painting calipers

[SilverSaloon]

hi

whats the general opinion of painting brake calipers on here?

my car is azurite blue. i am thinking of painting the calipers silver with hammer-rite or some other paint.....

then maybe fitting THESE on.

From searching the net, it seems pretty acceptable to paint the caliers when they are still on the car?

 

[Shude]

I bought some silver hammerite last year with the intention of painting the calipers but stopped when I discovered the wheel bolts were rusted on and I couldn't get the wheels off! It's since been winter so not really favourable for painting the calipers so I've not bothered yet.

I did think about buying some calipers from a breaker. Not too expensive (only £60 each *new* from the stealership anyway) then paint them up perfectly in the comfort of my own, er shed or somewhere!

I'd go for silver or maybe bronze/copper (latest colour for brembo high performance stuff).

 

[mrbon]

When i bought my car recently the calipers were painted red (it had been done very well) but i thought it looked a bit iffy (see pic) so i jus took the wheels off, masked up the discs and sprayed them with a can of black hammerite, did the same on my M3 cos they looked old etc, and both cars came out well, i wouldnt bother with the folia tec stuff where you take off the calipers and use a brush, just spray em up with a few good coats they'll look much better!

Dunno if the AMG stickers will work seeing as the AMG brakes are kinda flat and Brembo-ish, whereas ours are a wierd shape, especially the rear ones!

 

[R2D2]

I was discussing this with someone the other day. I'm going to do mine Hammerite black or silver, the decals wont fit because of the funny shape but Jimmys cross drilled ventilated front discs will so I'll get some of them.

 

[SilverSaloon]

I was discussing this with someone the other day. I'm going to do mine Hammerite black or silver, the decals wont fit because of the funny shape but Jimmys cross drilled ventilated front discs will so I'll get some of them.

i thought maybe painting them a gold-ish colour?

what colour do you reckon would look good on a blue car?

 

[jimmy]

You need VHT (Very High Temperature) paint, Hammerite will not last very long.

 

[Shude]

You need VHT (Very High Temperature) paint, Hammerite will not last very long.

Wash your mouth out Jimmy it'll last forever!

Any product that says to paint directly onto rust in thick layers, without surface preparation, primer or topcoat can't be all bad can it?

i thought maybe painting them a gold-ish colour?

Silver or Bronze! Gold might also work I suppose.

Don't paint them yellow or red or blue or any other neon-like colour. The secret is understatement .

 

[jimmy]

Hammerite is very good indeed but not for items that get hot, as you know brake calipers can get very hot and the Hammerite will not like that.

Most DIY stores do VHT paint in aerosols, it is also very fast curing too.

 

[SilverSaloon]

i will probably go the bronze look i think, definatly not red, yellow etc - too "boy racer" for me!

 

[Paul Grainger]

Rusty calipers seems to be common with the CLK's. Mine looked awful when I purchased the car (two years old), I wire-brushed them and painted them with black VHT exhaust paint. This paint is good but you have to 'cure it' with a heat source or it remains sticky and will wash off with water. I used a plumbers gas torch (scary around the flexi hose!) and the calipers still look good 30 months later.

Colour is a matter of taste. Black (slightly glossy) suits me fine - and I think that it fits the image of the car.


Paul G

 

[jimmy]

I fitted new calipers just under a year ago, just because the old ones were discoloured and rusty, they had a sort of goldy/yellowy/silvery finish. Already they are tarnished despite me regularly sealing them and even polishing them. I think black paint is the way to go, all the VHT paint I have used always has a matt finish, gloss black would be nice.

 

[Stratman]

I did think about buying some calipers from a breaker.

 

[Spinal]

I painted mine with a kit from Halfords (Caliper Paint kit) pretty easy, didn't need to take of the calipers but it was recommended. It comes with paint, hardener, cleaner and a brush. Really simple to do, within an hour you should be able to do all four. They have several colours. Here are pics:
http://www.doc.ic.ac.uk/~md103/All/carPics/P8230182.JPG
http://www.doc.ic.ac.uk/~md103/All/carPics/P8230181.JPG
Michele

 

[Pietre]

Spinal, did the same with mine, used a gold colour similar to the colour of the calipers on the new MBs. Looks good.

 

[R2D2]

Spinal, did the same with mine, used a gold colour similar to the colour of the calipers on the new MBs. Looks good.

Any chance of a photo Pietre?

 

[Pietre]

There is a pic which you can just make out the caliper on the front wheel in the clasified section in the ad "swap monobloc wheels"

 

[IanT]

Anyone want to try my method then?

Wait for them to get a bit old and past-it looking, dig out the wire brush and give them a really thorough going over to remove all that's loose.

Then overpaint with Kurust. A few coats will do it and you'll end up with suspiciously tidy, semi-shiny, clean looking calipers with very little hassle. Obviously that will only work nicely on cast iron calipers, so don't spoil your lovely AMG ones!

Ian.

 

[230K]

Hi all

Painted mine with vht paint from Halfords satin black. Any other colour other than black looks a little tacky (my opinion only)

230K

 

[Shude]

Painted mine with vht paint from Halfords satin black. Any other colour other than black looks a little tacky (my opinion only)

What, even factory silver?

 

[IanT]

I meant to say that the Kurust leaves them coloured black too.

Ian.