Question about brake components

[PaulMys]

Clamping a rubber line won't hurt a thing unless it's dry rotted.

I respectfully disagree with this.

In an emergency, sure. But this is not a good practice whatsoever.

 

[PaulMys]

Suddenly there’s a video on my youtube recommendations about “brake caliper cleaning brushes”
Kinda funny how things like that just seem to happen eh?

Lol

Since our devices are linked, whenever my wife looks at new jeans or shoes on her phone, I get ad links to them on my tablet for a week. Lmao

 

[fly07sti]

If you don’t mind driving a few hundred miles north, you can stop by my place and we’ll get them painted up real good!

 

[fly07sti]

Did these on my buddies older ML Mercedes. Don’t judge me on the dirty wheels. LOL

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Desertnate]

The only way I've found to get around the rust on the rotor hats and the edges of the rotor is to go with one that is painted/treated to prevent rust. It has bugged me for years.

Performance focused rotors like Stoptech and Centric seem to have options with painted/treated discs, but I'm not sure about other passenger vehicle options.

 

[oneheadlite]

You're never going to stop rust on brake rotors unless you go with a coated rotor (Geomet coating, etc.) or a ceramic rotor ($$). Note that on a coated rotor, the coating will be abraded off the "working area" of the rotor when the brakes are applied, via friction from the brake pads clamping against the rotor. But regular use should keep this interface area clean and the rest of the rotor will always remain clean/free of rust, etc. Geomet-coated rotors can be had for about $35 (and up) per wheel. Paired with ceramic pads, I've seen a kit for 2 wheels (F or R) going for around $100.

As for calipers, the best bet would be to remove them completely and bead blast them, then primer+paint+clear. Bear in mind that to remove them from the vehicle you will be disconnecting brake lines and thus will need to bleed the system after reinstalling them.

I had an E36 M3 that I daily'd / used as a track puppy. I did the VHT caliper paint, no priming or clearing. I did wire brush/thorough prep wipe them before painting, but I didn't blast them. They held up well while I had the car, current owner just uses it as a track car. Last time I saw the car, they were dirty, but not flaking.

Ah....... Yes. This is true.

But using brake line plugs will mitigate the fluid loss, and if used correctly will negate the bleeding process.

With all due respect (I'm sure you've done more brakes than I have) - Boy, I've done a lot of calipers, and I don't know if I'd ever skip bleeding.

The biggest tip I'd give for someone disassembling their brakes (Read: Opening brake fluid lines) - apply a pedal depressor prior to opening the system. This closes off the feed ports in the master cylinder and prevents your system from gravity draining.

We've had other shops bring us cars where they did brake line repairs where they couldn't get a pedal back because they let the system run out, now you've got air locked in some elevation change in the pipes. They're a pain to get back.

Clamping a rubber line won't hurt a thing unless it's dry rotted. Clamping a braided line is a bad idea.

I respectfully disagree with this.

In an emergency, sure. But this is not a good practice whatsoever.

I'm with Paul on this one. Even if it's not a braided line, it's still not constructed like a vacuum line/coolant hose. If you damage one of the internal layers, you can create a one way check valve (like your heart valves) either preventing pressure from applying or releasing from your brakes.


Eldo - I think I've seen you've done painting before. Knowing your attention to detail, I'm sure you could do a really solid job with masking off the area, chemically prepping them, and painting them still installed on the car. If nothing else, they'll be 95% better to 95% of people. And probably easier to clean in the future. FWIW, I wouldn't bother with the rotors. As was mentioned above, you could look at getting coated rotors next time. This'll help keep the hats from getting rusty so easily.