Breaking in Brakes, and install Q's?

[jfdid]

Hey guys, I've done numerous brake jobs, and I'm looking for some more advanced knowledge on the subject.
How many people cook their brake pads prior to install?
What kind of break-in ritual is recommended?

Do drilled/slotted rotors wear down your pads faster?

 

[Burnett03]

Hey guys, I've done numerous brake jobs, and I'm looking for some more advanced knowledge on the subject.
How many people cook their brake pads prior to install?
What kind of break-in ritual is recommended?

Do drilled/slotted rotors wear down your pads faster?

i just did mine on my 1g yesterday. Before this i had cross drilled/slotted with EBC green pads. I bedding mine by just lightly dragging the brakes bit. (bad idea i think) Withing 1000miles the cross drilled part cracked. I would not reccomend these to anyone. I now have stock rotors and ceramic pads. They stop HARD. I bedded mine this time by taking it up to 50mph and slamming them hard, not enough to lock them, just hard. They felt mushy, got hot, stunk, etc. I gassed it again to speed up, did this again, and sped up again, did it one more time. I think let them cool down. And like i said they now grab extremely hard.

 

[D_Eclipse9916]

Many companies say to do a few 30-0 and 60-0 stops with immediately taking off the brake as soon as you stop to let them cool. Many people complain about drilled cracking but thats because they buy the "drilled" rotors. Basically regular rotors with holes drilled in them. What you want are cast drilled rotors if your going that route. Those are MUCH less likely to ever crack (out of all my friends havent had a problem) and plus they are brembos. And goddamn those brembos are huge!!!!!!! Thanx SpeedFactor for hooking me up with their Brake packages, I didnt have a line wrench before, I am finally getting around to finishing it up by bleeding my brakes, clutch fluid, putting on those ss brake lines and painting my calipers cuz its WARM THIS WEEK!!!!

 

[definitiveno]

i just did mine on my 1g yesterday. Before this i had cross drilled/slotted with EBC green pads. I bedding mine by just lightly dragging the brakes bit. (bad idea i think) Withing 1000miles the cross drilled part cracked. I would not reccomend these to anyone. I now have stock rotors and ceramic pads. They stop HARD. I bedded mine this time by taking it up to 50mph and slamming them hard, not enough to lock them, just hard. They felt mushy, got hot, stunk, etc. I gassed it again to speed up, did this again, and sped up again, did it one more time. I think let them cool down. And like i said they now grab extremely hard.

Welcome class, you are now in "How not to break in your pads" 101



Read the box, each pad has different break in procedures specified by the munufacturer. Most non performance pads do not require it.



My autozone cermic pads (99 bucks for al 4 with 30kmile/3 year warranty) said to do multiple light 30 mile an hour stops. The box recomended I do this about 20 - 30 times. It said directly on the box not to do it hard at all because the technique was to slowly bring the pads up to temps......


Never heard of cooking brake pads before, makes sense because your heating them but after you take them out you would have to install them and drive them at temperature to seat the pad surface to the rotor. I think it's a waste, but not sure.....


lastly yes, slotted rotors WILL wear down your pads faster.

 

[jtmcinder]

Never heard of cooking brake pads before, makes sense because your heating them but after you take them out you would have to install them and drive them at temperature to seat the pad surface to the rotor. I think it's a waste, but not sure.....

This is an old-school method of dealing with green-fade. It had nothing to do with the rotors. Most modern pads don't suffer green-fade so I agree on the waste of time conclusion, just for different reasons.

- Jtoby

 

[95gstHRCsuper20]

When I perform brake jobs every day. I follow a simple procedure. drive a/b 40 miles an hour and easily come to a complete stop. Like other reply said let off brakes immediately Then do this a couple of more times. When you turn the rotors they tend to cut pads quicker these first few stops. I fyou seat them properly you will have even wear on all pads and rotors. PLEASE be sure to lube the contact points on back of your pads and where the pads seat into the caliper assemblies. Remove the pins from their boots in caliper clean the old grease off and apply new high temp brake lubricant. This will also help you get a squek free even brake wear and long lasting protection. I prefer to use ,and always recommend either O'Rielly's WAGNER THERMO QUIET and use on all my vehicles or Advanced Auto WEAREVER GOLD series pads they come with a lifetime replacement of the pads and are garuanteed not to make noise or create brake dust. As long as you don't go metal to metal. ALSO WEAR INDICATORS are important to the vehicle if they are in the wrong place they may not work properly or they may break off. They must be on the leading edge, the first edge to contact rotor when the vehicle is moving forward, unless you drive in reverse. Also they usually go on the piston side of the caliper, genrally this side wears a little quicker. Some vehicle do not allow you to do that and you have to go outside. DSMs do not have that prob. Hope I could help...

 

[madman]

PLEASE be sure to lube the contact points on back of your pads and where the pads seat into the caliper assemblies. Remove the pins from their boots in caliper clean the old grease off and apply new high temp brake lubricant. This will also help you get a squek free even brake wear and long lasting protection. ...

Ok, Stupid question time.

I just did my brakes but didint lube the pads and pistons. Do I need to tear em out again and lube everything...... or can I get away with it with out destroying my brakes????

Or at least..... what's the worst that will happen if I don't???