Brake Job Question

[Michelob]

Have a sticking caliper and brought it to a garage because I just don!t have the time. If the caliper is sticking don!t the caliper housings have to be honed? They told me no they would just replace the calipers. Is that right?

 

[eljefino]

do you mean they won't just replace the pistons? What you want are new rubber seals, they provide the elasticity that retracts the pads, but often they'll trade the whole caliper for a new one and let someone in a 3rd world country rebuild the core.

 

[Warstud]

In some cases paying them labor to fix the old one can cost more than buying a new one.

 

[jr_whopper]

Well back in the day, you could find rebuild kits for calipers and wheel cylinders, but you cant really find those kits anymore. If you could find a rebuild kit you would have to hone the caliper and replace the square cut seal. But in reality its just common to replace the caliper with a re manufactured one.

 

[nfs480]

Very few shops will actually rebuild calipers themselves. It's easier to replace them with ones that are warranteed by another company.

 

[finalyzd]

Originally Posted By: Warstud
In some cases paying them labor to fix the old one can cost more than buying a new one.


Yep bingo. Its the same with cv boots. Instead of paying labor to take it out ,reboot it and put in grease. Just pay to put a new one in. Cost the same basically

 

[labman]

I once worked in a shop and rebuilt many calipers. As long as the piston is OK, it is a cheap, easy job, or at least used to be. If the piston is stuck, there is a good chance it is shot. A kit with new rubber parts and a piston ran as much or more than a rebuilt caliper back when kits were cheap and easy to find. So unless it is a matter of the caliper itself being stuck and not the mounting, a rebuilt caliper may be the quickest and cheapest. eljefino is likely right about the third world labor.

No need to hone a caliper bore, just clean it up with a wire brush in a drill.

 

[bdcardinal]

It is no longer cost effective to rebuild calipers and wheel cylinders. the part themselves are cheap, however at $110 an hour in my dealers case, the cost saved from the parts side are quickly lost in labor required to actually rebuild.

 

[mechtech2]

What sticks is usually the pins/bolts that the caliper move on.
They rust, seize, whatever all the time.
Piston bores can be honed or sleeved to rebuild them.

 

[labman]

Hone or sleeve a caliper? The piston runs in the seal never touching the bore. It won't become glazed. Nothing seals to it. No reason to hone it. Sleeve? What about the groove for the seal? You would have to bore out about a half inch and install a grooved sleeve.

I have seen sleeved master cylinders. I once ran the hone through an ancient one and it was sleeved with brass.

 

[PandaBear]

so what do you guys use to clean the sliding pin bores? I search for wire brush but can't find the one that can be attached to the cordless drill for cleaning.

 

[AcuraTech]

Originally Posted By: PandaBear
so what do you guys use to clean the sliding pin bores? I search for wire brush but can't find the one that can be attached to the cordless drill for cleaning.


Link

Something like that. Maybe not that exact one, but something similar. It looks like it has threads on the top, you could screw a nut on and use it in a drill.

 

[AcuraTech]

Whoops, forgot about the OP!

Just get a reman caliper. Don't get the $10 Auto Zone pos though. Find a decent one.

 

[labman]

If the problem is sticking on the pins, no need to replace the caliper, although I think the old, worn rubber parts need replaced one in a while to avoid problems withthe caliper.

You should be able to find little wirebrush wheels mounted on a shaft anywhere they sell drill accessories.

 

[Trav]

Brake Caliper Bolt/Pin Part No $20.49

Brake Caliper Guide Pin Boot Kit $13.99

Brake Disc Brake Hardware Kit $11.49

Disc Brake Caliper Repair Kit
Front; Bore = 2-1/2" $7.99

Total $53.96 plus labor


Cardone Friction Choice Brake Caliper-Front
Part No. 18-4638
Warranty: LIMITED LIFETIME REPLACEMENT
Reman.; w/Installation Hardware; Left; OE Metal Piston;Supplied w/o Mounting Bracket $37.79

I cant afford to rebuild calipers even if my labor is free.

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: Trav
I cant afford to rebuild calipers even if my labor is free.

That has been the case for many years, at least for me as well. The rebuilds are pretty cheap, at least for my applications.

 

[Kestas]

Originally Posted By: PandaBear
so what do you guys use to clean the sliding pin bores? I search for wire brush but can't find the one that can be attached to the cordless drill for cleaning.

I have a bench grinder. One side has a grinding wheel, the other side has a wire wheel. I use the wire wheel a lot!... mainly to clean fasteners.

Just make sure the wires aren't too coarse or the wheel will be too aggressive and leave the metal surface too rough. A wire diameter of 0.008" should work fine.

 

[mechtech2]

Caliper bores of course can need honing or sleeving [depending].
It make absolutely no difference why.
There can be multiple reasons for this.

If everything is perfect, then of course no work needs to be done.

 

[Herz]

I usually put the pins in a vice and use a brass brush from napa or anywhere else and manually clean them.