Brake Caliper Mounting Bolts - What Socket (1970 C3)
- Thread starter Paul Benton
- Start date
Paul Benton
CCCUK Member
Thanks for the comment re: tightening bolts will use a vice to ensure no damage.
Photo attached, its towards the end of a lot of restoration work over the last three years, as whilst low mileage was pretty much untouched since 1970 apart from a full respray some 12 years ago, so looked good on the outside but a bit scruffy under the bonnet.
I foolishly thought would take one winter off the road as all I initially intended to do was paint the engine out of the car as the paint had badly flaked, but got caught up by the "whilst this is off might as well do that as well" bug and ended up with a full engine bay restoration and lots more. Most of this work I had never done before and it was an enjoyable past time particularly this year as it was a nice diversion from lock-down. My plan is to finish by the end of this winter when I will be getting a full car respray for which I am hunting round for quotes at the moment..........this is an expensive hobby!
Kind regards
Paul
Photo attached, its towards the end of a lot of restoration work over the last three years, as whilst low mileage was pretty much untouched since 1970 apart from a full respray some 12 years ago, so looked good on the outside but a bit scruffy under the bonnet.
I foolishly thought would take one winter off the road as all I initially intended to do was paint the engine out of the car as the paint had badly flaked, but got caught up by the "whilst this is off might as well do that as well" bug and ended up with a full engine bay restoration and lots more. Most of this work I had never done before and it was an enjoyable past time particularly this year as it was a nice diversion from lock-down. My plan is to finish by the end of this winter when I will be getting a full car respray for which I am hunting round for quotes at the moment..........this is an expensive hobby!
Kind regards
Paul
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Paul Benton
CCCUK Member
Thought I would add that throughout this task I have extensively sought help and guidance from the Corvette community through forums both in UK and USA, what a nice bunch of people and always willing to help. Its saved me a lot of mistakes and time that others have made. However I have learnt to get several views, follow up with google searches and the Tech Guides to come to a decision as to how to approach a job, and above all be patient before tackling a job for the first time and always consider safety.
Keep safe and well
Kind regards
Paul
Keep safe and well
Kind regards
Paul
Paul Benton
CCCUK Member
Could I ask one more question, callipers are off, is there a good tip for pulling the calliper pistons out, they are not seized but just tricky to grip?
Depends what they look like. If they are badly corroded and show signs of pitting then you may want to think about replacing them. If so then a pair of pliers will get them out. If they are OK then you need to be a bit more careful and not damage the anodising so something plastic or plastic coated to grip them and pull them out with a minimum of damage. Most of the ones I did were pretty corroded so needed replacement anyway. They are pretty inexpensive from the US suppliers. You may also want to consider replacing the whole assembly with O ring seals in which case new pistons will be required anyway. There are some potential drawbacks to be considered with these seals but for cars which are not used on a regular basis they are well worth considering.
Roscobbc
Moderator
You'll need to replace pistons with suitable 'O' ring seals (which will come as a complete and relatively inexpensive kit) - the better choice for longer term and infrequent use vehicles - I did mine perhaps 15 years ago and they have been fine. Note ~ they'll be as good as the internal caliper piston bore is. If its badly corroded it'll damage the seal surface. A thorough clean and use of the very finest abrasive cloth and a final clean is 100% essential for long life - think of it much like when you hone a cylinder bore........
Paul Benton
CCCUK Member
Thanks guys, was going to replace the seals just in case they are damaged, will search for the "o" ring seal replacements as sound like a good idea, as I don't use the car that much each year and yes I have had corrosion issues and fluid leakage issues several times in the past.
Regards
Paul
Regards
Paul
Paul Benton
CCCUK Member
Final comment just to round this thread off, I got the calipers apart!
I found that a 25/32" socket was as good a fit as I could get for the larger bolts, a little tight but couple of gentle taps with a hammer and it was very firmly in place.
Good soak for the bolts in good old WD40, then first tried for size socket sizes either side of 25/32"; smaller one to tight and 13/16" whilst OK moved a little on the bolt which I was not confident with and thought it could possibly slip and round the edges. Tried long bar in a vice this was hard, so pulled out the impact wrench and that made really easy work of them.
I found that a 25/32" socket was as good a fit as I could get for the larger bolts, a little tight but couple of gentle taps with a hammer and it was very firmly in place.
Good soak for the bolts in good old WD40, then first tried for size socket sizes either side of 25/32"; smaller one to tight and 13/16" whilst OK moved a little on the bolt which I was not confident with and thought it could possibly slip and round the edges. Tried long bar in a vice this was hard, so pulled out the impact wrench and that made really easy work of them.