Brake Rebuild before & after

[Tomikaze]

Took the time to completly disassemble my brakes and rebuild them this winter. Two pistons in the rear were sticking and they cosmetically looked like hell. I don't dare total how much this cost me but I replaced every nut, bolt, bleeder valve and piece of hardware related to the brakes. Right down to inner seals and dust boots. I did PBR Axis ULT pads, Zimmerman rotors and had the calipers sent out to a local powder coater. I'm not super mechanicially inclined but the whole deal wasn't that bad. The hardest part was getting the pistons back in and with some trial and error I've got that down to a science now. Figured I'd share my results. Special thanks to Paul at Performance Product Painting in Auburn, Maine. He did a great job and his price was very reasonable. Funny thing is I'll never get to see just how good the results are. I just bought a 550 Spyder Anniversary car so the 2003 2.7 has to go. Anyone want a beautiful 03' with around $1,500 in new brake parts?

[Lil bastard]

Ironically, I just spent the day rebuilding and painting all the calipers on a V12 Jag convertible.

They were terribly shot, pistons all corroded, fittings all siezed. Took alot of compressed air to get all the pistons out, never had so tough a time doing caliper rebuilds before, so I feel your pain. The upside was it's a friend's car, so I was spending his money.

Yours came out great!

[paulv]

Did either of you guys hone out the piston cylinders, or is that a lost art? The last time I rebuilt a caliper was about 25 yrs ago!! Thx.

Regards,
paul...

[Tomikaze]

Must be a lost art. Never heard of it although it might have made the reassemble a little easier. I have the mechanical inclination of a golden retriever so this was a big job for me.

Originally Posted by paulv

Did either of you guys hone out the piston cylinders, or is that a lost art? The last time I rebuilt a caliper was about 25 yrs ago!! Thx.

Regards,
paul...

[Bladecutter]

Originally Posted by paulv

Did either of you guys hone out the piston cylinders, or is that a lost art? The last time I rebuilt a caliper was about 25 yrs ago!! Thx.

Regards,
paul...

Honing brake calipers is only needed if there was corrosion inside the cylinder bore.
This of course only happens if the brakes are neglected for a long time, the brake fluid absorbs alot of water, and then rust forms in the calipers.

Since I believe the calipers are made of solid aluminum, the need shouldn't be as great for honing the cylinder bores, as aluminum rusts entirely differently than a steel caliper.

BC.