pads on in case they starting binding so I wouldn't ruin the new HPS pads. So far, so good.

I hope to have the fronts on in a couple of weeks - too much car work recently!

[I12XLR8]

Still waiting to put the front's on the car ;-( I have to get the seal kit in from Greg before I can put them on and they have been back-ordered from GM for what seems to be an eternity.

I clear-coated the fronts with the decals on and was surprised at how glossy I got them :brock: . It seems that I didn't apply the clear thick enough on the rears. Now I'm not sure if I should dull the front's down a bit or gloss up the rears...

opinions?

[Eidolon]

If you can stand it, I'd leave them. If you try to muss the fronts, you may go too far and get yourself into a cycle of repainting-mussing-repainting-mussing that would be frustrating. The rears also may not fully gloss up just because the metal's not as smooth as the fronts.

[vert]

Since they will be sitting behind the wheel, I don't think they will be a noticeable compared to if you had them side by side.

[I12XLR8]

If I do add some clear to the rears it will be on the car so i will see what it looks like once the front's are on. Speaking of the fronts Greg just PM'd me and the seals are in! He's just got to confirm something with the seal kit then will be sending it out. Looks like I'll have showy brakes before my Easter trip!

[I12XLR8]

I have received the caliper seals! The calipers are prepped and ready to be installed with the painted rotor hats tomorrow night. I can't wait for this mod to finally be done!

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/Random%20Pics/IMG00443-20120317-2306.jpg

[I12XLR8]

And......drum roll please...the final post!

The install happened on Saturday night and went fairly well. The only hiccup was when I was bleeding the rear brakes and hadn't tightened down the front bleeder screws ;-( What a mess! I got the brake fluid off before doing too much damage to the caliper paint but there are still some areas that I will have to touch up in the warmer weather.

Here is the stock set-up that we are all familiar with:

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/Random%20Pics/BrakesbeforeBrembo.jpg

Now my naked hub:

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/Random%20Pics/BrakesbeforeBremboNakedHub.jpg

The new rotors and calipers!

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/Random%20Pics/Brembomod2.jpg

A distance view of both ends:

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/Random%20Pics/Brembomod3.jpg

All ready to bed-in the new HAWK pads!

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/Random%20Pics/Brembomod5.jpg

Done!

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/Random%20Pics/Brembomod4.jpg

I completed everything on Saturday night and have had no issues since then (only two days but I have about 160 miles on them) and they feel great! Hard to describe the difference between stock pads and these...stock pads tend to only grip more when you brake harder. These pads grip more as they warm up so on a long braking event I find myself lifting off the pedal to maintain the same braking force. It's a strange feeling but when you stand on them the feeling is pure control (is it obvious that this is my first set of performance pads? ;-P )

To me this was definately the way to go although I would powdercoat if I didn't have to ship it across the border into the States to get a reasonable price. The prep, painting, curing, etc is time consuming and likely won't last as long as coating although it was considerably cheaper.

This was a fun mod to do and very rewarding to look at and in terms of performance.

Now I just need to get some rear Brembos...

[Eidolon]

Now my naked hub:
Kinky. You need an NSFW tag on this thread! ;)



I completed everything on Saturday night and have had no issues since then (only two days but I have about 160 miles on them) and they feel great! Hard to describe the difference between stock pads and these...stock pads tend to only grip more when you brake harder. These pads grip more as they warm up so on a long braking event I find myself lifting off the pedal to maintain the same braking force. It's a strange feeling but when you stand on them the feeling is pure control (is it obvious that this is my first set of performance pads? ;-P )

That's a good way to describe them. I love my Hawk HPS pads. Did you go HPS or ceramic?

Congrats on the successful mod!

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

[G8 GT V8]

Wow Grant,

Those look amazing! You did a great job on them. I'm now inspired to install mine :)

[I12XLR8]

I love my Hawk HPS pads. Did you go HPS or ceramic?

Congrats on the successful mod!

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

Thanks! I went with the HPS as I clean the car too often to worry about brake dust ;-)


Wow Grant,

Those look amazing! You did a great job on them. I'm now inspired to install mine :)

There's no better compliment than to inspire someone else! I know Eidolon inspired me to look forward to the day that he trades up his new CTS-V set and sell them to me! :brock:

:theman: Marty, I couldn't have done this without your VERY generous rear caliper loan. I can't thank you enough. :theman:

I love this forum!

[Eidolon]

Thanks! I went with the HPS as I clean the car too often to worry about brake dust ;-)
I think you'll be amazed at how little the HPS dust. In fact, if you wouldn't mind posting up with your opinion about it, I would be very appreciative. I feel like I'm getting weird looks when I insist they really aren't that bad despite not being ceramic. They dust at less than half the rate of the stock Brembo pads.

There's no better compliment than to inspire someone else! I know Eidolon inspired me to look forward to the day that he trades up his new CTS-V set and sell them to me! :brock:
Ha! You might be waiting a while, there, Grant. ;) I don't even know what I would trade them for!

[-Ray-]

Those things leaking yet?

[I12XLR8]

I think you'll be amazed at how little the HPS dust. In fact, if you wouldn't mind posting up with your opinion about it, I would be very appreciative. I feel like I'm getting weird looks when I insist they really aren't that bad despite not being ceramic. They dust at less than half the rate of the stock Brembo pads.


I'll let you know about the dust in a few days - it's cold out here so I won't be washing it anytime soon.


Ha! You might be waiting a while, there, Grant. ;) I don't even know what I would trade them for!

This suits me just fine...I don't have any money left right now :disgust:


Those things leaking yet?

Funny :playnice: I thought you were on my side?

[tempo8]

Very thorough job! The final result speaks for itself! Have you had any brake issues? I'd assume not right?

[-Ray-]

I'll let you know about the dust in a few days - it's cold out here so I won't be washing it anytime soon.



This suits me just fine...I don't have any money left right now :disgust:



Funny :playnice: I thought you were on my side?

I am, and you didn't answer my question.

[I12XLR8]

No. No leaks so far. I have put over 1000miles on them since the install with no issues and can only hope for many more.

Of course, I'm in Toronto for Easter and came across a reputable powdercoater that will do all four corners for $150!!! :facepalm2:

[I12XLR8]

I think you'll be amazed at how little the HPS dust. In fact, if you wouldn't mind posting up with your opinion about it, I would be very appreciative. I feel like I'm getting weird looks when I insist they really aren't that bad despite not being ceramic. They dust at less than half the rate of the stock Brembo pads.

The front's definitely dust less than my stock pads but the rears seems to dust a little bit more. I kept the old rotors on the rear...could that be causing the extra dust I wonder?

[-Ray-]

No. No leaks so far. I have put over 1000miles on them since the install with no issues and can only hope for many more.

Of course, I'm in Toronto for Easter and came across a reputable powdercoater that will do all four corners for $150!!! :facepalm2:

Well, like I said in an earlier post, gloss isn't always an indication of good surface roughness.

[hikeskool]

Incredible-looking!

[I12XLR8]

Just had my first HPDE day this past weekend and everything is still working properly, no leaks at all. I installed HP Plus pads two nights before the event and during the bed in process damn near launched myself through the windshield. Holy crap those brakes grab!

The only issue was that the stock 18's are so close to the brembo's that once everything heated up and I threw the car into a corner the rim spokes rubbed against the caliper! I thought it was the ABS going off (so did my instructor) so I just kept going :facepalm2: It only happened in one turn where I had to crank the wheel to the right on an turn where I am braking hard, going uphill into an aggressive right turn while cresting the hill and then launching down the hill while coming out. My first thought was a wheel bearing but it feels good. With not even enough room to fit a business card between the caliper and rim when it's cool I think everything just heated up and I lost my clearances.

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/G8%20Brembo%20rebuild/IMG_0177.jpg

I'm going to dremel off what material I can (it is not grooved, what you see in the picture is rim material deposited on the caliper) and touch up the paint as best I can.

Now I need to find a good quality lugged spacer!

[Eidolon]

Ouch! Sorry to see that! But glad you were able to pick up the HP Plus and they did the trick for you. :) Fun was had, I assume?

[I12XLR8]

Much fun! Followed all the advice you sent me which helped a lot. Next time I hope to have better tires and really be able to throw the car into the corners and not have to feather the throttle so much coming out of them.

[Eidolon]

Next time I hope to have better tires and really be able to throw the car into the corners and not have to feather the throttle so much coming out of them.
Yup, you're hooked. My work here is done. *nods*

[I12XLR8]

Lol!

[I12XLR8]

Well, a lot has happened since my last post here. I ran these brakes at many track events without any issue whatsoever. They operated smoothly during daily driving and extreme tracking. Then I totaled the car (nothing to do with the brakes :boxing: ). I am now in a 'new' G8 and am going to be transferring the Brembo's over to this one in the near future.

The problem is that about halfway through the 2013 track season I wasn't able to clean off the brake dust anymore. I tried scrubbing, SONAX, varsol, all without any luck. I just figured that the paint got so hot at the track that the dust sunk into the clear coat. I have done nothing but try to clean them until tonight when I decided to start stripping them down and repaint them. This time I planned to get one of those G2 paint kits to pretty them up until I get the extra funds together to go with the 6 piston/4 piston set-up.

Anyways, here is what they looked like with aggressive cleaning (seriously!):

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/New%20G8/Brembo%20refurbishing/101_3349_zps8c051a81.jpg (http://s1084.photobucket.com/user/thisismyspace2/media/New%20G8/Brembo%20refurbishing/101_3349_zps8c051a81.jpg.html)

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/New%20G8/Brembo%20refurbishing/101_3350_zps574e999f.jpg (http://s1084.photobucket.com/user/thisismyspace2/media/New%20G8/Brembo%20refurbishing/101_3350_zps574e999f.jpg.html)

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/New%20G8/Brembo%20refurbishing/101_3351_zps0bc13dc1.jpg (http://s1084.photobucket.com/user/thisismyspace2/media/New%20G8/Brembo%20refurbishing/101_3351_zps0bc13dc1.jpg.html)

You can see that the paint took quite a beating on the track and over the winter (both bad news for any paint). Once I didn't care what happened to the paint and decided to strip them down a bit I grabbed some 00 steel wool and got these results in about 3 minutes:

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/New%20G8/Brembo%20refurbishing/101_3352_zps9a7ad369.jpg (http://s1084.photobucket.com/user/thisismyspace2/media/New%20G8/Brembo%20refurbishing/101_3352_zps9a7ad369.jpg.html)

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/thisismyspace2/New%20G8/Brembo%20refurbishing/101_3354_zps2c93bd7d.jpg (http://s1084.photobucket.com/user/thisismyspace2/media/New%20G8/Brembo%20refurbishing/101_3354_zps2c93bd7d.jpg.html)

Still looks abused but much cleaner. I'm going to work on these over the next few days and see how clean I can get them with just the wool. Having the option to put them on this car 'as-is' allows me to spend my time on all of the other mods I have sitting around waiting for me ;-)

[fengstang]

Is there a way to paint them without taking the pistons and all that out?

[I12XLR8]

Absolutely. I just took it all out to sandblast them. This time I have to change all of the piston seals but wouldn't be taking the pistons out if I didn't have to. Just do a good prep and you'll be fine.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk