Believe it or not, my '73 vette stiil has after 120,000 miles still have the rivets in the rotors making them impossible to take off to service the brakes. I've started to dill one of them out but what a job. Theres at least 5 in each wheel. There has got to be a better way that the service people working in the shop to take them off. And why did they ever put them back in, if they were out?????? Looking at this problem, I was wondering if maybe I can drive them back out with some kind of tool. Tried a hammer and pin and almost took my fingers off. hahahaha. Sure would appreciate any help in this problem. Thinking seriously of taking torch that I use for work and burn them out. LOL HELP

 

drill them out, slow speed and sharp drill bits, i think the battery operated hand drills have the best speed for drill metal...slow and remember you only have to drill the middle out

 

OK Drill out the middle and then what??? They fall out I hope. Why did they ever put the
rivets back in. I know that sometime during the years they must have replaced the brakes. Can't I just punch them out?? Keep the replies coming Thanks

 

once you drill the top off of the "middle" use a drift and hammer to punch it out. really sharp guys thread the hole and use counter sunk scews to attach the rotor back on....and then use a dial indicator to check runout

 

First did you mic the rotors? They may still be good.
You can change just the pads without removing the calipers or rotors.

For the front you can remove the pads and calipers and pull the cotter pin and the big nut and remove the hub and rotor together. If those rotors need to be changed let a machine shop drill them out. With 120,000 miles it's time to inspect the front wheel bearings and repack or replace anyway.

The rear-center punch the center of the rivet and start with a small drill and go bigger untill the head pops off.

 

Drill the rivets out and machine or replace the rotors. When I did mine I just bolted the wheel back on and let the rim hold it in place like the new vehicles. If putting the rivets back on is what your after, you can purchase the rivets through Corvette Central. Not sure why they put the rivets in place, could of been a safety issue or something.

Ron

 

No need to replace the rivets, they were only put in place to aid with the assembly line.

 

They were riveted when manufactured so there would be no rotor runout on the rotor/hub/rear spindle as a complete assembly when machined.

The only time they have to be separated is to work on the rear parking brake.
If separating them, it's wise to mark the rotor orientation to the rear spindle. Could save you a runout problem.

 

That's not unusual, mine have far more miles than that and are still original.

Why do you want to take off the rotors?

 

I am restoring a 82 CE Edition and I'm replacing the brake system so I thought - no problem - I've done others - a 2 hr job at most - until I pulled the wheels off and saw the rivots. Went straight to the forum and sure enough - there they are - you have to drill them out - the good part is the rivots are only about 1/4 in thick at the top. As suggested above - I did a 3 step drill starting with a 1/4" drill and finishing with the biggest one I had - a 3/8's. Dont let the drill bind or you'll be digging the bit out with vise grips. - next up - getting the hubs off. Note: I marked the disc and post so they will go back together exactly the way they came off.

 

Mike, got any pictures of what you are doing. Sure would help me. send them by pm or on this thread . Thanks

 

I stamped the rotor with "L & R" on the rotor(s) in the same area as the spindle to match up exactly later on. I will not be replacing these rivets.

I started with a centre punch, 1/4" drill to drill into the rivet about 1/4" deep and then drilled again with a 5/16" drill. 'Drill' off the rivet head only. Over time they all released the rotor from the spindle.

The task of 'driving' the rivet through was easy on the right side, I used a air chisel with a drift tool. The left side would not come out. I tried every trick of using heat and penetrating fluid, no results. I had to physically grind the 'face' of the rivet smooth to the spindle flange and then centre punched it again.

I used a pilot bit and drilled to the size of the rivet. This is crucial as you do not want to drill into the spindle so finding 'centre' is very critical. I went a few sizes under until I took out enough material that I could drive the rest of the rivet through.

A word of caution, be carefull drilling as the drill bit will grab and break, it happened to me three times. Another issue as when you are getting near to drilling through slow down. I did not and grabbed the upper emergency brake shoe spring and wrapped it around the bit, this lead to a emergency brake stainless steel replacement kit. Funny how a simple task can still cost money in the end.

Good luck,

Dano,

 

So why take them off?

 

Korevette, i wish you would take some pictures and post them on so i can understand what you are doing. You know the old saying......picture is worth a thousand words. Thanks

 

Mark the rotor and a lug and what side, so they go ON the same as they come off.


Then drill out the rivets.

 

Mark the rotor with a punch mark, the white chalk will wash off when you clean them up. Been there, done that. Gene

 

I don't know why you are taking them off either without first determining if it needs to be done, but if you insist, you don't need to drill with the smaller drill bits, just a large one, until the head releases. Then you dont have to remove the rivets. You can simply cut them off and grind them flat, or even leave them, if you make sure there are no burs on them to hold the rotor off and cause run-out.