Rear calipers:rebuild or replace?

[dnsherrill]

in one of my ongoing projects I took apart the rear calipers to paint; the plan is to rebuild and put 'em back on when I do the hub swap/front brake mod job.
There's a good write-up on SVT Perf here:http://www.svtperformance.com/forum...rear-calipers-w-integrated-parking-brake.html
---
but I've also read in different threads that it can be a b*tch of a job for a novice like me and maybe I'm better off spending the $80 for both, painting them, and doing a simple rear caliper swap and bleed
:feedback

 

[My Great 8]

You answered your own question.

 

[PenGun]

If they are generally good and the fluid was clean, all you need is the seal and dust boot. The rest you can leave assembled. You do need the tool to turn them in and out but I picked mine up for $8 or so.

The rebuild kit is like $10 here.

 

[dnsherrill]

i like that...abbreviated rebuild
I already got the r/b kits...so you're saying don't wory about pulling apart the spring and cover/ threaded center shaft/ eb lever assembly etc? just pull the piston (which is done) and replace those two parts...
--- the part that gives me pause is removing and resetting that snap ring down there inside the bore

 

[GMAN]

How difficult is it attach the parking brake spring?

 

[dnsherrill]

How difficult is it attach the parking brake spring?

entry #19, photoline #4....vice + zip tie
http://www.svtperformance.com/forum...rear-calipers-w-integrated-parking-brake.html

 

[dnsherrill]

well, I thought I'd leave the bore workings intact,- just replace the dust sleeve and square edge gasket at top; but then figured that's not how you learn to do it....
--

weekend tinker list: rebuild rear calps, resurface headlamp buckets- polish lenses, mf switch headlight splice mod....sleep

 

[dnsherrill]

How difficult is it attach the parking brake spring?

for me it was not so difficult, but it required persistence; I placed it in the vice, cranked it tight then put a zip tie around it, then dropped it onto the braket and cut the zips ; the problem I had was the zip ties were slipping after I loosened the vice; also that spring can take off. I shot it across the garage about a half dzn times -good to hold a shield up when loosening the vice, then grab it with pliers in case the zip snaps.
---
Reassembling the inside of the bore is tricky also. Saved $80, yeeha
that SVT Perf write up is good, except the part where he talks about wiring the snap ring snug before dropping it back in. That's unnecessary

 

[dnsherrill]

it didn't happen quickly, but I now have rebuilt rear calipers

 

[slowmkviii]

Very nice

 

[JDS353]

way to go DAN. when things go back togather right it makes it easy. when you have to fight things it questions your sanity but still feels good when it works right. jd an old mech.

 

[dnsherrill]

finally got around to doing the hub swap, and putting the rebuilt rear calipers on....drivers side leaks pretty good, I'm 95% certain it's from around the piston
here's the re built one and one from my white '96 which I may up using instead

----
i removed the piston from my rebuilt caliper (the blue one) and noticed:
1) the dust boot was seated in the top of the piston but not the top of the caliper
2)the little spring cover and snap ring retainer were not in place and moving freely around the threaded center shaft
3) there was a small black piece of material inside the bore. this may have broken off from the square-edged gasket that sits in the recess at the top of the bore
---

---
the dust boot on the old caliper was torn, but the bottom of it is firm/rigid and was well-seated in the top of the bore
--

---
the dust boot from the rebuild kit is very flexible
---

---
getting that spring and retaining clip around the was a real bear, and I don't want to try again, so I'm thinking of replacing the dust boot and square edge gaket

 

[dnsherrill]

okay, I have two rear drv side calipers.
1)the one from the wrecked car that the bent knuckle came from:
I completely rebuilt (replaced all the rubber), painted it blue, and recently put on was leaking from the piston. Upon piston removal: inside the bore the spring cover was not seated around the threaded shaft. The dust cover was seated around the piston-top but NOT in the top of the caliper bore. This s.o.b leaked as soon as I test drove the brown car post hub swap/ brake replace
2) the one i took off my white car was not leaking but it had a torn dust cover...about 109k miles on it
---
so why do calipers leak around the piston? I'm inclined to just put a new dust cover and square-edged gasket in the unpainted caliper that didn't leak before. For the rebuilt one, trying to get that spring cover and retaining ring around the threaded shaft in the bore is a nightmare, imo
----
or I could just buy a remanned caliper for about $65...
---
edit:

square edged gasket =LEAK