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Pete, the factory never made SS sleeved calipers, they were all made by the aftermarket by boring out the cast caliper bore and inserting a SS sleeve. If you can see a parting line between the caliper and sleeve (where the arrows are pointing), they are sleeved calipers. Frankly it would be highly unlikely that any C3 today would still have unsleeved calipers. Possible of course, but not probable...
I installed SS sleeved calipers on my (purchased new), 1977 Corvette, in 1980. I was not driving it much at all and one of the calipers began leaking on me. A company out of Florida was offering them so that's what I bought and installed.
Use any standard caliper rebuild kit for an original caliper. You can use the stock lip type seals or the also available 'O'-ring seals. I've used both without any problems with either. I would recommend that you also purchase new pistons if there is any evidence of corrosion on the pistons you have.
Gusto is correct, and I would use the O ring piston setup, as I had issues with what ever lip seals I used many years ago, O rings been in there well over 17 years now, BUT.....I also have an aluminum master cylinder and I use DOT FIVE (5) fluid because it is silicone based and therefore not an issue with ANY rust or corrosion....
DO change ALL the rubber hoses though and clean out the lines with carb cleaner and air jet.....
maybe want to ditch that silly brake pressure differential switch on the frame in front below the m/cyl.....just use a splitter in front like what in the rear.....and put the lines into the m/cyl directly.....
I found my local auto store had replacement calipers that come with stainless sleeves and stainless piston. Whatever clear coat it has on it, the caliper still looks shiny and new with no rust. I went this route on one caliper after having a brake pad come loose and shift causing my piston to bind in the original caliper.. I kinda wish I had replaced them all rather than replace the seals. What amazes me is my original rotors still riveted on with over 100,000 miles and still look new wear wise.. the steel was so much better then.
Last edited by augiedoggy; Sep 9, 2019 at 08:09 AM.
I found my local auto store had replacement calipers that come with stainless sleeves and stainless piston. Whatever clear coat it has on it, the caliper still looks shiny and new with no rust. I went this route on one caliper after having a brake pad come loose and shift causing my piston to bind in the original caliper.. I kinda wish I had replaced them all rather than replace the seals. What amazes me is my original rotors still riveted on with over 100,000 miles and still look new wear wise.. the steel was so much better then.
I've heard this more than a few time here on the Forum. That is great news, but it hasn't been my experience.
Back in the late 90's I removed the original rotors from my 40k mile '73 Corvette (rivets still attached), to replace them with some dimpled and slotted ones... just because...
The originals still looked excellent with no grooves so I decided I would save them for a future project. I bead blasted them to clean them up and painted them to preserve the finish with a plan to have them turned to clean the fire-path up when I used them.
On a whim I decided to mic them to see how much was left and to my surprise, one was below the the safe limit imprinted on the rotor and the other was just above the limit. I had replaced the pads less than 10k earlier with some Hawk HPS pads, but found it hard to believe they had removed that much material. I'm inclined to think the rotors were barely above minimum thickness when GM installed them at St Louis.
The calipers looks to be stainless. I would clean the bores with lacquer thinner and finish up with denatured alcohol. If you are going to exchange them out for rebuilt units. make sure you are getting stainless steel sleeved calipers back and that they are Delco Moraine castings. Jerry
Pete, a trick some learned early on, or at least after a few efforts like your own, was to break the caliper half bolts loose before removing them from the car.
You don't want to get them too loose, or you'll be leaking fluid all over. Just enough that they are easy to remove on your bench. If the calipers are already off the car, you can try an impact wrench. I would be sure to use an impact socket or you may be buying new bolts as well.
Pete, a trick some learned early on, or at least after a few efforts like your own, was to break the caliper half bolts loose before removing them from the car.
You don't want to get them too loose, or you'll be leaking fluid all over. Just enough that they are easy to remove on your bench. If the calipers are already off the car, you can try an impact wrench. I would be sure to use an impact socket or you may be buying new bolts as well.
Good luck... GUSTO
Thanks Gusto! Perhaps I'm missing something, but I can't get a socket on the half bolts as there's interference with the spindle that prevents me from landing a socket on the bolt.
You can take one mounting bolt out and loosen the other. It will allow you to pivot the caliper up so you get enough clearance to put a socket on the caliper bolt. Without impact tools, doing the job on the bench is PITA. Putting them back together requires a pretty high torque setting as well. Jerry
You can take one mounting bolt out and loosen the other. It will allow you to pivot the caliper up so you get enough clearance to put a socket on the caliper bolt. Without impact tools, doing the job on the bench is PITA. Putting them back together requires a pretty high torque setting as well. Jerry
Thanks Jerry. Any method you know of to seat the dust covers without taking the caliper apart?
No, you really have to take them apart. I like to thoroughly clean each half with denatured alcohol and old time pipe cleaners or rifle brushes and compressed air. For assembling using lip seals, I got my hands on stainless steel sleeves that the vendors use for the calipers. You will need one size for the front and one for the back. I coat the caliper bore and the sleeve with fresh brake fluid. I push the piston in the sleeve and put it over the caliper bore and push it down. It's like using a ring compressor on an engine when seating pistons. Don't forget to put the springs in first.I also have two pucks that match the size of dust boots. I put the boot on the piston and use the puck and a hammer to seat the boot onto the caliper. You don't need the sleeves if you use O-ring pistons. When you put the caliper back together, don't forget to put in the O-ring between the calipers. I torque them on the car as it's hard to capture the caliper on a work bench. Good luck. Jerry
I have had SS VBP lip seal calipes on my 78 L-82 since 1985.
LIP SEALS, no O rings back then. They are still on the car and the car sits 99.99% of the time, and no, I do not go in the garage and step on the brake pedal every week...wives tale! I do change the brake fluid with DOT 3/4 fluid every 4-5 years, religiously. CHANGE YOUR BRAKE FLUID every few years, if you want leak free brakes.
I did have one caliper develop a leak VERY early after the caliper change in 1990. VBP set me a new lip seal kit for that one caliper. I took off the caliper as a unit, using hand tools ONLY, separated the caliper halves, removed the lip seals, pistons, springs etc. Coated the new seals and pistons with brake fluid and using a socket gently pressed the piston/Spring/Lip seal into the bore. Hand tightened the caliper halves with hand tools, no torque wrench, reinstalled the caliper, bled the brakes, and have not had an issue since that time.....
I often chuckle when I read about folks obsessing about torque this nut or bolt since back in the day, no one torqued anything on these cars after they left the factory and they rarely have an issue. New cars today are very different.
Also, ditch the rubber brake lines like I did in 1991. You will thank me later for the SS braided hoses....SS braided lines do not swell upon brake application like rubber ones and give a much better/harder brake pedal.
Again, FWIW, I have never in 40 years of working on cars, some with very old rubber brake hoses had a collapsed brake line cause brake issues. Can a collapsed hose cause issues like pulling on brake application? Sure, but very unlikely, unless the hose is VERY old or original to a 40 years old car.............
Last edited by jb78L-82; Sep 11, 2019 at 06:33 AM.
