4 piston calipers, reman or to rebuild?

[Raksj04]

I bought the whole spindle off a junkyard, hub, rotor, caliber, and control arm for my 5 lug swap. Now the question is should I rebuild to the caliber or use it as a core? I heard that when you rebuild them yourself they leak. And I am not sure if there are any special tools required. I haven't check the FSM yet but I plan to.

[RETed]

The biggest problem with trying to rebuild brake calipers is that the bores / pistons are pitted due to corrosion.
This is especially true when you're trying to use parts that have been sitting around for a long time - i.e. junkyard.

At least with the reman, there should be a warranty in case you run into problems.

There is no real specialty tools to rebuild the brake calipers.
A pick is suggested, but you can get away with a toothpick...
The problem is more that you have to be detailed and inspect and lubricate everything properly.


-Ted

[Pete_89T2]

Rebuilding the 4-pot calipers is easy to do, and works well only if there's no pitting or corrosion in the bores or pistons. FWIW, the caliper rebuild kit from Mazda contains only the seals/soft parts, and costs something like $20~40. What I would do before buying anything is tear down your junkyard calipers first; if there's ANY pitting or corrosion in the bores & pistons, or it just looks questionable, then use them as cores and purchase reman calipers. Like Ted said, those junkyard parts could have been sitting out there for years and are most likely trashed. If nothing else, tearing down the junkyard calipers for inspection before shipping them out as cores will help you learn how they are put together for a minimal investment in time.

[Raksj04]

It is just the 4 bolts that hold to together right?

[Pete_89T2]

DO NOT split the caliper halves apart if that's what your thinking. You don't need to do that to remove the pistons, and you'll just create yourself more problems getting them to seal properly when you put them back together. Whatever seals that are between the two halves doesn't come with the Mazda rebuild kit.

You only need to remove the 2 bolts that hold the caliper to the caliper bracket on the spindle. If it was still on the car, you would also need to remove the brake line.

[jacobcartmill]

what kind of gun do you have? and why does it have pistons in it?

i'd personally go with a .45, but that's just me.

[Raksj04]

what kind of gun do you have? and why does it have pistons in it?

i'd personally go with a .45, but that's just me.

wow I just noticed that. Why can't I change the title myself?

[Pete_89T2]

wow I just noticed that. Why can't I change the title myself?

You can edit the body of your posts, but I think only moderators have permissions to edit the subject lines.

[RETed]

Title fixed.
You should be able to edit your original post.
jacobcartmill being a smartass again. :)


-Ted

[Raksj04]

When I get the calipers apart I will take pics.