Gti6 Caliper Rebuild - Advice?

[Robbiedundy 58 4 Cars]

Hello, currently in the middle of my 205 gti6 build and the shell is waiting to go back to the painters, in the meantime I'm getting everything else ready. Right now I'm working on the calipers - I've got one of the fronts stripped, the piston has corroded around the bottom where the dust seal has perished so will need replacing

The other caliper is seized, I might try using a compressor instead of the hand pump

but I'm feared my bodged brake line will turn into a small missile.

 

I've not touched the rear brakes yet, on one of them the rubber boot had split and all the grease stuff had dried up, the other was still sealed and full of grease stuff

I'm not sure what's good and what's not, I've never taken calipers apart - most people I know advised me against trying to rebuild them but I'd like to learn and have read a few of you on here doing it.

 

Where should I get rebuild kits/new bleed nipples from - are the eBay ones good enough?

 

Cheers.

Edited August 23, 2016 by Dundy53

[allye 530 3 Cars]

Fronts are easy enough and you're pretty much there. Rears are a right fiddle by no reason you cannt do them.

 

Big red kits are pretty good, bleed nipples are also cheaply had online or motor factors.

[Alan_M 66 1 Cars]

As well as BigRed, try Brakes International too.

 

Rears can be done but are fiddly. I never got round to doing a guide when rebuilding my 306 ones but took plenty of photos (http://306oc.co.uk/forum/archive/index.php?thread-26295.html & http://306oc.co.uk/forum/archive/index.php?thread-33315.html). If I get a minute today, I'll scan in the step-by-step approach from the old Citroen ZX Haynes guide.

[Robbiedundy 58 4 Cars]

Cheers for the help guys ????

 

The rear caliper that had the burst rubber boot, the grease was all dried up and there was dirt in there too - is that bad? I don't know how it works to be honest.

[PhilNW 40]

Seized caliper - Try connecting the caliper back to the master cylinder line and pressing the brake pedal to push the piston out should get a bit more pressure than airline and safer.

 

Usually get all brake parts from brakes international, just done a couple of rear 205 caliper rebuilds wasn't too difficult bit of a faff but just ensure the piston seal is in place properly

[dobboy 231 2 Cars]

I rebuilt GTI180's for the front of mine with rebuild kits from brakeparts.co.uk

 

Managed to get a nice clean set from an Xsara for the rear, cheaper than one rebuild kit, and less hassle. ????

[Robbiedundy 58 4 Cars]

Cheers guys, Phil - the car I got the brakes from was scrapped, I'll try the compressor and see what happens ????

 

That's also an idea dobboy, thanks. Will have a look at prices, only reason I wanted to rebuild them was so I could paint them properly but if I can get 2nd hand ones cheap enough might just be worth masking them up best I can.

 

????

[welshpug 1,621]

try a grease gun.

[Robbiedundy 58 4 Cars]

Managed to find a m10x1 grease nipple so tried the grease gun to find out that it was empty ????

 

would've been the safest option but I'm impatient so hooked it up to the compressor, my bodged brake line held up but what a f*cking bang it made coming out!

Got the front calipers/carriers cleaned up and put them in primer for now

 

Gonna get started on the rear calipers after tea, the one that the grease has dried up on also has a snapped bleed nipple so I'm just gonna source another.

 

Cheers again for the help guys. ????

[toolie72 67 1 Cars]

If bleed nipples m7 or m8 then it can be drilled out-I've got m7 taps etc-if you can get it to Inverness I'm quite happy to balls it up-I mean give it a go

I'm a toolmaker to trade but now I work for able care doing stairlifts so no machines but I've always managed to drill out and remove fecked ones

Of course now that's jinxed everything haha

[dobboy 231 2 Cars]

Primer?

 

Are you not going to use VHT paint? Which I'm pretty sure is self priming. I doubt very much normal paint will last, even the VHT caliper stuff gets tacky after a good hoon.

[Alan_M 66 1 Cars]

The Haynes procedure for rebuilding a rear caliper.....OK, they're photos but I can read them when zoomed up. Hope it's of help!

 

http://i1153.photobucket.com/albums/p501/Alan_M77/IMAG05661_zps3qvbschy.jpg

 

http://i1153.photobucket.com/albums/p501/Alan_M77/IMAG05671_zpsjxdmiubk.jpg

[Robbiedundy 58 4 Cars]

If bleed nipples m7 or m8 then it can be drilled out-I've got m7 taps etc-if you can get it to Inverness I'm quite happy to balls it up-I mean give it a go

Cheers for the offer but I've already balls'd it up ???? going to order two new ones for the rear, brakes international rebuild kits + pistons is near enough the same price as a new caliper on their site but there's none in stock, I'll have to find some elsewhere.

 

Primer?

 

Are you not going to use VHT paint? Which I'm pretty sure is self priming. I doubt very much normal paint will last, even the VHT caliper stuff gets tacky after a good hoon.

I've used zinc primer, I'm sure I saw someone use it on an exhaust? I hope it will be okay, it was just to stop them rusting again whilst I was waiting for the VHT engine enamel paint I used to come in the post.

 

Thanks again guys ????

Edited November 2, 2016 by Dundy53