The "If I can do it, you can" thread...

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thinking may have a crack at the st150/170 brake upgrade
As per your thread title "If I can do it, you can do it". Really easy to do, I even bought a service kit from Bigg Red, sandblasted, painted, serviced & installed and I had little to no Mechanic skills.

Keep up the work. :wink:
 
..."Guess who's back, back again"... that's right; though not so much Slim Shady as more Dim Flaky, nevertheless...It's the latest quest! This one is less Holy Grail and more Star Trek as I believe, in PP terms, we are boldly going...

So you may have seen this thread: http://www.projectpuma.com/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=29402 in which I pondered the possibility of using C-Max calipers for the 278mm or 300mm disc upgrade, instead of the ST150 or ST170 or Mondeo Mk3.

Well, after some helpful input from Wild E. Coyote (ta for that Wild), and which firmed up my conviction that I was most definitely on to an absolute, sure-fire, 100%, copper-bottomed... possibility :grin:, I've taken the plunge and I got these PYT's for £50 the pair, with what look like fairly decent pads..."Shamone", as MJ might have said if he'd spent his time investing in 2nd hand calipers rather than Neverland and Bubbles:

003 by G Whizz, on Flickr

002 by G Whizz, on Flickr

001 by G Whizz, on Flickr

...so I got some Wynn's brake cleaner and spent an hour or so with some stiff brushes, rubber gloves and wire-wool scourer and they ended up like this:

006 by G Whizz, on Flickr

007 by G Whizz, on Flickr

While the calipers themselves seem in v. good nick am a bit underwhelmed by the brake cleaner, used a can and still not sparkling...anyone got any suggestions?

Taking them apart was surprisingly easy, just pop off the springs, press out the pads and pull the carriers off the sliders...virtually all there is, apart from taking out piston and seal, but that really doesn't seem necessary given their condition.

Prior to installing them, and once even cleaner, there will be a bit of bling...going for gold, Hammerite smooth style.

Before that though a couple of quick queries re. this:

006 by G Whizz, on Flickr

1) Red sticker, what is this? The other caliper has a sort of plastic ball cover to it, assume I need to get one for this too?
2) These caps are screw-in, I assume they are for dust prevention rather than fluid retention, as no way they tight enough?

That about it for now....Oh, and these are for the 300's if you wondering :grin:
 
Great write up as usual Greg.

1. That would be the brake bleed nipple, and the plastic ball thing you are referring to is the dust cover and I'm hoping it's more rubber than plastic!
2. Correct, they are just for dust.

P.S. Since you've stripped them down you could get them electro-plated with a gold passivate, shouldn't be that expensive. But I think you've got the gold hammerite now?

Ben
 
moondustka said:
Great write up as usual Greg.

1. That would be the brake bleed nipple, and the plastic ball thing you are referring to is the dust cover and I'm hoping it's more rubber than plastic!
2. Correct, they are just for dust.

P.S. Since you've stripped them down you could get them electro-plated with a gold passivate, shouldn't be that expensive. But I think you've got the gold hammerite now?

Ben

Hi Ben,
Kind of you to say, it a bit more pics than prose as just a holding piece, the real "fun" will start trying to fit them... cheers for info, so THAT's the bleed thing, I'd thought it might be but assumed it would be some sort of valve and so started second guessing myself, thought it best to throw it out there for clarity...so another rubber cap needed then.
Re. electro-plating, yeah already had the Hammerite, it's how I tell the missus her jewelry comes from Tiffany's :grin: Though she might have sussed that one as the eagle-eyed out there might have spotted from the pix that I've been banished from the kitchen and am now working out of the shed/greenhouse :roll: For future ref tho', is electro-plating ok with the piston & seals still in place? Not taken those out.
Anyone know of a better cleaner I can go back to work on them with, or am I even ok with Hammerite just going on now after the can of brake cleaner?
 
Hi Greg
Make sure you can get the bleed nipple out before you start painting the caliper. Be very, very gentle with it as it's hollow and will break easily. If it feels like it's not going to move take it to your local garage and have them warm it up with an oxy act torch to loosen it.
Barry
 
You would be surprised at how effective kitchen cleaners are. If you are still not satisfied with the looks, take the stiffest tooth brush you can find and clean it again with some Cif, Arf or whatever scrubbing agent for kitchen you happen to have around. Heat up a bit everything (hair fan will do) to soften up the grease a bit and then using warm water start rubbing the Cif in. Using the tooth brush clean it with some pressure, then left some to do its job and then redo it again. You will be amazed how clean it can be! If it is rusty, you could try electrolitic cleaning, but I would't advise it on caliper as there are precise mating surfaces that could be ruined this way unless well protected
 
As Barry says, better to check now that you can get the bleed nipples un-done. Also, might be worth investing in stainless steel nipples when the originals come out, they're not expensive and should mean you don't get any trouble in the future. ST170 front callipers take M8 x 1.25 and usually come with new dust covers. Like these (although doesn't come with cover :? )

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/M8-x-1-25...756424?hash=item4d117b0408:g:Qi8AAOxyFrNRuw-Y

As for electro-plating it would be best to dismantle the calliper completely removing any rubber seals, before handing them over. You also wouldn't have to clean them as they do this as part of the plating process!

If you can dismantle completely you could try putting them in oven pride - you know the bags you oven trays in and things.
 
tuonokid said:
Hi Greg Make sure you can get the bleed nipple out before you start painting the caliper... Barry
Thanks Barry, just checking, is this so I don't get a coat of paint on the bleed making it harder to remove later? If so could I not mask it? Or, is it because it's routine to replace the bleed on older calipers and so wiser to remove before painting? If it's that, is it needed on what seem v. good condition calipers from a 2013 car? I decided in for a penny, in for a pound (ok, 50 of them) research-wise and these are from the later C-Max2 to see if the caliper upgrade was possible with them too. :grin:

Wild E. Coyote said:
[post]348464[/post] You would be surprised at how effective kitchen cleaners are. If you are still not satisfied with the looks, take the stiffest tooth brush you can find and clean it again with some Cif....
Cheers Wild, I can just hear my beloved now...."I see, you can't seem to find the Cif normally, but now..." :oops: Just found some alloy wheel cleaner so will give that a shot, if no good then the Cif and the withering contempt it is! :lol:

moondustka said:
[post]348468[/post] As Barry says, better to check now that you can get the bleed nipples un-done. Also, might be worth investing in stainless steel nipples... you could try putting them in oven pride...
Thanks for link Ben, will go with the stainless if replacement is necessary (see query above)... and Oven Pride?!! That's it, am convinced my lass has got you guys on the payroll now...this is a chores conspiracy! :lol:
 
Hi Greg
The bleed nipples seize in with rust and usually the only way you can get them out is with heat from a welding torch so you don't want to be doing that when it's freshly painted. Those stainless nipples that Ben put up are cheaper than Ford steel ones!!!! Wish I'd bought them.
Barry
 
tuonokid said:
[post]348474[/post] Hi Greg The bleed nipples seize in with rust and usually the only way you can get them out is with heat from a welding torch so you don't want to be doing that when it's freshly painted. Those stainless nipples that Ben put up are cheaper than Ford steel ones!!!! Wish I'd bought them. Barry

Cheers Barry, removed them but didn't even have to put much force into it, not a hint of rust or the like so super easy thankfully. Having checked the size of the OE against the ones in the link, the OE are 35mm in total, so 8mm longer overall (a 7mm longer thread)...that problematic?

Meanwhile, having now tried brake cleaner, alloy wheel cleaner, Cif and good old Brillo, on top of plain old wire wool, am also certain there's a market for a drop it in a bucket and take it out shiney product...it's all ruined my manicure! :grin:
 
Hi Greg
The important dimension is the thread as the pointy bit of the nipple seats into a conical hole in the caliper providing the seal so if the thread length is the same or longer it should be ok.
Barry
 
tuonokid said:
Hi Greg
The important dimension is the thread as the pointy bit of the nipple seats into a conical hole in the caliper providing the seal so if the thread length is the same or longer it should be ok.
Barry

Ah, right... sadly those in the link no good to me then, but all not lost as will email Hel and see if they have some the right length, thanks for info Barry :eek:k:
 
Hi Greg,

Those were shorter than my originals too. It depends how much thread is already showing on your original bleed nipples when they're fully wound in, as to whether you can fit shorter ones :wink: worked ok for me :)
 
....So, now that the weather is a bit warmer I've decided to get my butt out...

007 by G Whizz, on Flickr

Despite the advancing years, I'm pleased to see that it's still quite pert and intact. I just followed this: http://www.projectpuma.com/viewtopic.php?f=51&t=8579&p=311163&hilit=how+to+remove+rear+bumper#p311163
which is another excellent guide by ScubaSteve. The only problem I encountered was the screw in pic 2 of that thread, mine was rounded and simply refused to budge, so it was a case of removing the bumper by everything else then angling it as best I could to get a hacksaw blade in from the rear of the fixing and then cutting, drilling and finally popping it out.

Having done that, it was just a matter of a couple of torx screws and circle clips (not sure of the proper name but they thin metal about the size of a 2p piece, they just lever out) and out came the wheel arch liners too. As a side note, you may need to snip a small part of the material to remove easily as the liners partly fit behind the brake line, so it's easier to make the small cut than disconnect the line. On mine the nearside was already cut, the offside needed to be.

001 by G Whizz, on Flickr
002 by G Whizz, on Flickr

They don't look as bad as I'd feared, altho' the brake line fixing on the offside will be getting a small plate to sort it...but, as all this was in preparation for the rusty rear arch being properly sorted, that's not a problem. :grin:

Underneath things were a little more flaky, but it doesn't look toooo bad to me...

003 by G Whizz, on Flickr
006 by G Whizz, on Flickr

but if I'm wrong please say.

So the idea now is to wirebrush & degrease, then Vactan the rust, then Bonda Primer the lot, then topcoat and underseal/wax with either Waxoyl or BH Dynax UB. Any suggestions for a decent protective top coat, or anything else, welcome. I've read that shutz is good for arches but am slightly unclear if that goes over the topcoat or instead of the topcoat, and is it then coated in the Waxoyl/Dynax? Once I've got the exterior sorted will move on to sealing the interior.

In the meantime, I'm been busy collecting shiny things (well shiny and a very thin bit of sitting-on-the-shelf surface rust) and trying to be a bargain Billy about it...

008 by G Whizz, on Flickr

ST170 discs by TRW, a clearance special at £22.31 for the pair delivered, & these:

009 by G Whizz, on Flickr

some Motorcraft brake shoes, £18, the same. Also managed to source some stainless brake bleed nipples as advised by Ben (cheers btw) that should hopefully be just long enough, with 16.5mm after the hex head:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/160892015222?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

None of that will go ahead though until I get some 16/17 inch alloys and tyres to put them behind... and so it goes on... :grin:
 
The best way of checking how bad that rust really is, is getting a large flat head screw driver in there and scrapping and poking around at it to see if the metal is still solid.
 
moondustka said:
[post]348743[/post] The best way of checking how bad that rust really is, is getting a large flat head screw driver in there and scrapping and poking around at it to see if the metal is still solid.
Hi Ben,
That, and a bit of wire-brushing, was basically how I ended up with the photos...it's solid, bar the brake pipe fixing, if none too pretty (bit like myself)....but that can be sorted (unlike myself) :eek:k:
 

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