Painted Calipers & New Pads Install (8hrs)

2

2000firebird

New member
finally got to work on installing my pads myself because none of my friends could help me but it really wasn't hard like i thought it would be. still took me a while to figure it all out though. figured since i had both ends of the car up on jackstands with the calipers off that i might as well go and paint them! i had purchased a duplicolor caliper painting kit about a year prior but never used it.







so i got it out and went to work. first i sprayed the cleaner then tried some dry sanding to get as much rust off as i could then went to painting. did a few layers of paint, then taped everything off (got a little crazy, took like 20 mins a side) then went with like 3-4 layers of clearcoat per corner. hopefully it holds up because what a load of work!







unfortunately as nice as these look now the rest of the car is still filthy including the wheels, and i didn't want to wash it yet and get everything wet until the pads were broken in and i was sure the paint could cure right as well.







also, i noticed inside the caliper pistons they had alot of rust and rusted pieces were cracking off and falling out.. it also left a nice imprint on the back of one of the pads. is this something that is normal? or is it from water entering the piston when it shouldn't of. also had some strange 'smear' marks on the rotors, tried wiping them off but it didn't go away.







well heres the pics, enjoy!





hawk ceramics.. good while they lasted



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new ebc redstuff vs old.



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test fit.. pointing out the strange spots, and the evil stock shocks with 127k :grinno:



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getting the calipers painted (by brush)



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painting caliper bracket and rotors



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getting ready for the clearcoat



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finished product



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Why didn't you get the rotors resurfaced? You need a good flat surface for those new pads. I get my rotors and drums turned at NAPA for about $20 a pair.
 
I got Brembo Blanks and they are like cheap as hell. Worth to update when needed.



Wonder how these pads compare to the Hawk's. I use the HPS pads and I love 'em
 
I get performance rotors and pads online for less money than what a brake shop wants for their mediocre rotors and pads.



Right now I'm running slotted EBC rotors with Hawk ceramic pads and I'm happy with em.



Sorry for the thread hijack.
 
the paint kit was a duplicolor caliper kit i got off the shelf at murrays or autozone for like $15 bucks.

the cheapest non-drilled rotor i could find for my car was like $80 each :(

i found the brembo blanks for 55 each on tirerack but thats still more than i have to spend right now :sadpace:



you think id have a good comparison between the hawk ceramics and ebc ceramics because ive tried both but only thing is i had driven on thoes worn down hawks for like 5k miles so i had completely forgotten how good they used to be.. so the new ones feel like they obliterate the old ones.
 
good job. Not sure if clear coating them is really necessary though. The dupli-color caliper paint is alright, its a little watery though
 
I'd check with autozone and go with their duralast brand, full lifetime warranty pretty much. I would not have recommended at all to paint the brake pads at all, but i guess it should be fine. Brakes are something that i wouldn't want to mess with. On my e36 m3, I love using the Axxis / PDG Ultimates, the ceramics. they're about 70 for both front and back for me.



I painted my calipers red, but never got around to putting a clearcoat. Does it actually make it look nicer?



Otherwise, great job! I don't think painting the hub was necessary though! Good luck, and the rotors should be around 40 for both.
 
i just painted my calipers also. there was really no need in taping off the rotor, the second that you hit the brakes, the paint will come off....just a tip
 
If any of the newly painted area on the rotor comes in contact with your wheel it should be given a light coat of anti-seize or the wheel will be a bugger to get off next time. Nice job, looks great!!
 
artikxscout said:
I'd check with autozone and go with their duralast brand, full lifetime warranty pretty much. I would not have recommended at all to paint the brake pads at all, but i guess it should be fine. Brakes are something that i wouldn't want to mess with. On my e36 m3, I love using the Axxis / PDG Ultimates, the ceramics. they're about 70 for both front and back for me.



I painted my calipers red, but never got around to putting a clearcoat. Does it actually make it look nicer?



Otherwise, great job! I don't think painting the hub was necessary though! Good luck, and the rotors should be around 40 for both.
Click to expand...



I don't think he painted the pads that how they come







2X the Autozone rotor are great and cheap!



you need to have the rotors turned or replaced because those spots

will chew up your new pads in no time



I have not used the red stuff pads but the hawks are much better then the green stuff
 
Let me know how you like the Red Stuff's. I've got a set waiting to go onto my GTO. Great work on painting your calipers. Luckily mine came painted.
 
2000firebird,



Those "smears" you are seeing on your brake rotors are called "hot spots" and are caused by severe heat conditions under hard braking. You would be absolutely amazed at how hot your brakes get during normal operation, let alone how hot they get when being beat on.



From the looks of those hot spots, your rotors are more than likely warped, and need to be turned/machined right away, or you may actually reduce the life and effectiveness of your new pads.



In general, it is always necessary to either use new rotors or have your old ones turned. All new pads require a proper break-in procedure to assure proper mating between the pad and rotor surfaces. If you don't, you could "glaze" the pads and this will reduce the performance of the pads severely.



The rust on the back of the old pads is normal, especially if you live in an area with high humidity, or salty conditions. To prevent this, you can apply a light coat of axle grease to the backside of the pads prior to installation. Speaking of grease, you should have lubricated all of the contact points of the pads to make sure the pads float freely like they are supposed to.
 
+1 JDookie



If you replace pads its an absolute must that you either replace the rotors or at a minimum have them turned. I would highly suggest doing it.
 
ive driven the car about 100 miles since install.. do u think putting on new rotors now is going to screw up how since ive already broken the new pads in and taken some of the break-in stuff off the pads as well. what would be some other signs of warped? i don't think they are warped because they dont have vibrations or anything.. braking performance is quite stable as well.
 
Just gonna chime in on the 'I went against common knowledge and I'm okay..for now..' note.



The rear brakes on my F150 are horribly warped, but because of the way they're attached, machining them requires an on-car lathe which is more expensive.



At around 55k miles, I just slapped new pads onto the brakes. Of course, I just used cheap Duralast ones from Autozone. I plan to put new rotors at all 4 corners when 90-100k miles rolls around along with some ceramic pads.



It would be IDEAL if you had your rotors turned since you're only 100 miles into your new pads, but I wouldn't lose sleep over it, IMHO. Just take it easy on the brakes and give them time to seat properly.



I also think that rotor warpage is more of a factor when someone doesn't use a torque wrench when putting wheels back on. If you do at least this, you should be okay.
 
2000firebird said:
ive driven the car about 100 miles since install.. do u think putting on new rotors now is going to screw up how since ive already broken the new pads in and taken some of the break-in stuff off the pads as well. what would be some other signs of warped? i don't think they are warped because they dont have vibrations or anything.. braking performance is quite stable as well.
Click to expand...



Your rotors may not be warped, I just said that they are *most likely* warped because of the heat spots on them. You have a sports car, I'm sure you drive it hard sometimes which means you are hard on the brakes too, this is perfectly normal. The fact that your rotors may be warped are really not an issue, just an annoyance if they are. The big issue here is that you probably didn't break in your pads correctly by not having a fresh surface for them to mate to. Think of it as an engine rebuild without honing the cylinders, or a new clutch without resurfacing the flywheel.....all a very big :nono Especially when performance is part of the equation.



Sure, you can get away with slapping a set of new pads without touching the rotors but will they peform and last 100% as they were intended?? Probably not.



You said that you already broke them in, how did you do this? There is a specific bedding process for performance pads, and is usually specified by the manufacturer, not by just driving around like normal.



Here's a quick link to the Hawk FAQ's page. Check out what they say can cause and prevent squeaky brakes, and also look for the break-in procedure.



Hawk Performance: Frequently Asked Questions of Performance Brake Pads
 
yeah I got O'Reilly rotors for my bird for like 45 or 50. I painted my calipers nbm like the car. I used 2 coats of regular paint and 3 coats of high temp clearcoat. They have heald up great for 6 months. the only thing is they get dirty easily and they are kinda hard to keep clean with stock wheels. not a lot of room to get your hand in there.

Looks great though i like th color scheme you chose.
 
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