larpy

I have removed my calipers from my car and was going to do the G2 paint kit. I think I want to powder coat them nstead. Can I have the calipers powder coated with the pistons and seals still installed? I have read that the fluid needs to be drained out of each but I am not exactly sure how to "drain" the fluid. There has been discussion about full removing seal, pistons, etc, but has anyone here done it on their 993 with them assembled and if so any problems?

simpsoap

I'm in the process of getting ready to have my calipers powdercoated. I was told that everything needs to be removed from the caliper. As for ensuring that all the brake fluid is gone, the guy doing my powdercoat said to keeping flushing it with brake cleaner until I think it's all out.

Andy

larpy

Andy,

By "everything" are you removing pistons, seal etc?

jaholmes

Will the powder coating hold up to high heat. I'm on the fence on this. I need to do something with my calipers.

matt777

After the part is electrostatically coated it goes into an oven. I think temps are 300-400F IIRC but perhaps there are new coatings that are baked at lower temps. At these temps the parts would have to be clean and bare. Whether the coating can stand up to the operating temps of a caliper is another question.

roche

i hate to throw a monkeywrench into this, but i thought when mike redid his cab, he powdercoated his calipers and didn't take everything out. i guess the powdercoating process involved a (relatively) lower heat than the temps the calipers see?

i could be wrong, and i would hold out for more of the experts to weigh in. it seems like a lot of work to take all the pistons and seals out and then reinstall.

simpsoap

Correct! The guys at Forgeline Motorsports are powdercoating my calipers. They are Porsche enthusiasts and I trust their advice.

I'll post pics of the final results.

Andy

chris walrod

The Brembo seals are good to 415F -- this information is direct from Brembo. Typical powders melt at 380F -- so if one is careful, you can powdercoat calipers wihtout taking them apart.

Always remove the pad abutment plates when powdercoating, and be careful not to build-up too much powder local to the plates as you dont want to narrow the span where the brake pad resides.

Powdercoating calipers is not recomended for track cars where higher heat exposure is a reality.

Wilder

I refinished the calipers in my old cab four years ago. Initially I was going to get them powdercoated but no one local to me had done calipers and I was told to remove everything. I skipped the hassle and got them painted instead. Later on I found RL threads from people who had them powdercoasted and didn't fully disassemble them for the reasons you site. Powdercoating is the right way to finish calipers and I highly recommend those interested use the search feature and get proper info before making a final decision.

roche

ah-ha! i knew i wasn't crazy.

larpy

Previous post have conflicting views on having them done with all seals etc installed or not. Not sure if technology has changed. I called two local powder coating companies today and both refused to do them unless the calipers were taken apart.

Wilder

As is your experience, I was also told to remove everything and that I would have to rebuild the calipers. However, the shops I called on didn't seem to have experience doing calipers. What I found (unfortunately after I had opted to have them painted) is that there are shops that have experience with calipers and that will do them without requiring them to be completely disassembled, which is why you'll find that some people here have had them done without removing all the seals including people like Chris Walrod and Robin Sun.

Here is a link to my experience which should clarify everything for you: https://rennlist.com/forums/993-foru...-calipers.html

Try searching for "powder" and "caliper". I'll get you started:

https://rennlist.com/forums/993-foru...r-coating.html
https://rennlist.com/forums/993-foru...ed-brakes.html

matt777

Do you really want your assembled brake calipers fired in an oven? I'm not sure what kind of elastomers are used but EPDM is good to 250F and even Viton has an upper operating limit of 400F.

aribop

I completely disassembled mine and had them powder coated. They look great and sill going strong after almost one year of daily use. Definitely the way to go.

Arena993

I have powder coated 3 sets of calipers all with no disassembly. The temps the calipers bake off at are less than the operating temps under use. IIRC under heavy use the brake temps reach 500 degrees. I have never had an issue with seals or anything else.

Mike