Fucking brake calipers. Need some "where does this go&q

[Falcon4]

Hello again, it's your friendly neighborhood bird, here to beg more advice.

Long story short, through no fault of my own, my driver-side rear brake started dropping brake fluid like it had a hole in it. Tore off the wheel, couldn't exactly figure out where it was coming from. Tore the whole fucking caliper off. Tore the caliper apart. Found that the seal for the e-brake (which I had been driving with since it started leaking) had a nice chip in it. Problem identified. Now, about that replacement part...

Anyway, here's the problem. The boot. That boot that surrounds the piston when it's installed happily. I don't know how the fuck to get it off, and obviously it's replaceable, since it comes as part of the rebuild kit (which I haven't yet bought, but probably should have by now). It seems to be adhered to the caliper body somehow, with some small part somehow molded into (or perhaps, smashed into) the metal around the inner edge. What the shit?

What do I do with that boot? Well, to have found it's adhered, obviously I had to tear a part of it off. So right now I have that boot somewhat half-adhered to the body, and I don't know what the hell to do. Take it the rest of the way off? Or... well... uh... take that shit the rest of the way off?

Oh, and I heard you guise like pictures.


Yeah, I also plan on finding a way to clean everything while I wait for the new stuff to come in...

edit: Damn typo correction molested my topic title >.<

[lucky]

It's just pressed in like a oil seal; just pry it out carefully so you don't scratch anything.

[Falcon4]

Well alright, but I'm concerned about getting the new one on... this thing is pretty plainly "adhered" to the metal, and what part I've peeled off doesn't want to stick to anything (or otherwise hold).

Ah well, guess it can't... uhm... hurt... any more than I already have :scratch:

edit: Ahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahaha

I just tore the ring all the way out, and as I'm trying to figure out how that could be considered "cleanly", I was poking around and found that the top layer of metal that was holding the lower layer of rubber in place was moving.

Poked around a little more with the screwdriver, and POP, out popped this metal retaining ring. The fucking rubber seal had a metal seat. I wish they detailed that in the teardown instructions...

edit: Oh, and thanks, for prompting me to just "oh fuck it" :thumbleft:

[lucky]

told ya, just like a oil seal. I think the heat from braking is what makes them seem like they're glued on.

[Falcon4]

told ya, just like a oil seal. I think the heat from braking is what makes them seem like they're glued on.

Well, that's where you got me, I had no idea what an oil seal was... I still haven't completely torn apart my engine... yet :salute:

[lucky]

You've never dealt with a pressed-in seal? IE a grease seal on the back of a spindle type brake rotor or in a tranny around an axle shaft?

[Mach10]

Old plastics tend to cold-weld themselves to any material they are pressed against when subjected to heat, oil, moisture, or any combination of the above.

Just to make it clear, that boot does NOT retain brake-fluid. It's purely to keep any slide-grease in, and brake dust out.

If you're leaking, it's the piston seal which is a simple square-edged ring that snugs into a groove

Strip the caliper down and inspect the piston for pitting, scuffing, scoring, or other signs of corrosion. If the marks can't be buffed out with 000 steel wool, consider replacing. If any scratches are bad enough to catch a fingernail after the wool treatment, it'll certainly leak again.

[Falcon4]

You've never dealt with a pressed-in seal? IE a grease seal on the back of a spindle type brake rotor or in a tranny around an axle shaft?

Nope, none of those. Never had a proper set of garage equipment, so never had the chance to actually check any of that stuff out myself. So yeah, therein lies the confusion... all the diagrams and pictures I'd seen of the boot used there was practically 2D. So yeah, confusion

If you're leaking, it's the piston seal which is a simple square-edged ring that snugs into a groove

Yeah, I got that out too. It wasn't damaged, but after it dried out a bit, it seems pretty raggedy. But all the seals come as a package deal, so I'll just be replacing them all anyway...

Oh, and the cause for the leak seems to be a chip in the e-brake seal... not to mention that the part of metal the e-brake seal, seals to, is unpolished.

Strip the caliper down and inspect the piston for pitting, scuffing, scoring, or other signs of corrosion. If the marks can't be buffed out with 000 steel wool, consider replacing. If any scratches are bad enough to catch a fingernail after the wool treatment, it'll certainly leak again.

The piston is really shiny and clean, except for a small nick that's outside of the sealed area so I'm not worrying that much about it. Maybe I'll hit it up with some ultra-fine sandpaper and smooth it off (in lack of any available funds for steel wool), but I doubt that was the source of the problem...

[Mach10]

Oh, and the cause for the leak seems to be a chip in the e-brake seal... not to mention that the part of metal the e-brake seal, seals to, is unpolished.

Ya, they do that when they get old.

Bear in mind that the land the seal sits in doesn't need to be polished; only the articulating surface needs it.

But do make sure it's clean.

The piston is really shiny and clean, except for a small nick that's outside of the sealed area so I'm not worrying that much about it. Maybe I'll hit it up with some ultra-fine sandpaper and smooth it off (in lack of any available funds for steel wool), but I doubt that was the source of the problem...

Remember though, that new pads seat the piston almost all the way in. Assemble it with the OLD parts, and compress the caliper until it bottoms out; make sure the nick is still outside that area.

I would NOT use sandpaper... Go drop the $2.10 at Homo-Depot (or whatever you have there) on a pack of bulldog 000-ultra fine. If you can't afford that, I'll paypal you the money myself :bootyshake:

Just remember to thoroughly clean the parts you used steel wool on; brake cleaner is best; avoid oil-based solvents. You can use dish detergent + water, but make absolutely-ABSOLUTELY sure they are bone-dry before reassembly. Leave 'em overnight somewhere warm and dry to be sure.

[Falcon4]

Remember though, that new pads seat the piston almost all the way in. Assemble it with the OLD parts, and compress the caliper until it bottoms out; make sure the nick is still outside that area.

Yup. Measured and measured and checked and re-measured and eyeballed and etc... and it's just barely outside of the seal. Looks all good to me. Plus, it seems like it may be too deep to buff out anyway. In which case, that wouldn't be my problem anyway. As for the pads, they're really old looking (ancient, I should say), but somehow, still look like they're only about a quarter gone at most... really weird! Could it be that they're not working as well as they oughtta?

make absolutely-ABSOLUTELY sure they are bone-dry before reassembly. Leave 'em overnight somewhere warm and dry to be sure.

Or put the ol' toaster oven to some use... on a low temperature of course

Fucking parts aren't due to get here until next Wednesday. That's the suck part. If I knew it was that long, I'd've got better shipping.

Tomorrow I have work though. So, question. Is it possible to securely cap off that brake line and still drive the car? Or am I stuck taking the fucking bus and hoping it'll line up closely for my midnight-6am work shift? =\

(edit: The hell is wrong with using 1200 sandpaper?)

[Mach10]

Yup. Measured and measured and checked and re-measured and eyeballed and etc... and it's just barely outside of the seal. Looks all good to me.

Good stuff!

Plus, it seems like it may be too deep to buff out anyway. In which case, that wouldn't be my problem anyway. As for the pads, they're really old looking (ancient, I should say), but somehow, still look like they're only about a quarter gone at most... really weird! Could it be that they're not working as well as they oughtta?

If the caliper is binding, it won't be putting a lot of pressure on the pads; ergo not much wear.

This is a common problem. Trouble is, cheap pads tend to look "ancient" after about 500 miles of use. Remember, they are heat stressed, and exposed continuously to fast-moving grit and water.

Or put the ol' toaster oven to some use... on a low temperature of course

That's awesome... I was going to suggest exactly the same thing, but editted it out for length. Keep the temps ~200*F and it'll be fine.

Tomorrow I have work though. So, question. Is it possible to securely cap off that brake line and still drive the car? Or am I stuck taking the fucking bus and hoping it'll line up closely for my midnight-6am work shift? =\

Take the bus... line pressures routinely get into the thousands of PSI (I seem to remember 3000psi operating pressure?)

There's no good way to cap this, and if you did, you'd unbalance the brake system, and the car would start to corkscrew if you tried to brake hard.

It's a BAD fucking idea: It's dangerous, it's ILLEGAL, and if you do get into an accident, your insurance company will NOT cover you.

[Mach10]

The hard reality is if you can't afford the maintenance, you shouldn't be driving it. I'm not saying it to be an asshole, I'm just being pragmatic.

"Safe driving" is never a substitute for faulty equipment. The ONLY time you *need* your brakes is in an emergency. Safest driving practices in the world won't bail you out of that kind of situation. And if something happens, you have only yourself to live with.

Honestly, nip down to the junk yards, grab any 84-87 brake caliper off a Fiero, and use that until the parts come it.

You'll be able to talk them to about $10-15 and you don't need to needlessly endanger yourself or anyone else.

[Fastback86]

It's still a bad idea. Even if you get in a wreck and your temporary brake mod wasn't the cause, you'd still get nailed for tampering with the brakes. It's illegal to intentionally tamper with or disable safety features and equipment.

[The Dark Side of Will]

Be careful when filling an old system with new brake fluid. That can cause the brake lines to swell on the inside and lock your brakes at inopportune times.