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Fri May 04, 2012 9:53 am

working on a 72, early bay calipers and bought a rebuild kit that includes 6 seals BUT the problem is the kit does not include the 2 seals per caliper which are needed on the inside where they are broken apart in 2 pieces. I confirmed that the correct seals are in the repair kits so was wondering if anyone else had the same problem, they obviously have to be split in 2 parts to repair so why then would they not have included the small seals that are needed to put back together, any help is appreciated

Fri May 04, 2012 9:59 am

I don't believe the seals/O rings for the inside of the caliper are available any more.

I rebuilt mine on my '73 and read on here "DO NOT" split the caliper since the inner O rings are NLA.

hth

Jeff

Fri May 04, 2012 10:03 am

you don't split them to rebuild them. The o-rings you speak of are NLA. Leave them in one piece.

Fri May 04, 2012 10:04 am

Oh that would make sense then thank you so much now I don't have to waste a lot more time looking appreciate it.

Fri May 04, 2012 10:41 am

pombenz wrote: Oh that would make sense then thank you so much now I don't have to waste a lot more time looking appreciate it.

use a block of wood like a stake and a rag between pistons and then put compressed air into the unit. One piston will pop out and sound like a gunshot so don't have your fingers in there. Take the bore seal out on that side, wipe any debris out and slide that piston back in. Use a long block of wood like a stake to hold that piston in while you apply air again and the other side will pop out - again watch your fingers cause it will really slam hard when it comes out. It is about 6 to 7 square inches and at 130 PSI that is about 900 pounds of force - would be like hitting your fingers on concrete with a sledge hammer. Keep a rag and piece of wood between the pistons so they don't damage one another coming out. If the bore is pitted it is no big thing as long as the pits don't undercut the seals. Inspect the pistons and polish them. If they have deep pits they are no good. Make sure they go back in the same bores and that they are indexed properly like shown in Bentley to fit the anti-rattle/squeal plates.

Fri May 04, 2012 11:42 am

SGKent wrote: pombenz wrote: Oh that would make sense then thank you so much now I don't have to waste a lot more time looking appreciate it.

use a block of wood like a stake and a rag between pistons and then put compressed air into the unit. One piston will pop out and sound like a gunshot so don't have your fingers in there. Take the bore seal out on that side, wipe any debris out and slide that piston back in. Use a long block of wood like a stake to hold that piston in while you apply air again and the other side will pop out - again watch your fingers cause it will really slam hard when it comes out. It is about 6 to 7 square inches and at 130 PSI that is about 900 pounds of force - would be like hitting your fingers on concrete with a sledge hammer. Keep a rag and piece of wood between the pistons so they don't damage one another coming out. If the bore is pitted it is no big thing as long as the pits don't undercut the seals. Inspect the pistons and polish them. If they have deep pits they are no good. Make sure they go back in the same bores and that they are indexed properly like shown in Bentley to fit the anti-rattle/squeal plates.

Excellent post!!

Wed Aug 01, 2012 7:38 pm

SGKent wrote: use a block of wood like a stake and a rag between pistons and then put compressed air into the unit.

Any suggestions if I don't have an air compressor?
It sounds like they're pretty hard to get out.

Should I pull the calipers off and take them somewhere?

Wed Aug 01, 2012 7:49 pm

Jockomo wrote: Any suggestions if I don't have an air compressor?

try a grease gun. it's actually a bit smoother with the grease, less explosive. messy but it works.

someone says up in this topic that the little o-rings in between the caliper halves are not available but we have them either as part of the repair kit or separate.

Wed Aug 01, 2012 8:00 pm

germansupplyscott wrote: Jockomo wrote: Any suggestions if I don't have an air compressor?

try a grease gun. it's actually a bit smoother with the grease, less explosive. messy but it works.

someone says up in this topic that the little o-rings in between the caliper halves are not available but we have them either as part of the repair kit or separate.

make sure you get ALL the grease ut later though, brake fluid and petrolium based products DO NOT MIX....AT ALL.

Wed Aug 01, 2012 8:05 pm

That's good to know. When did you make them available Scott?

We've had numerous threads over the years discussing those little seals. No one before has come up with any source for them. The answer has always been NLA.

A person doesn't want to seperate the two halves until the pistons are removed but after that a person would sure want to do it.

Wed Aug 01, 2012 8:19 pm

Thanks Scott, that's an interesting idea.

Is it possible to push them out by taking them off the caliper and then pumping the brake pedal? (with a piece of wood in between the pistons to keep them from hitting each other)

Wed Aug 01, 2012 8:25 pm

Jockomo wrote: Thanks Scott, that's an interesting idea.

Is it possible to push them out by taking them off the caliper and then pumping the brake pedal? (with a piece of wood in between the pistons to keep them from hitting each other)

yes that will work. it might be a bit unpredictable but if you have a helper to hold things it should be workable. the issue no matter how you get the pistons out is once one piston comes out things get more difficult and messier.