Changing rotors

Devallee · Apr 8, 2016

So I pulled my rotors and found some years of fun stuck inside my e-brake contraption. My question is, can I spray some simple green or something of the sorts in there and hose it out? Or would it mess something up? Does it need to be greased anywhere or something? Thanks in advance

ImageUploadedByWAYALIFE1460152478.895692.jpg

mcgyvr · Apr 8, 2016

clean away.. apply grease to any sliding (non breaking surface) area after if you want.. not much there..

highoctane · Apr 8, 2016

Simple green should work fine. Follow up with a can of brake clean after it's dry to get the pads and drum surface clean again.

WJCO · Apr 8, 2016

I wouldn't use simple green, that's just me. Don't want residue left there afterwards. Get some Brakeclean from parts store and wear safety glasses.

sipafz · Apr 8, 2016

Looks like the shoes are rotting. I would check the lining integrity with a putty knife - pry on it lightly just to make sure the fasteners are holding good. Don't go crazy and crack or chip the corners - go easy! Now is the time to replace them if needed since you already have it mostly apart.

2nd.gunman · Apr 8, 2016

Water and a brush is all I use did it last weekend. Then I gave the shoes and rotors a quick scuff with sandpaper to get the ingrained stuff out.

rogerk93 · Apr 8, 2016

Hit it with brake cleaner and call it a day. It will work just fine and you don't have to worry about messing anything up.

Devallee · Apr 9, 2016

Thanks for all of the quick replies! Since I have some of you here....would there be any suggestions on what brand rotors to replace my old rotors with? As much as I'd love to pay $100 per rotor from the stealership.....I don't. Just looking for a good OEM replacement

rogerk93 · Apr 9, 2016

Wagner is a good oem replacement and at a good price

explorebc4x4 · Apr 9, 2016

I just put on the Napa premium rotors a couple weeks ago. I was very impressed at the quality of them and the price was great. Paid. $35 ea USD.

Devallee · Apr 9, 2016

explorebc4x4 said:
I just put on the Napa premium rotors a couple weeks ago. I was very impressed at the quality of them and the price was great. Paid. $35 ea USD.

Ended up going with O'Reilly ones since they're local. 40 bucks a piece they'll do for now. Maybe I'll upgrade next time around. Thanks for the help guys my baby's back on the road! :thumb:

WJCO · Apr 9, 2016

Devallee said:
Thanks for all of the quick replies! Since I have some of you here....would there be any suggestions on what brand rotors to replace my old rotors with? As much as I'd love to pay $100 per rotor from the stealership.....I don't. Just looking for a good OEM replacement

Just looked at your profile. Being that you're running 35s, I would definitely upgrade the brakes at some point, but if you're looking for a quick OEM replacement, I've had good luck with any parts store replacements. At the same time if they've been on the shelf for awhile, I've had several cases of warped rotors right out of the box. Those can be machined if there's an issue. Most of them are 20 bucks a piece, so you pay for what you get, but for basic safety, they're fine. Post some pics of your train horns by the way.

sipafz · Apr 9, 2016

If your rotors aren't damaged and you have access to a lathe you can re-surface them or drop them at a local auto parts store and they can do it or have it done for a fraction of the cost.

ImageUploadedByWAYALIFE1460171760.822477.jpg

Adjust to less than .005" runout or less at the mounting flange. 100 surface feet per minute / .024 inches per revolution. Re-machine both sides of the rotor during the same setup yo control parallelism to .002" or less.

ImageUploadedByWAYALIFE1460171809.967742.jpg

Left is before / Right is after. Minimum rotor thickness is stamped or cast on the rotor. Find it & Respect it!

WJCO · Apr 9, 2016

Devallee said:
Ended up going with O'Reilly ones since they're local. 40 bucks a piece they'll do for now. Maybe I'll upgrade next time around. Thanks for the help guys my baby's back on the road! :thumb:

Perfect. Sweet.

JeepinLife · Apr 9, 2016

sipafz said:
If your rotors aren't damaged and you have access to a lathe you can re-surface them or drop them at a local auto parts store and they can do it or have it done for a fraction of the cost.
View attachment 197133
Adjust to less than .005" runout or less at the mounting flange. 100 surface feet per minute / .024 inches per revolution. Re-machine both sides of the rotor during the same setup yo control parallelism to .002" or less.
View attachment 197135
Left is before / Right is after. Minimum rotor thickness is stamped or cast on the rotor. Find it & Respect it!

This can be helpful with good quality rotors and with that you probably don't need to turn them. However cheaper rotors are just gonna wear out even faster after you turn them. Since your just making the cheap thin metal even thinner. I'd advise against it and just buy quality brake parts

Devallee · Apr 9, 2016

sipafz said:
If your rotors aren't damaged and you have access to a lathe you can re-surface them or drop them at a local auto parts store and they can do it or have it done for a fraction of the cost.
View attachment 197133
Adjust to less than .005" runout or less at the mounting flange. 100 surface feet per minute / .024 inches per revolution. Re-machine both sides of the rotor during the same setup yo control parallelism to .002" or less.
View attachment 197135
Left is before / Right is after. Minimum rotor thickness is stamped or cast on the rotor. Find it & Respect it!

Yeah I tried to get them resurfaced at O'Reillys and 2 outta 4 of them were not within spec so they wouldn't do it so I just bought all 4 new ones and called it a day. Got 75k miles outta them so I'm not even mad

Devallee · Apr 9, 2016

WJCO said:
Just looked at your profile. Being that you're running 35s, I would definitely upgrade the brakes at some point, but if you're looking for a quick OEM replacement, I've had good luck with any parts store replacements. At the same time if they've been on the shelf for awhile, I've had several cases of warped rotors right out of the box. Those can be machined if there's an issue. Most of them are 20 bucks a piece, so you pay for what you get, but for basic safety, they're fine. Post some pics of your train horns by the way.

I actually don't have em on anymore. I ended up having to pull it out a couple years ago because I got a ticket and just never took the time to put it all back in again (I HATE doing plumbing and electrical stuff). Actually planning on throwing em in my miata when I decide to take the time to do it one day since that's more of my daily now. Probably one of my favorite mods tho definitely worth it

sipafz · Apr 10, 2016

JeepinLife said:
This can be helpful with good quality rotors and with that you probably don't need to turn them. However cheaper rotors are just gonna wear out even faster after you turn them. Since your just making the cheap thin metal even thinner. I'd advise against it and just buy quality brake parts

Sounded like the OP had the stock setup and original OEM rotors which are defiantly worth re-surfacing if they are not damaged (grooved from the linings being worn through).
I disagree with your statement "good quality rotors and with that you probably don't need to turn them". What exactly are you suggesting? That you should just replace pads without re-surfacing or replacing the rotors? I hope not!
The rotors pictured are from my 2003 KJ with 150k. Last fall I decided the replace the pads & shoes. I measured up the rotors and found that I had .035" above the low limit. I turned about .01" from each side and voila, like new rotors. In all it cost $85 for ceramic pads and standard shoes plus about four hours to turn the rotors and complete the job. Good for another 150k!

sipafz · Apr 10, 2016

Devallee said:
Yeah I tried to get them resurfaced at O'Reillys and 2 outta 4 of them were not within spec so they wouldn't do it so I just bought all 4 new ones and called it a day. Got 75k miles outta them so I'm not even mad

Bummer, but like I mentioned, you don't want the run them if the are under the minimum thickness! So $160 for rotors, $100 for new pads? $35 for new shoes? Still way ahead of a co-worker of mine the recently paid $800 to do all 4 wheels recently. Kudos to you!

JeepinLife · Apr 10, 2016

sipafz said:
Sounded like the OP had the stock setup and original OEM rotors which are defiantly worth re-surfacing if they are not damaged (grooved from the linings being worn through).
I disagree with your statement "good quality rotors and with that you probably don't need to turn them". What exactly are you suggesting? That you should just replace pads without re-surfacing or replacing the rotors? I hope not!
The rotors pictured are from my 2003 KJ with 150k. Last fall I decided the replace the pads & shoes. I measured up the rotors and found that I had .035" above the low limit. I turned about .01" from each side and voila, like new rotors. In all it cost $85 for ceramic pads and standard shoes plus about four hours to turn the rotors and complete the job. Good for another 150k!

No I was suggesting that with a good quality pad and rotor your probably will never have to turn them do to the fact that they wear correctly. Given that you actually service and take of your brakes correctly. I still stick to my previous statement that turning rotors may only buy you a short amount of time until your underling issue return or you need to replace anyways. If you can actually get that many miles out of yours by doing so that's awesome!

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