How to paint brake calipers

[hotcelica]

Hey guys.

I have a blue Toyota Celica 2000 sx.

I bought blue VHT flame proof paint for my brake calipers and i wanted to spay them on myself.

What are the steps i have to do before during and after?

I thought u might be able to help me out

THanks guys!!!

[Blind Kid Seeks]

well you could do it 1 of 2 ways.

1st way.... spray them on the car.

2nd way... spray them off the car.

1st way is pretty simple...

1. remove wheels,

2. clean calipers thouroughly

3. mask areas you dont want paint to get on

4. Spray

5. Spray again

6. bolt your wheel back up.

7. enjoy

2nd way is a little more complex, but highly advised for a better cleaner proffesional looking job.

1. remove wheels

2. remove brakes

3. remove pads from brakes

4. clean thouroughly

5. mask up all the bits on the caliper you dont want to get paint on.

6. spray

7. spray again.

8. spray again... why not .... you went to the effort to get them off...

9. remove the masking

10. install pads

11. reassemble brakes

12. bleed the brakes

13. bolt the wheel back on

14. ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!

[hotcelica]

thanks mate,

2 questions?

1 - whats the best way to clean the calipers?

2 - how long do i have to wait before i can use my car again?

[Blind Kid Seeks]

thanks mate,

2 questions?

1 - whats the best way to clean the calipers?

2 - how long do i have to wait before i can use my car again?

you can buy a can of Brakleen from autobarn. Its an aerosol which you can just spray on and it will disperse any residual oil, or brake dust.

then get some steel wool, and buff them up a bit, then spray again with the Brakeleen.

just wait as long as the paint can says for 100% dry... its usually 24hours or something liek that.

[artwork74]

well you could do it 1 of 2 ways.

1st way.... spray them on the car.

2nd way... spray them off the car.

1st way is pretty simple...

1. remove wheels,

2. clean calipers thouroughly

3. mask areas you dont want paint to get on

4. Spray

5. Spray again

6. bolt your wheel back up.

7. enjoy

2nd way is a little more complex, but highly advised for a better cleaner proffesional looking job.

1. remove wheels

2. remove brakes

3. remove pads from brakes

4. clean thouroughly

5. mask up all the bits on the caliper you dont want to get paint on.

6. spray

7. spray again.

8. spray again... why not .... you went to the effort to get them off...

9. remove the masking

10. install pads

11. reassemble brakes

12. bleed the brakes

13. bolt the wheel back on

14. ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!

followed the 1st option, and got my calipers painted in red.

[King Young]

@BKS - I've already sprayed my calipers the first way. But I wanted to remove the brakes completely, how do I disconnect the fluids? Doesn't it leak out?

[Kiz_]

Yep, let the brake fluid drain into a container when you disconnect the lines.

Once the calipers are reinstalled you'll have to bleed your brakes.

[lateralus]

Yep, let the brake fluid drain into a container when you disconnect the lines.

Once the calipers are reinstalled you'll have to bleed your brakes.

no no no no. and no.

if youre going to remove the calipers, use brake-line clamps to stop the fluid from leaking. if you just let it leak into a container, you run the risk of running the master cylinder and abs actuator dry which is not good.

brake line (or fuel line) clamps are around $12 each, so $50 for 4 clamps is much much cheaper than getting the abs actuator bled properly

that way, you only have to flush the fluid and fill the caliper piston chamber back up, then bleed as normal.

[Rusty Bucket]

Sprayed mine on the car too, came up good. Im lazy..

[123R-Prozak]

off the car

CLICKY !!

took way longer but worth it..

Edited October 14, 2009 by 123R-Prozak

[lateralus]

for what its worth, when i did mine, i did this:

-jack car up, put all 4 corners on jack stands and remove wheels

-clamp brake lines

-remove calipers and separate everything

-depress pistons all the way into the caliper housing, and got every last drop of brake fluid out

-scrubbed the calipers senseless with acidic wheel cleaner and a wire brush

-rinsed them under hot hot water, then leave to dry

-wipe wax and grease remover all over them, left for 10 mins then wiped away

-masked up piston seals and bleeding valves

-hung all the brake components up with coat hangers

-2 coats of etch primer, left to cure for 24 hours

-3 coats of caliper paint, 1 hour curing between each coat, then left to dry for 24 hours

-cleaned pads, shims and regreased caliper slides

-reassembled calipers, flushed all the fluid and bled the system

-chuck wheels back on, then through normal driving they fully cure within 7 days

all the above took me 3 days in total (long weekend), and all done for $50 and because i took the long way, im sure it will last for ages :D

Edited October 14, 2009 by lateralus

[bradley*]

What type of paint do you guys use? Is there a proper paint that you have to use for this or just paint from a spray can...?

[lateralus]

What type of paint do you guys use? Is there a proper paint that you have to use for this or just paint from a spray can...?

there's a special caliper paint you can use, which you can purchase from autobarn for around $15-$20. its rated up to about 300 degrees celsius from memory, is chemically resistant once cured and has a nice gloss. if you want a really glossy finish, you can use the engine enamel paint.

[cruzer]

well i have recently done mine i think its a good idea to take em off clean them then put them back on and bleed otherwise if you don't clean them well the paint won't have a surface to stick to so to speak

[King Young]

What type of paint do you guys use? Is there a proper paint that you have to use for this or just paint from a spray can...?

I bought a can from Super Cheap Auto, about $15. One can, 4 layers on each caliper, plenty left.

[King Young]

well i have recently done mine i think its a good idea to take em off clean them then put them back on and bleed otherwise if you don't clean them well the paint won't have a surface to stick to so to speak

Obviously the best way is to remove it, but if you don't know how to like me, degrease it and sand it like a nut. LOL! B)

So far so good! But when I change my pads or upgrade my brakes, I'll definitely be taking them off to respray them.

[Andrew357]

Here is, what I think is a fair question.

In all the guides i am reading it says "mask up what you don't want to get paint on, then paint..."

WTF am I not supposed paint on when painting a pair of calipers?

[lateralus]

Here is, what I think is a fair question.

In all the guides i am reading it says "mask up what you don't want to get paint on, then paint..."

WTF am I not supposed paint on when painting a pair of calipers?

you can paint on whatever you like really. personally, i think painting over everything (and not removing the calipers) looks stupid. if you take everything apart and pay attention to detail, it will look more like VIP stock (ie. have clean, unpainted shims and pads, etc. looks awesome), rather than mindless painting.

another thing is if you paint over everything, including the bleeding valve, it may be harder to undo it. and when you do undo the valave, because then the finish is uneven it increases the risk of the paint flaking and you will to do everything all over again.

but 1 thing you shouldnt paint (which is hard to do if the caliper is still on the car) is the rubber seal around the piston. the paint can damage that which may result in leaking brake fluid.

Edited October 19, 2009 by lateralus

[Andrew357]

I might just remove the shims, mask the rubber bits and all should be good.

Just need to clean one caliper abit more. It's such a tedious job.

[38TRY]

Does anyone know that can VHT flame proof paint use on the wheel nuts?

Just try to make my chrome nuts go RED!

[Ray89]

Does anyone know that can VHT flame proof paint use on the wheel nuts?

Just try to make my chrome nuts go RED!

ill show u tomorrow

[123R-Prozak]

Here is, what I think is a fair question.

In all the guides i am reading it says "mask up what you don't want to get paint on, then paint..."

WTF am I not supposed paint on when painting a pair of calipers?

but 1 thing you shouldnt paint (which is hard to do if the caliper is still on the car) is the rubber seal around the piston. the paint can damage that which may result in leaking brake fluid.

true! but wont the dust seal will protect the piston seal when pressed back all the way yes? i just pushed the pistons back, and covered the hole for where the brake hoses go.. and bleader nipple

ALL VERY GOOD DESCRIPTIONS PEEPS !!

[outback]

[123R-Prozak]

all that masking tape and paper and time and effort, may aswell take them off lol