Painted my Brake Calipers

normski2 · April 8, 2017

Having completed a major overhaul and servicing of the slide pins I started pondering the painting of the calipers. Then the bug took over and off I went.

This is how they looked before starting.

Last weekend I started with the rears. They were particularly cruddy so I took them right off the car to be able to get a wire brush on them and also take a better look at the fixed pin on the carrier. Sal was going to be my wing man later when I needed to bleed them after refitting them. Having given then a really good wire brushing I then brushed them with a degreasing solvent and left them for about 10 mins to dry thoroughly. Next it was a coat of smooth hammerite in a pale green colour and left them for 30 mins and then another coat (I had a tin of green and a tin of white in the garage so it was a case of blending to get the green I wanted). After about an hour and a half they were quite dry and easy to handle without mishap. It was hot day mind! At this point I removed the other locking nuts and gave them all a good clean and silver spray (3 light coats with 5 mins between) followed by a dose of clear lacquer. Everything was brushed ... no spray used at all.

This is how they looked after refitting and bleeding the rears last Sunday. As you can see old roasting trays have their uses!!

I did the same with the fronts in the evenings the following week. The weather was perfect all week and I car shared with Sal to get to work each day. So it was prep and paint one night then reassemble the next.

Here are the fronts and rears after fitting the wheels.

Sorry I didn't wash the wheels the pics were a bit rushed. Lastly, the finished look.

I'm pleased, it's exactly what I was after.

Hope you like the look. If you feel enthused it's quite an easy job to do.

Wisty · April 8, 2017

Understated look and an unusual colour choice. I would say a job well done.

normski2 · April 8, 2017

Yeah I know ... I googled a few colours on Google images. I was contemplating red, blue and green. Saw a green image on a is250 and thought yep that's the kiddie.

The-Acre · April 8, 2017

Nice job, better than the usual colours in my opinion. Not a look for an LS owner though!! We would have to do it in beige!

Rebecca · April 8, 2017

Fantastic work Normski2 and what a lovely colour 😀

I've noticed my brake calipers are black. Is this standard for the f sport or would the previous owner have painted them?

I really like your wheels too. What are they?

jackcramerr · April 8, 2017

Are the wheels refurb? I have been thinking of refurbing mine but not sure what the outcome will be. And if I do them I will put kerb protrctors on them. I see you have never kerbed yours. Those wheel kerb very easily.

I am not a fan of painting calipers. Factory are powder coated and unless the coat is sanded well out, no paint sticks to it.

J Henderson · April 8, 2017

2 hours ago, Rebecca said:

I've noticed my brake calipers are black. Is this standard for the f sport or would the previous owner have painted them?

Standard colour is silver. Sounds like yours have been painted at some point.

Rebecca · April 9, 2017

51 minutes ago, J Henderson said:

Standard colour is silver. Sounds like yours have been painted at some point.

I'm rather surprised by that to be honest as my lexus has only had one previous owner who happened to be a lady in her mid 60s .

normski2 · April 9, 2017

10 hours ago, Rebecca said:

Fantastic work Normski2 and what a lovely colour 😀

I've noticed my brake calipers are black. Is this standard for the f sport or would the previous owner have painted them?

I really like your wheels too. What are they?

Thanks, glad you like it.

All the pics of calipers I've seen in brochures or online have been Silver coloured.

They may well have painted them Black for the FSport or it could have been done by the previous.

My wheels are the std 18" rims that went on the SEL. Never seen a model name for them in any Lexus brochures ..........just ALY74217U79.

8 hours ago, jackcramerr said:

Are the wheels refurb? I have been thinking of refurbing mine but not sure what the outcome will be. And if I do them I will put kerb protrctors on them. I see you have never kerbed yours. Those wheel kerb very easily.

I am not a fan of painting calipers. Factory are powder coated and unless the coat is sanded well out, no paint sticks to it.

Yes I had them refurbed last August. The originals were peeling off in sheets, it was getting very embarrassing!

Surely any wheel can be kerbed

Well if mine were powder coated they were not done very well. Look at the original photo there is more rust colour than anything else. Wire brushing and clean up turned up with cast metal look.

Surebet · April 9, 2017

Superb job Normski2, never painted calipers, is it a difficult job?. I sidetrack here, I've just purchased the same car in the same colour as yours and I'm really chuffed with how good it looks. one fly in the ointment however, is when I picked it up, the NSF mudflap was missing. Dealer said he would order however has since come back saying Lexus don't do part any more. I notice your car has mudflaps fitted( I know mudflaps are not everyone's cup of tea) and I feel with this colour of IS they look great. Are your mudflaps the originals or do you know anywhere that may stock copy part to match originals.

normski2 · April 9, 2017

Me too, this colour works well with the mud flaps.

I got mine from a really trader on eBay, he had every car covered. Then suddenly vanished......shame.

If I see any I'll send you the link. I've seen more from time to time.

Its not a particularly difficult job. Familiarity with greasing the slide pins in the calipers is a good thing to get to grips with. This will lead to easing changing of brake pads. Then when you have done this you'll know how to separate the calipers and clean and paint if you wish.

Surebet · April 9, 2017

Thanks for the prompt reply, may have a go at painting them when better weather comes. Do you think the job is possible to do without removing brake fluid hoses keeping the caliper suspended. Don't fancy making the job any harder than necessary.

normski2 · April 9, 2017

Yes .... very much so.

The fronts can be separated by removing two bolts. Before you start , take a photo that you can refer back to to ascertain which parts are visible when the whole is assembled. You then clean up...wire brush, sand and solvent degrease. Paint the top half and rest it down onto a flower pot or paint tin and set about painting the carrier. This is exactly how I did my fronts.

I only completely removed the rears as I needed to do some thorough remedial work on them. Remove one bolt and the rears can be split for painting. See noobies guide for greasing the front and rear calipers for some excellent pictures and the routine required to complete the job.

Here

Monocle · April 10, 2017

Looks fantastic Normski, well done! Great colour too.

I did mine last Summer using VHT spray paint. The cleaning was the most important and difficult part I found. It's now nearly a year and I inspected them yesterday. Three of them are still in perfect condition but for some reason one is really corroded. No idea why. Will be redoing it again in a couple of weeks.

I think the Hammerite option might be a better bet. You can really slap it on thick unlike the spray which tends to run.

normski2 · April 15, 2017

On 4/10/2017 at 11:33 AM, Monocle said:

Looks fantastic Normski, well done! Great colour too.

I did mine last Summer using VHT spray paint. The cleaning was the most important and difficult part I found. It's now nearly a year and I inspected them yesterday. Three of them are still in perfect condition but for some reason one is really corroded. No idea why. Will be redoing it again in a couple of weeks.

I think the Hammerite option might be a better bet. You can really slap it on thick unlike the spray which tends to run.

Cheers.

Just remember ....if you use hammerite .... recoat within the hour and if it goes beyond 3 hours you need to leave it for 6 weeks for full cure to be attained, or your next coat will have an adverse effect on the paint thats already there...ie it can wrinkle and spoil it.

Personally I prefer brushing it on so you can keep clear of rubber collars.

is200 Newbie · April 15, 2017

A very discreet colour - looks quite sharp and original when seen through the wheels - good job

Hammerite is good for the job but like you say - if a second coat is needed it needs to be done when the first is tacky as it seems to split otherwise like washing liquid on oil. I have used Hammerite on mine - quite a while ago with no problems but need to be careful when removing them in the future to change pads or grease pins etc as it will look untidy if scraped or chipped. Use a bungee cord to tie caliper up to the spring if doing work on brakes to avoid the paint getting damaged.