I am a DIYer and have done my fair share of disc brake jobs. The other day I encountered my first caliper pin stuck in the bracket on a 2004 Excursion (same brakes as an F250). I got the pin out and replaced it with a new pins and I oversized the hole a bit.

I also find out that another friend with a 2007 F250 has had this issue. Both have been on rear calipers.

I have done a lot of searching on this topic, both here and over the entire Internet. I am looking for the DEFINITIVE solution to caliper slide pins locking/freezing/sticking in their mounting hole in the caliper bracket.

I have a couple of ideas on how to prevent this from happening AGAIN, but they are unproven. I'm hoping to find a PROVEN solution before I go experimenting !

 

As long as the boot is in tact the pins should not lock up. Its dirt/salt/water/rust that cause them to hang up as far as what Ive experienced on these trucks. I have had 2. An 08 and an 11. No prob with the 08. I just did a 4 wheel brake job yesterday on the 11. I did notice one of the rear pins was tight but it still moved. The boot was intact. I grabbed it and worked it until it moved free like the others. It did have a rough spot. The grease must be inadequate or not enough? But once I worked it and I applied a small amount of heat it moved as nice as the others. If it was me and I had a locked pin Id clean the bore, replace the trouble slider, grease the hell out of the new one and then seal the thread area and go. Not sure if this helps and Im open to your experiment as Im sure others are as well. Install a grease zerk? And yes the bore could be too tight.

 

Sorry. Not the case. The boot itself was in acceptable condition and well seated at the top of the pin and in the groove in the bore of the bracket.


The first 3 came out easy. The last one took a substantial amount of heat. Internal pressure actually popped the pin out once I got it moving. The boot was destroyed. The new pin would not go in the hole until I enlargened it with a drill.

A zerk would require some place for the old grease to come out of and this is a blind bore.

First idea

• Oversize the bore by about 1/32-1/16 too allow more grease.
• "Polish" the bore with some wet-dry sandpaper or fine emery cloth.
• Pack the boot full of grease.

You could bore through the other side of the bracket and then drill through the top of the bracket for a zerk, but now you need a grease gun that only has the special brake lube in it. If there isn't enough clearance to push the old grease out, it may "blow out" the boot !

Second idea

• Oversize the bore
• Heat the bracket to 200-300F
• Insert thick wall brass tube
• Re-bore hole in brass to "spec"

 

Third idea: buy a new caliper if the old one is not repairable. They aren't expensive.

Brian

 

It is NOT the caliper ! It is slide pin that attaches to the caliper that slides in the caliper bracket !!

I'll bet thousands of rebuilt calipers have been sold because people do not understand how the system works !!!!

 

I like the idea of a thick wall bronze or brass bushing. Maybe even knurled or rifled. But would the softer metal hold up to the force/load without accelerated wear is the big Q? Likely not. Maybe graphite impregnated steel, low coefficient coated steel or 3 series stainless steel inserts & pins would hold up? Do away with the need for grease all together.
For those of us that grease at every oil change or sooner I wonder if theres enough room for a low profile counter bored zerk? On the other end or somewhere that makes design sense install a pressure relieving zerk, a check-less zerk or a simple relief hole. These devices will allow the grease somewhere to go besides blowing out the boot. Id use a high qual, high temp, water resistant grease such as Schaeffer. Which I already have a loaded in one of my guns. I wouldn't think cross contaminating/mixing grease wouldnt be as much of an issue as lack of grease would (is) in something like this. Either ya have to seal it so no contams get in or grease the hell out of it. Relying on the owner to regularly grease it is why auto manufactures go sealed grease-less.
I still think contaminate must be migrating into the slide pin area somehow either through cast porosity or through the threads or through the boot? Maybe condensation? Anyway you cut it its a shizt design and one that hasn't been improve upon for years of proven failures. So I guess its up to us.
Google Pressure Relief Grease Fittings and checkless zerks

 

Stainless is probably the way to go.

If you had the dimensions of hole and their spacing, you overbore, tap and insert a stainless bolt and then use a mill to make new holes ... if you had all of the dimensions !

 

Clean everything well. Use silglide. Done. Silglide is the best brake pin/pad/ anywhere you need it for brakes lube. You will never have another issue. On an older vehicle that is already stuck the entire bracket pins caliper is under $70. Then disassemble and silglide everything. I appreciate that you want to solve the issue but for what little parts cost and with the proper lubrication it's an easy fix. Never EVER use grey anti seize anywhere on brakes I hate the crap it turns to dust and binds up.

 

More like $120 aside, not including shipping (also not including core charges)

 

Best way I have found is when I rotate my tires twice a year I clean and lube the slide pins for the calipers. Doesn't take long, and since I have the tire off already why not.

 

SilGlide good stuff. Used it for years on large engine cylinder sleeve O rings.

 

Ouch I'm glad I don't shop where you do! I have replaced all of mine rears with bracket were $68. Fronts were $78. You are correct about the cores but I took mine with me. Around here autovalue, Napa, advanced are all in the same price range for rebuilt units with brackets.