Hi all, I'm trying to bring an old Galaxie back from the dead. It has floating caliper disc brakes in the front. For the life of me, I can't get the sliding caliper keys to push out so I can remove the calipers. They've been there for years and seem rusted in place. The retaining bolts came out without much effort. Any ideas on how to break these free? Should I heat up the calipers? What's a safe way to go about this? Would a propane torch work? I'm throwing away the pads but I don't want to hurt the caliper piston. Any advice is appreciated.

EDIT: I just realized I could have put this in the brakes/suspension thread...I hope this is OK. This question pretty much applies to rusted metal in general anyways.

 

I would try heating them up and once you get them off go get some new calipers!

 

Put a 50:50 mix of acetone and auto trans fluid in a bucket and drop the calipers in. Leave for 3-4 days and try then.
Or old WW2 trick, heat some motor oil to near boiling point and pour it onto them.
Second suggestion can be hazzardous.

 

> I can't get the sliding caliper keys to push out so I can remove the calipers

Spray some PB Blaster or a better spray on the pins.

Then take a 3/8 extension, make sure the female end sits on both pieces of metal on the caliper key, and not the rubber, hit with a two pound hammer.

If this does not work, drill out the rubber (probably pretty dried out), or knock it out/scrape it out with a screw driver. Once you can get a screw driver through the key, knock the metal a bit away from the caliper mounts, then knock out with a hammer or air chisel.

BTW: You will probably mushroom, bend, and wreck the 3/8" extension so use a cheap one. I have a set of drifts from Snap-On with oval ends that work perfect for this, but, it is probably $100 for the set of four now.

Do not heat the calipers, they probably can be cheaply rebuilt by a caliper shop. I think King Kalipers in Peabody MA (they supply NAPA ) will still rebuild them from customers.

 

Did those have rubber or the spring and wedge? I thought Ford didn't use the rubber/steel diamonds until the 80s-
2nd the idea to just saturate in PB for a few days. Spray it every time you walk by, then in a week or so it should nearly fall apart. Don't need to worry about contamination on that-

 

Thanks for the responses guys. Unfortunately these are the old-style keys without the rubber, just metal keys with the spring-like piece to hold it in place. I'll keep hitting it with PB blaster and try the extension idea. I'll report back when they're off.

 

I guess that would work if you got that much time.

 

Thanks for all the input guys. A 3-lb sledge and brass drift made the keys come right out.

 

> I think King Kalipers in Peabody MA (they supply NAPA ) will still rebuild them from customers

I checked their website, I think they still do if you get stuck for good calipers.

 

well yeah, how in the world were you trying to get them out before with a needle and thimble?

 

I don't know what any of that means.

 

I was going to say that a pin or drift punch was the best bet - also that the 50/50 acetone/tranny fluid mix is the honest to pete BOMB for loosening stuck stuff...

I may seem like a "THREAD ARCHEOLOGIST" for chiming in after the results were a done deal but I strictly want to underscore a few points:

In any situation like that, you have to loosen the grip of rust or other corrosion. If at first you don't succeed - back off and consider the chemical options. There are many ways to break up corrosion products, and exploring them is the best way to avoid wrecking whatever is left of a casting. The oils in the tranny fluid also arrest further corruption....

A deep setting lubrication factor is another plus. Not to mention applying force in the precise axis that is necessary...

All of the above will work except in the case where everything has long since become a single rusted blob. At that point the only option is to replace the caliper slides as well.

There is one other "STUCK STUFF" loosening trick that you should keep in mind:
Heat whatever it is with a torch, and then apply a common crayon or a candle to the hot metal - it will seep down in much like the way flux around a solder joint does, smoking the whole time. That can bubble into crevices, and also provide lubrication while at the same time heating and cooling act to expand and contract the rust - breaking it loose.

This is called the "CANDLE TRICK" and works damned good with old bolts.