Sigforty

I am planning on rebuilding my calipers soon. I was wondering what kit is prefered the lip seal or o-ring. I only drive my car on the weekends (about 7000 miles a year). When I rebuild them to change from lip to o-ring seal is just as easy as buying the kit or do I need to have the calipers machined?? I really want to use the zero tolerance pistons if that is the best method.

Mark B.

flynhi

O ring pistons from Zero Tolerance - fix 'em once and fix 'em right.

Rockn-Roll

I suggest going to Kragen/Checker/Schucks for one of their units that are already rebuilt. The reason is because the two halves are bolted together with (I recall) 120ftlbs of torque. This means you can't just hold them between your legs and crank on a ratchet. You will need a bench mounted vise with, and should use wood or cloth covering for the vise jaws to prevent damage.

Stewart's74

I'll tackle ANY job on my beloved Vette but In my opinion, me screwing around with brake rebuild kits is like playing russian roulette. I leave the caliper rebuild stuff to the pros. I guess I am just a chicken.

81VETTOM

I bought the GM parts to fix one of mine. It cost way too much, and if the seals don't go in right, they will leak. I could have just purchased 2 reman ones and saved the headaches and $$. It isn't worth it. If you only go 7k a year, pull off send off your cores and get some from Vette Brakes or any other good vendor and just replace them. :smash:

Sigforty

So the general census is to just get the already rebuilt calipers. I am the type of person who will try anything myself, but it seems that everyone believes the work is to complicated. Did anyone actually go threw the calipers themselves??

Mark B.

mayberg

If you already have stainless-sleeved calipers, then get a kit and do it yourself - that's what I would do.

If you don't know whether they've been sleeved, send them off or buy new.

I sent mine to Precision Engineering in Florida and am quite anxious to put them back on. After taking them apart I determined that they have never been sleeved - can you believe it? Zero Tolerance pistons and O-Rings, and I'll be stopping with as much precision as my new suspension system handles.

adam

Hey Sigforty

I rebuilt one of my calipers - $8 for the kit from the 'zone.
Need a tube of high temp gasket stuff too, possibly a brake hone ($10?)

A couple of hours. Use a bench mounted vice or something mounted to the floor.
You will need it to unbolt the calipers. Make sure to use the gasket stuff
to seak the boot (inside and on the top of ring seal, like the manual suggests.

Then back together and get you're big torque wrench!

Sigforty

Did you get your zero tolerance pistons yet?? How much do they cost?? How much does it cost to get the calipers sleeved??

Mark B.


[Modified by Sigforty, 12:29 PM 4/18/2002]

redvetracr

adam,
BEWARE the caliper kit from "the zone" may resemble the right stuff BUT it is NOT RIGHT. I had NOTHING but trouble with their caliper kits. If you look closely at the two lip seals you will see the difference. You can get the right stuff from Vette brakes or Muskegon for $10 per corner + UPS. NO it`s not convenient but neither is having to redo either. ...redvetracr

redvetracr

Sigforty,
The term "Zero Tolerance" is being abused, as far as I know you can buy o-ring brake pistons from many sources BUT you can only get "Zero Tolerance" from the company called Zero Tolerance. I have a set of ZT pistons in a freshly sleeved set of calipers in my trailer (very nice pieces), the last I heard they were around $250 a set. If I was you I think I would go with standard sleeved calipers from whoever had the best reputation,best price and the best warranty. If you get sleeved calipers and decide to go with ZT pistond I am looking for a set of NEW stock front pistons. ...redvetracr

adam

:eek:

Ah, it's on there. For about 9 months now. I have another kit
sitting, but nothing to compare to. So what is the difference in
the lip seals? You think it will leak? I'll have to check the
caliper...

redvetracr

mayberg,
If precision caliper from Florida is the same guy as Florida caliper, what your getting is screwed!! Not too long ago someone had quite a thread about this guy. He is very BAD NEWS!! And like I said above, as far as I know NO ONE but Zero Tolerance sells Zero Tolerance pistons everthing else is a copy and from what I have seen from Florida caliper or Precision caliper (if it`s the same guy) they are very poor quality. ...redvetracr

redvetracr

mine leaked, every one with kits from the "Zone". And I rebuild mine after every two races.

adam

Okay...

I'll be looking at them real soon...

Rebuild them every 2 races - that's time consuming. But now it must take
you 20 minutes if you do it all the time.
Where do you race? I used to live in Milw...

mayberg

Redvetracr,

I think they're different, but please check it out!

http://fixvetteparts.com

I think Florida Caliper is operating under a different name, and I "think" this is not the Florida Caliper guy. I had a buddy that was a bit disappointed in Florida Caliper also. GM


[Modified by mayberg, 1:46 PM 4/18/2002]

GTR1999

I used the kits from Muskegon before without a problem and just bought soem kits from Bair's this week. The only thing I don't remember doing is the silicone sealing? Just where is this applied and why do you need high temp?
Thanks,
Gary

mayberg

Yes, I sent off the calipers and had the whole job done by them. I got back painted calipers ready to bolt on with new pads. Funny thing, I was all worried about getting them out by a certain time, and they're back now (think it was just a couple of weeks) and I'm STILL down with the suspension rebuild.

Anyway, I spent $58/caliper to get the treatment, not including pads. But that did include the stainless sleeve, piston and o-ring, cleaned up and painted, and new crush washers for the front.

I think the prices have gone up a bit. If you're one of those eeeeevil NCRS members (like I am) be sure to ask about the club discount. I've got his web site in another portion of this thread.

Keep in mind, I have yet to bolt mine back into the car, so I'll reserve the right to open a new thread and complain if things don't go well. But I suspect they'll be just fine. GM

redvetracr

mayberg,
Lucky for you it looks like these are two different people, and I hope yours are a better quality than "Florida caliper" or whoever he is this week. Although whoever told you you were getting "Zero Tolerance" pistons was not telling you the truth, or you simply misunderstood. ...redvetracr

mayberg

Probably a brain fart on my part.

Did I just make a rhyme?