Caliper help Options

[cheela]

guys, how hard is it to rebuild a caliper? anyone have a how to? or is this a take it to the shop thing? I have an ST. I just found out that my right brake disc was being scratched up like crazy. I had this problem before. Same side, changed the disc cuz I thought maybe the pads just wore out faster and ate it up. but now, it's been a year and my disc is eaten up again.

Now, I just bought some ATE performance slotted rotors but I don't wanna put them on if they're gonna get eaten up. Me and my dad did a temporary set up on it right now with some pads from autozone just to ride around for now. He took apart the caliper cuz it seemed be not releasing so after that it worked fine, but now i'm hearing it scratch again? it sounds like metal scraping metal. I'll have to check if one of the shims fell loose or something but I hope it's not something big.

[Galcobar]

If your pads are eating rotors, the problem is probably you've got some of those god-awful "lifetime" pads.

The reality of braking systems is that something has to be sacrificed -- rotors, pads, or both, or if you buy "lifetime" parts for both, you sacrifice braking performance.

You really haven't provided sufficient information with which to offer a diagnosis. What is the condition of the pad? Are the pads wearing unevenly, both in terms of the pads on the one rotor, and in terms of pads on the same axle? Are the pads displaying pitting, grooves, cracks? When you installed the new pads, did you properly lubricate their resting points? Are any of the clips missing or bent? Does the caliper slide on its pins? When you've disassembled the brakes, did you test that the caliper piston would move? Are there any parts interfering with the rotor (backing plate hitting the rotor is an easy explanation for a damaged rotor and a metal scraping noise)?

Photos are also useful.

As for rebuilding a caliper, "how hard" is relative. It's easy for someone who's redone a car's suspension. It's hard for someone who has to look up tire-changing instructions. And that difficulty also varies depending upon how seized the caliper might be. If the bleed port is seized and you're not comfortable with a blow torch, it's often easier to simply replace the caliper.