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Caliper refurbishment

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  • Caliper refurbishment

    Have been thinking about refurbishing my calipers and then colour-coding the embossed '///M' on each caliper.

    Has anyone done this before, any pointers?

    @ SIWILSON - Did you end up doing this?
    Last edited by guido; 10-07-2010, 12:34 PM. Reason: Information update

  • #2
    I did mine a month or so ago. I brought the seal kits from Bmw for about £15 a corner. One of my pistons was corroded so i replaced it and brought it from brakeparts.co.uk who were very helpfull and delivered the piston next day.

    I spent hours removing old paint from the calipers using paint stripper and a wire wheel on a drill, so if you need to do this i would suggest trying to get them sand blasted.

    To get the pistons out i used an air line and blew into the caliper where the brake pipe screws in. But be careful they pop out fast sounded like a gun going off, i actually wrapped them up in a rag.

    I painted the calipers before i refitted the pistons and seals.

    Then the really fiddley part of the whole job was putting the pistons and seals back in. First i fitted the new seal into the caliper and smeared a small amount of brake fluid on them to help the pistons slide in. I then started to push the pistons in, theses need to go in square so be careful if they are not they wont go back in easily and you'll need to start again. I used a large pair of grips to push the pistons in as you wont be able to do it by hand. Then before the piston is fully in you need to fit the dust seals, which locate in the piston itself and then in the recess in the caliper. (it will be more clear once you have taken a caliper apart to see where everything goes) This was a complete pain in the arse for me! I used a scribe to help persuade the seals into place. You will need to be patient.
    Be carefull you dont damadge the new seals as they are quite delicate. There may also be an easier way of doing this but this is how i did it.

    Once the calipers were back on the car and all bled up i pumped the pistons in and out a couple of time and rechecked the seals stayed in place.

    Hope this helps you.

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    • #3
      this old post shows calipers painted gold which looks good,

      http://www.z3mcoupe.com/forum/showth...=caliper+paint

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      • #4
        Yes, refurbed and on the bench waiting to be fitted, but I have not painted the logo yet. I had mine blasted, zinc phosphated and powder coated in black.

        Caliper service kits came from brakeparts.co.uk for £15 per caliper and the blast/zinc phosphate/powder coat was done locally for £45
        Last edited by siwilson; 24-07-2010, 02:28 PM.

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        • #5
          A couple of years ago, after reading a thread on another BMW forum, I followed the suggested method for painting calipers. I cleaned my calipers with sugar soap and then painted them with Hammerite gloss paint. Now that they have a smooth finish, they just wipe clean, so the brake dust doesn't get ingrained like it does in the OEM "roughcast" state. I mixed silver paint with gold paint to a shade that I think looks quite tasteful. It seems to be sufficiently heat resistant and durable.
          /// Exdos ///
          "Men who try the impossible and fail spectacularly are infinitely superior to those who reach for nothing and succeed" --Napoleon Bonapart

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