Caliper Painting How-To
#1
11-14-2009, 01:32 PM
Caliper Painting How-To
I haven't found any caliper painting write-up so I'll write one myself since I just finally posted the pics. since I did mine about a month ago. There aren't a whole lot of detailed photos, but the process is very very simple.
I changed the pads on my truck and while doing so with all the wheels off and calipers free I prepared to paint them. Products used,
120 Grit Sandpaper
1 can of VHT Caliper cleaner
1 can of VHT Red Caliper paint
1 can of Rust-oleum BBQ & stove flat black paint.
1 can of Rust-oleum high temp clear coat.
Stack of Newspaper
Here is what we began with.
First step is to prepare and mask.
Since I was changing pads I obviously was ready to rest the calipers on something, and remove them ( not from their lines). For the 04+ F150s the rear caliper bolts are 10mm, and the fronts are 13mm. My recycling boxes seemed to work excellent for resting the calipers on for support. Perfect height level. I covered them in a few layers of news paper and put a rag under where the calipers sat for a snug sit still hold. I would surely recommend this over painting them while installed because you can remove the pads and make a much cleaner paint job, and the rear calipers will be very well noticed underneath at a low ground level. I also masked off surrounding areas to prevent over spray ( exhaust tips, frame, leaf springs ). Taking the time to do so will make the end result hassle free and much cleaner.
Second Step, Paint Preparation.
I Started off by hand sanding the calipers with 120 grit sandpaper, and scrubbed the rear rotor hubs and the front steering knuckles with a wire brush and finished them off with the 120 grit. Then proceed to spray the calipers rear rotor hubs, and knuckles with the VHT caliper cleaner and let it sit for 20 minutes.
Third Step, Painting and clearing.
Now comes the painting time. After shaking the caliper paint can for what seems like forever, begin spraying them lightly with a distance of 6 - 8"s away. A good tip is to paint the backs first, then the top & bottom sides, then to finish the remaining back and front side. Let sit for 10 minutes between coats. I did 3 coats on all calipers for ultimate durability. I let them all sit for 15 minutes and then began to clear coat. I did 2 layers of clear per caliper. Let them sit for an hour before handling to reduce the risk of making etched marks in the clear coat before re-assembling everything.
For the rear rotor hubs and front steering knuckles, its the same method. I masked off the rear lugs and most of the disk to ensure the paint would only be on the hubs to get rid of the nasty rusted look. In front I masked around the top of the ball joint spots on the upper A arm because they were rusty looking, and covered the front spring assembly with news paper. I did the same amount of layers of the BBQ paint as I did the calipers, and I chose not to clear coat these parts as the finish of it felt fine, and the clear coat did not look good with the BBQ paint and I ended up sanding off the spot i used it with on one of the rotor hubs.
Fourth Step, Re-assemble.
Once everything has dried for an hour, rip off all of the over spray paper you hung up. Re-assemble everything by simply putting the calipers back in place and making sure your caliper bolts are properly greased. A 13mm for the front bolts, and a 10mm for the rear bolts. After putting your wheels back on, take many pictures and post them
This concludes my explanatory write up, onto the photos.
I changed the pads on my truck and while doing so with all the wheels off and calipers free I prepared to paint them. Products used,
120 Grit Sandpaper
1 can of VHT Caliper cleaner
1 can of VHT Red Caliper paint
1 can of Rust-oleum BBQ & stove flat black paint.
1 can of Rust-oleum high temp clear coat.
Stack of Newspaper
Here is what we began with.
First step is to prepare and mask.
Since I was changing pads I obviously was ready to rest the calipers on something, and remove them ( not from their lines). For the 04+ F150s the rear caliper bolts are 10mm, and the fronts are 13mm. My recycling boxes seemed to work excellent for resting the calipers on for support. Perfect height level. I covered them in a few layers of news paper and put a rag under where the calipers sat for a snug sit still hold. I would surely recommend this over painting them while installed because you can remove the pads and make a much cleaner paint job, and the rear calipers will be very well noticed underneath at a low ground level. I also masked off surrounding areas to prevent over spray ( exhaust tips, frame, leaf springs ). Taking the time to do so will make the end result hassle free and much cleaner.
Second Step, Paint Preparation.
I Started off by hand sanding the calipers with 120 grit sandpaper, and scrubbed the rear rotor hubs and the front steering knuckles with a wire brush and finished them off with the 120 grit. Then proceed to spray the calipers rear rotor hubs, and knuckles with the VHT caliper cleaner and let it sit for 20 minutes.
Third Step, Painting and clearing.
Now comes the painting time. After shaking the caliper paint can for what seems like forever, begin spraying them lightly with a distance of 6 - 8"s away. A good tip is to paint the backs first, then the top & bottom sides, then to finish the remaining back and front side. Let sit for 10 minutes between coats. I did 3 coats on all calipers for ultimate durability. I let them all sit for 15 minutes and then began to clear coat. I did 2 layers of clear per caliper. Let them sit for an hour before handling to reduce the risk of making etched marks in the clear coat before re-assembling everything.
For the rear rotor hubs and front steering knuckles, its the same method. I masked off the rear lugs and most of the disk to ensure the paint would only be on the hubs to get rid of the nasty rusted look. In front I masked around the top of the ball joint spots on the upper A arm because they were rusty looking, and covered the front spring assembly with news paper. I did the same amount of layers of the BBQ paint as I did the calipers, and I chose not to clear coat these parts as the finish of it felt fine, and the clear coat did not look good with the BBQ paint and I ended up sanding off the spot i used it with on one of the rotor hubs.
Fourth Step, Re-assemble.
Once everything has dried for an hour, rip off all of the over spray paper you hung up. Re-assemble everything by simply putting the calipers back in place and making sure your caliper bolts are properly greased. A 13mm for the front bolts, and a 10mm for the rear bolts. After putting your wheels back on, take many pictures and post them
This concludes my explanatory write up, onto the photos.
#2
11-14-2009, 01:39 PM
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