I think I'm going to paint my calipers but have a few questions:

1. Did anyone paint them without disconnecting the brake lines?

2. The service manual says to replace the caliper bracket bolts. Do I really need to do this?

3. How did you NOT paint the CORVETTE lettering on the fronts (paint over the letters and take it off carefully)?

4. Any gotcha's I should know about?

Thanks for your help!

 

1. You can paint them without removing the brake line. You just hae to mask the area around it off good.

2. No, you don't have to replace the bracket bolts.

3. You paint the whole caliper, then when it dries go over it with fine sand paper to get the paint off the letters.

4. CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN the calipers till they are spotless. Preperation is the key to a paintjob that sticks, and looks good.

:cheers: :cheers: :cheers:

 

REALLY CLEAN...Degreaser and a stiff brush.
Mask off well...Cover car, because the paint does float.
Do many light coats...Paint dries very fast.
I did about ten light coats at 15-20 minute intervals.
(I was doing other work in between).

Then the last coat, I did a heavy spray just short of running.
It turned out great...Deep luster.

BTW...I used masking tape for the letters and cut with
a razor blade while still tacky.

Good Luck...GeorgeC

 

don't go over it with sand paper, you will scratch the letters, use a straight razor to scrape the paint off..........i did it and they look great

 

When masking the rotor and parts just behind it, what I did was take a 33 gallon garbage bag and cut about a 10 inch diameter hole in the bottom. Then put the top of the bag over the entire rotor assembly and use the bottom, with the hole in it, to stuff in the appropriate places to mask off the paint. This worked particularly well for my case where I wanted to paint the caliper and that bar that extends from it, but I didn't want to get paint on the back of the brake pad. Even if I had wanted to cover the bar, I could've just pulled the garbage bag over it and tucked it in on top of the back of the brake pad. By the way, to make room to tuck it like this, I followed the standard brake pad procedure of using a C-clamp (10 inch) to first compress the brake pad inward, thereby providing a gap between it and the caliper so I could stuff the garbage bag in that gap.

As suggested above, I also protected the the car from overspray by using thin plastic (bought cheap at Walmart in a big roll).

On the lettering, you can apply chapstick or grease or something else before you paint and then just wipe it away. Or, just paint the whole thing and then sand the letters after you paint (let the paint dry). I did the latter, and used a dremmel tool to clean off the dried paint.

Here's a picture, if it helps.




[Modified by SteveL2, 8:42 PM 6/24/2002]

 

Yup,

I used vasoline on the letters, and then scaped them off with a rasor blade. I also removed the whole caliper, and painted them off the car. I didn't replace the bolts.

Best of luck!

 

I took them completely off, but then, I was doing a total rotor/line upgrade. I didn't replace the bolts - just used new loctite on them. I just shaved the paint off with a razor knife after they dried overnight. Here are a couple of pics and a link to my post on the install in C5 General. Link: http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=328114

Caliper bolts in the middle of the photo - a b*tch to get off.


Calipers ready for paint


Finished front caliper



[Modified by Patches, 10:37 PM 6/24/2002]

 

The easiest way to clean the 'Corvette' letters is to dip a rag in lacquer thinner and wrap it around your finger. You can the dab and wipe the letters until all the paint has been removed. Best to do this before the paint is totally dry...
Shirl :cool:

 

It is a good idea to throw a little clear coat on the CORVETTE letters to protect them if you go at them with sandpaper or a razor knife. Testors clear model paint should do the trick.

 

See answers above, and check mine out at.... http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=313390


[Modified by kvozel, 7:48 AM 6/25/2002]

 

THANKS GUYS! YOU ARE THE BEST!

 

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=244489

 

Got the idea from another member, but the best way to paint around the letters is to paint them with fingernail polish first. Then paint the whole caliper. The letters will peel off in one piece after the paint is try from the nail polish underneight... its so easy. I painted mine on the car to.. just put masking tape around the other areas. If you would buy a very small brush to do the edges you could skip the masking.

 

I just did mine and the vaseline trick worked like a charm!
:chevy