do u really need ur rotors turned if they look ok?

[Marty Champions]

in the past i changed break pads, but now i dont have time, im not a mechanic either just need advice i got a big ass truck , i know my pads are squeeking when i brake, im not fond of throwing away money either

[Tapeworm]

Don't they just turn when you're driving?





Disk brakes?  Use an indicator to see if the faces wobble.  You'd feel shuddering when braking and get steering wheel shimmies.  Muh van dos it.  I've heard new rotors are all made in China and will warp as soon as you heat them up. 

Hay maybe I'll affix some sandpaper to the pads, use a threaded rod to incrementally depress the brake pedal, and turn the wheel with a honda and a pulley.  Voila, ground in place.

Grease on brakes makes them feel grabby and can cause pulsations during braking, I've heard.  Interestingly, it has the opposite effect of grease on any other surface.

There's probably a metal tab on the pads or pad holders that's designed to rub on the rotors and cause squeaking when the pads are worn.  Just make sure you didn't...idk... position it wrong when changing the pads or something.  

If they're drum brakes I'll have to get back to you.  Haven't checked mine at all since I bought the truck a few years ago.  Safety first!

[IroNat]

Unless you get a shimmy or vibration when you hit the breaks you should be able to get two pad changes out of rotors (the existing pads and one more).  A shimmy or vibe could indicate uneven rotors.

If you do your own brakes it's just as well to replace the rotors as turn them.  Rotors are usually not that expensive but it depends on the car.

Some mechanics always turn rotors as a manner of course.  They just do it.

Don't let the pads get so worn that the rotors are scoured.

[Tapeworm]

Or just spray it with Squeek-b-Gone and worry about it next year.

[Irongrip400]

Buy lifetime guarantee pads and just keep taking them back when they wear out due to warped rotors. Once you’ve eaten all the way through the disc, just get a used set from the junkyard.

[Marty Champions]

i thought u could keep rotors healthy for a lifetime as long as u changed the pads??

[Disgusted]

i thought u could keep rotors healthy for a lifetime as long as u changed the pads??

Pretty much but you can't let you break pads get too worn. If they look good then they probabley don't need turned.

[Anna Recksiek]

If the rotors are smooth and shiny you're probably good. If they have grooves worn then throw them away. I got a set from pep boys a few months ago with pads and rotors for all 4 wheels for about $150.
The front rotors were warped but the back were fine. So new rotors and pads up front and just pads on the back I was good to go.

[SOMEPARTS]

Not sure what make you have but 3/4 and 1 ton Fords are notorious for warping rotors even when they are low miles -  but they just pulse a little not squeak. If you don't hear/feel grinding you might be okay but I'd probably take a wheel off and look at what is there if a lot of squeaking.

[Yev33]

Rotors do have a wear limit. You have to measure them. Even if you cut them you shouldn't cut them past the minimum thickness.

[IroNat]

Rotors do have a wear limit. You have to measure them. Even if you cut them you shouldn't cut them past the minimum thickness.

True.  You can check the thickness with a micrometer.

[Thin Lizzy]

Don't they just turn when you're driving?





Disk brakes?  Use an indicator to see if the faces wobble.  You'd feel shuddering when braking and get steering wheel shimmies.  Muh van dos it.  I've heard new rotors are all made in China and will warp as soon as you heat them up. 

Hay maybe I'll affix some sandpaper to the pads, use a threaded rod to incrementally depress the brake pedal, and turn the wheel with a honda and a pulley.  Voila, ground in place.

Grease on brakes makes them feel grabby and can cause pulsations during braking, I've heard.  Interestingly, it has the opposite effect of grease on any other surface.

There's probably a metal tab on the pads or pad holders that's designed to rub on the rotors and cause squeaking when the pads are worn.  Just make sure you didn't...idk... position it wrong when changing the pads or something.  

If they're drum brakes I'll have to get back to you.  Haven't checked mine at all since I bought the truck a few years ago.  Safety first!

Are there newer model trucks that still use drum brakes?

[Tapeworm]

Are there newer model trucks that still use drum brakes?

Doubt it.  I was at an auction a few years ago and paid $10 for a large crate full of 1 1/4"steel rods with these weird cam claw things on the end.  Great workshop/project material.  Turned out they were drum brake actuators.

But I dread having to buy a new truck because the computer probably won't even let me change the oil without the top secret password.  I like my old shitty one.

[Thin Lizzy]

Doubt it.  I was at an auction a few years ago and paid $10 for a large crate full of 1 1/4"steel rods with these weird cam claw things on the end.  Great workshop/project material.  Turned out they were drum brake actuators.

But I dread having to buy a new truck because the computer probably won't even let me change the oil without the top secret password.  I like my old shitty one.

Yeah that seems to be a common refrain among car guys. The newer models are so computerized that they don’t let you work on your own car.

[falco]

i thought u could keep rotors healthy for a lifetime as long as u changed the pads??

Depends. If you do hard and long brakes, pads and disks will wear out equaly fast. Their brand also matters. My 150 mile toyota still has the stock disks, no measurable wear.

[Thin Lizzy]

You would think at this point of the game there would be a more high-tech way to stop a car then disc brakes. It’s essentially the same system that you have on a bicycle.

This is a very manly thread, BTW👍

[HTexan]

in the past i changed break pads, but now i dont have time, im not a mechanic either just need advice i got a big ass truck , i know my pads are squeeking when i brake, im not fond of throwing away money either

Squeaking brakes are cause from metal on metal. Those old pads are fucking up your rotors.
But if you got the right thickness and rotors aren't warped, no deep grooves, and your car doesn't vibrate were braking, you can get away with it.
A shop isn't going to replace just the pads, they dont want to be sued if you have an accident. If you really want to do it yourself, it is very easy,  get some soft pads or pads design to be easy of the rotors like redstuff pads. None of those "race" pads, those are hard on rotors.

[Marty Champions]

Squeaking brakes are cause from metal on metal. Those old pads are fucking up your rotors.
But if you got the right thickness and rotors aren't warped, no deep grooves, and your car doesn't vibrate were braking, you can get away with it.
A shop isn't going to replace just the pads, they dont want to be sued if you have an accident. If you really want to do it yourself, it is very easy,  get some soft pads or pads design to be easy of the rotors like redstuff pads. None of those "race" pads, those are hard on rotors.

i have a heavy chevy suburban

[HTexan]

i have a heavy chevy suburban

Doesn’t matter if you have a yellow hummer. Same thing applies.

[Marty Champions]

Doesn’t matter if you have a yellow hummer. Same thing applies.

thanks

[nobody in particular]

http://www.stoptech.com/technical-support/technical-white-papers/-warped-brake-disc-and-other-myths

hopefully this link works. It's an old article by Carroll Smith who is fairly well known to anyone passionate about motor racing. His books engineer to win, drive to win and tune to win (and the book on fasteners which some have quipped he was going to call screw to win) are practically required reading for anyone wanting to enter circuit racing, despite how long ago they were written.

[Tapeworm]

This is a very manly thread, BTW👍

Ask me anything about field sharpening a chainsaw.

My new MS661 is grrrrrrreat!