stuck caliper...

SoCalMike wrote:
> ive never had a "problem" per se, with aftermarket. maybe a little more
> noise or dust, but nothing i cant live with.

OK, thanks for the info.

> as long as you can take the worn out pads back and get a new set from
> the same place, its all good.

Seems crazy to me. I mean, aren't they designed to wear out? Must refer
to faulty materials, not regular wear, but I'll read the fine print.

> nah- screw type in the rear. get a large c-clamp from a place like
> harbor freight and try it.
>
> you might not really have a stuck caliper at all. who knows?

That's what I'm hoping. Will try on Tue and hope for the best.

TeGGer® wrote:
> If the caliper is not yet installed, you can just pop the piston out of the
> new calipers with some air pressure (even with a bicycle pump with some
> electrical tape wrapped around the end to seal it), smear it with some
> silicone and reinstall. Observe surgical cleanliness here, by the way,
> that's crucial.

I'm hoping the caliper is fine and that I won't have to replace it now,
but if I do, is there any place I *don't* want to smear the silicone
grease? If I'm smearing it on the piston (even just on the sides where
it contacts the cylinder) I'd think it would come into contact with the
brake fluid--that's OK?

I doubt I'll be disassembling the installed caliper to grease it, would
be more cost effective to replace it, I think.

Thanks for the links to the grease. Hopefully the hardcore h/w store I
go to in Brooklyn will have an equivalent.

TeGGer® wrote:
> If the caliper is not yet installed, you can just pop the piston out of the
> new calipers with some air pressure (even with a bicycle pump with some
> electrical tape wrapped around the end to seal it), smear it with some
> silicone and reinstall. Observe surgical cleanliness here, by the way,
> that's crucial.

I'm hoping the caliper is fine and that I won't have to replace it now,
but if I do, is there any place I *don't* want to smear the silicone
grease? If I'm smearing it on the piston (even just on the sides where
it contacts the cylinder) I'd think it would come into contact with the
brake fluid--that's OK?

I doubt I'll be disassembling the installed caliper to grease it, would
be more cost effective to replace it, I think.

Thanks for the links to the grease. Hopefully the hardcore h/w store I
go to in Brooklyn will have an equivalent.

"Abeness" > wrote
> SoCalMike wrote:
> > ive never had a "problem" per se, with aftermarket. maybe a little more
> > noise or dust, but nothing i cant live with.
>
> OK, thanks for the info.
>
> > as long as you can take the worn out pads back and get a new set from
> > the same place, its all good.
>
> Seems crazy to me. I mean, aren't they designed to wear out? Must refer
> to faulty materials, not regular wear, but I'll read the fine print.

This came up a few months ago when I posted that I'd bought Raybestos pads with
a "lifetime warranty" a coupla years ago. I thought as you did: That normal wear
and tear doesn't count. But someone here at the newsgroup (Mike?) said he
thought it might be otherwise.

I asked about this in my brakes class recently. One of the guys works for a
Checker auto parts store and answered. He said that not long ago, Raybestos did
warranty its pads for life, including normal wear and tear. This has since
changed, according to him.

When my Raybestos pads wear, I'm going to take them and the warranty, receipt
etc. to a nearby Carquest and see what they say.

My impression for now is that lifetime warranties, even for normal wear and
tear, may still exist for brake pads.

"Abeness" > wrote
> SoCalMike wrote:
> > ive never had a "problem" per se, with aftermarket. maybe a little more
> > noise or dust, but nothing i cant live with.
>
> OK, thanks for the info.
>
> > as long as you can take the worn out pads back and get a new set from
> > the same place, its all good.
>
> Seems crazy to me. I mean, aren't they designed to wear out? Must refer
> to faulty materials, not regular wear, but I'll read the fine print.

This came up a few months ago when I posted that I'd bought Raybestos pads with
a "lifetime warranty" a coupla years ago. I thought as you did: That normal wear
and tear doesn't count. But someone here at the newsgroup (Mike?) said he
thought it might be otherwise.

I asked about this in my brakes class recently. One of the guys works for a
Checker auto parts store and answered. He said that not long ago, Raybestos did
warranty its pads for life, including normal wear and tear. This has since
changed, according to him.

When my Raybestos pads wear, I'm going to take them and the warranty, receipt
etc. to a nearby Carquest and see what they say.

My impression for now is that lifetime warranties, even for normal wear and
tear, may still exist for brake pads.

Abeness wrote:

> SoCalMike wrote:
>
>> ive never had a "problem" per se, with aftermarket. maybe a little
>> more noise or dust, but nothing i cant live with.
>
>
> OK, thanks for the info.
>
>> as long as you can take the worn out pads back and get a new set from
>> the same place, its all good.
>
>
> Seems crazy to me. I mean, aren't they designed to wear out? Must refer
> to faulty materials, not regular wear, but I'll read the fine print.

AFAICT, "lifetime" pads are lifetime pads. they count on people to lose
the receipt, forget, or sell the car.
>
>> nah- screw type in the rear. get a large c-clamp from a place like
>> harbor freight and try it.
>>
>> you might not really have a stuck caliper at all. who knows?
>
>
> That's what I'm hoping. Will try on Tue and hope for the best.

the only one ive ever seen got the caliper so hot the boot melted, and
all the fluid leaked out.

Abeness wrote:

> SoCalMike wrote:
>
>> ive never had a "problem" per se, with aftermarket. maybe a little
>> more noise or dust, but nothing i cant live with.
>
>
> OK, thanks for the info.
>
>> as long as you can take the worn out pads back and get a new set from
>> the same place, its all good.
>
>
> Seems crazy to me. I mean, aren't they designed to wear out? Must refer
> to faulty materials, not regular wear, but I'll read the fine print.

AFAICT, "lifetime" pads are lifetime pads. they count on people to lose
the receipt, forget, or sell the car.
>
>> nah- screw type in the rear. get a large c-clamp from a place like
>> harbor freight and try it.
>>
>> you might not really have a stuck caliper at all. who knows?
>
>
> That's what I'm hoping. Will try on Tue and hope for the best.

the only one ive ever seen got the caliper so hot the boot melted, and
all the fluid leaked out.

TeGGer® wrote:
> "Downshifting" without double-clutching is not smart. You are NOT supposed
> to use the clutch as a brake pad.
>
> Downshift properly and there is zero wear on the friction disc.

I've heard here that double-clutching means putting it in neutral
between shifts and letting the clutch out (i.e., releasing the pedal),
but wouldn't the point be to simply rev-match (approximately, after long
experience) before engaging at the lower gear, to reduce the wear on the
clutch?

TeGGer® wrote:
> "Downshifting" without double-clutching is not smart. You are NOT supposed
> to use the clutch as a brake pad.
>
> Downshift properly and there is zero wear on the friction disc.

I've heard here that double-clutching means putting it in neutral
between shifts and letting the clutch out (i.e., releasing the pedal),
but wouldn't the point be to simply rev-match (approximately, after long
experience) before engaging at the lower gear, to reduce the wear on the
clutch?

TeGGer® wrote:
> Don't get silicone on the rotor friction surface. But since the caliper is
> OFF the rotor as you work on it, that's not a problem. Anywhere else is
> fine, including contact with the brake fluid.

Thanks again, that's exactly what I wanted to know. I already know
enough not to get it on the rotor!

Incidentally, would it be imprudent to dab a small amount of brake
caliper grease at the edges of the pad backing plate where it contacts
the caliper? My existing pads are pretty well stuck at that point with
rust. I'm assuming I'll wire-brush/sand the caliper at that point before
installing the new pads.

> You don't need to disassemble the installed caliper. The procedure I gave
> specifically avoids that.

Sorry, I should've said something like "doubt I'll be messing with the
boot"--I don't want to stress it at all if the rubber is on the old
side. 'Spose I could examine it and decide on the spot.

If I understood you correctly, the piston is supposed to be able to
rotate--so there's no channel that prevents it from doing so? Or is it
that I have to eject the piston past such a channel?