Painting Euro Brake Callipers. Any special care?

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12-04-2005, 10:38 PM
PNR888

Painting Euro Brake Callipers. Any special care?

I am planning to paint my brake callipers tomorrow, and do tyre rotation at the same time.

I have searched and read the past thread and post in the forum, and my bro has done it to his car too. so it shouldn't be too difficult.

Just wondering if any Euro owner has done it before? and if there is any special care need to be taken for this job on Euro? eg special wiring or tricky brake fluid tubing??

I dont have a angle grinder at home, but got a power drill, so bought meself a steel wire wheel today, will try to smooth those rough surface/groove on callipers before spray it.

Thanks
12-04-2005, 11:30 PM
EuroAccord13

Haven't done it on the Euro before but there are two ways that I know...

The Easy Way: Stick newspaper over the disc and spray after prepping the surface, if there are any residue on the disc, do abit of light braking and it'll take the paint off the disc...

The Harder Way: Undo the whole caliper from the disc and spray after prepping the surface....
12-04-2005, 11:58 PM
EuroAccord13

BTW... isn't the Gold Calipers sexy enough? :D
13-04-2005, 12:40 AM
aaronng

You might need primer paint to get the paint to stick to the calipers.
13-04-2005, 06:53 AM
VirIIx

Quote:

Originally Posted by EuroAccord13

BTW... isn't the Gold Calipers sexy enough? :D

concur :)
13-04-2005, 10:11 AM
baboo

PRN888, you've gond mad!! LOL
13-04-2005, 10:47 AM
Catcha

Clean the Brake Caliper with a steel brush, wash with warm water and let it dry
Get some primer and spray it on, Even thought the Brake caliper spray paint (UHF) I think it was says you don't need primer cause it has it already, do it anyway If you want the best results. Do a couple of coats let it sit.
Then spray on a couple of coats of colour of your choice. and last but not least cover the parts the are not going to be sprayed. and you done
13-04-2005, 10:57 AM
aaronng

Like what Catcha said, and remember to let each coat dry completely! Leave maybe 1 hour between coats if it is fast drying, and after you finish with primer, let it dry overnight. Also, it is better to apply thin coats than thick coats.
13-04-2005, 11:31 AM
PNR888

Thanks for the advises folks.
I will start the job this afternoon after work.As I got tomorrow off, so I can take my time and carry it over to tomorrow. The car will sit on jack stands and have its first wheel-less night notight.
13-04-2005, 02:40 PM
Pum[Z]

Yeah make sure u show us some piccies of what it looks like after alrightys...
13-04-2005, 02:55 PM
**Ghost**

1 peice of advice is to NOT drive until completelyyyyyyyyyyy sure the paint is dry... otherwise the paint bubbles up cos fo the heat
13-04-2005, 04:09 PM
SSML

about to start the job in 10 minute
I am going to help me bro.
will take pics as we go :)
13-04-2005, 04:11 PM
Gibbo

What colour are you going to spray them prn ??? ive been thinking about doing the same thing as well but cant decide on a color ....
13-04-2005, 04:50 PM
aaronng

Remember to ensure that your hands are free of paint when you take photos! Unless you want a nice primer+colour digital camera.
13-04-2005, 05:22 PM
PERTH_EURO

Hand paint them with a brush.

No messy overspray then
13-04-2005, 06:09 PM
EuroAccord13

Ok so now we wait for the results :D....
13-04-2005, 07:11 PM
stephen8512

piccies piccies piccies!!! :D
14-04-2005, 02:15 AM
euro77

i hope he paints it red :D
14-04-2005, 10:31 AM
PNR888

Quote:

Originally Posted by euro77

i hope he paints it red :D

Thanks for the advices

Started yesterday 4pm, work til midnight. started 8 am again this morning (day off today). I already sprayed 3 coats on front calipers and 2 for the rear ones. Just need another coat and a clear coat on, then I am done. I am going to give my wheels and tyres a good scrub soon while waiting for the paint to dry.

You guys might wonder why I am so slow. :confused: Let me tell you, it was all the preparation that take up all the time. I sanded the calipers with steel wire wheel, removed the brake pads, thoroughly cleaned the calipers and mask everything else except calipers. Nuts from wheels are easy to remove :thumbsup: (I am not musclely at all). but the bolts from brake calipers are nightmare to remove esp in such confined space. :( I was afraid i might knock the suspansion out of alignment. :thumbdwn:

I painted mine Racing Red with VHT spray paint ($17.99 from Autobarn). Took plenty of pic along the way. :o and thanks for your advise, I glad wraped my Canon (not the lense of course) to prevent it from becoming a dotty.

I will post up pic once done. going to scrub those gunk off my rims now. :(
14-04-2005, 12:34 PM
EuroAccord13

Quote:

Originally Posted by PNR888

I glad wraped my Canon (not the lense of course) to prevent it from becoming a dotty.

That's a sweeet idea... Now we are still waiting for pic :D
14-04-2005, 08:21 PM
PNR888

Sorry, Pics are not ready yet. The car is still on jack stands at my brother/parents house. I have put on another layer of paint since last post. My brother will put a clear coat on for me tonight.

I scrubed out all the gunks (grease, brake dust and tar etc) off the rims this morning, also gave tyres a good lather. Now the inner side of rims are much cleaner than before. but some stained spots are just impossible to remove from machined surface despite used all types of household cleaning agents. They look like freckles on your inner side of rims, nevermind, they wont be too obvious when the wheels are fitted back to the car.

I couldn't drive my Honda today, so I drove golf balls this afternoon instead. I hope I can finish the project by tomorrow night. I will definitely show you guys pics of the car when its done.
17-04-2005, 12:01 AM
PNR888

There are some hiccups happened yesterday with the paint, so delay the whole job.
After 3 wheel-less nights, my baby finally got its feet back on tonight. Testdrove the car, the brake and steering work without any problem, so I can relax and enjoy watching my newly painted calipers.
I took lots of pics along the way, will try to post it on once the donation is made.
so plz be patient.
22-04-2005, 01:38 PM
PNR888

3 Attachment(s)

Hi people:
as promised, here are some photos of my project. hope u all like it.
22-04-2005, 01:56 PM
jl88rl

nicely done!

makes me wanna do em too, but dun wanna be wheel-less for 3 nights!
22-04-2005, 02:01 PM
PNR888

3 Attachment(s)

Here are some more photos:
I had difficulties removing read brake pads,therefore the rear calipers were painted with brake pads in, but I did my best to mask the brake pads, metal clips, and bolts and nuts before spray painting. The result looks ok.
22-04-2005, 02:23 PM
gd1_nz

nice work....looks great^^......
anywayz i've got a mate whos got a silver altezza and painted the calipers red too and it looks stunnin....maybe u should try it sometime...haha
22-04-2005, 02:41 PM
aaronng

Great photos! Looks good :thumbsup: You probably have the cleanest rims around too for now. :D
22-04-2005, 04:38 PM
PNR888

1 Attachment(s)

Quote:

Originally Posted by aaronng

Great photos! Looks good :thumbsup: You probably have the cleanest rims around too for now. :D

Thank you. That's me in action, scrubbing the gunk out.
22-04-2005, 05:46 PM
TypeG

good job
what u use for cleaning the brake caipler surface?
22-04-2005, 06:02 PM
PNR888

1 Attachment(s)

Quote:

Originally Posted by TypeG

good job
what u use for cleaning the brake caipler surface?

Engine degreaser spray first, then normal carwash soapy water with old tooth-brush, once dried, wipe the calipers with methylated spirits to further vaporise any moisture. I also use fan to ensure it is 100% dry. (It was raining earlier that day)

Hope this answers your question
22-04-2005, 06:06 PM
evolution42

very nice!

got any full-length pics of the car (so we can see both the front and rear calipers?):D
22-04-2005, 09:13 PM
PNR888

1 Attachment(s)

Quote:

Originally Posted by evolution42

very nice!

got any full-length pics of the car (so we can see both the front and rear calipers?):D

Here you go.
22-04-2005, 09:28 PM
aaronng

I wish I had a huge garage like yours....
22-04-2005, 09:29 PM
aaronng

From your full length shot, I can see that the red calipers suits the rear spoiler very well!
23-04-2005, 11:39 PM
JDM.Power

nice job! like the looks of it! an a nice big garage! :P