Caliper Guide Bolts

[StickMon]

Anybody replace their stock Caliper Guide Bolts when doing a brake job?

OEM bolts are over $20 a piece, which seems a bit ridiculous.

ECS lists 2 other manufacturers at far more reasonable prices.
One of them may be the same as the OEM, but direct from the OE manufacturer.
One of them may be a cheap piece of crap.

I don't want to replace what may be perfectly good stock bolts with cheap knock-offs.

[inTgr8r]

if they aren't sticking, just clean and leave them.
note: do not lube

[seank]

Originally Posted by StickMon

Anybody replace their stock Caliper Guide Bolts when doing a brake job?

OEM bolts are over $20 a piece, which seems a bit ridiculous.

ECS lists 2 other manufacturers at far more reasonable prices.
One of them may be the same as the OEM, but direct from the OE manufacturer.
One of them may be a cheap piece of crap.

I don't want to replace what may be perfectly good stock bolts with cheap knock-offs.

Those pins are for track cars. They do work better and will wear the pads more evenly, but they need more maintenance.

Oem, isn't the best but its maintenance free.

If you don't need after market, stick with oem. And that applies to everything.

[StickMon]

Hmmm

I know ECS has brass bushings to replace the rubber ones that need regular lubrication.
Thought about those for about 30 seconds before deciding to go OEM,
but I thought the bremmen and ATE pins were just stock replacements, at a suspiciously lower price.

I tried to research them, but ATE doesn't list them in their on-line catalog and bremmen doesn't appear to have a website.

[Kgolf31]

Originally Posted by inTgr8r

if they aren't sticking, just clean and leave them.
note: do not lube

I've been told to rub the guide pins with anti-squeal, the compound that comes with the pads to just help re-install and removal.

Would that be considered lube?

[inTgr8r]

According to TIS, keep them dry.
The only reason I've ever heard is that anything on them gums up the guides with dust & dirt.
I don't have 1st hand experience with that though.

[StickMon]

Originally Posted by Kgolf31

I've been told to rub the guide pins with anti-squeal, the compound that comes with the pads to just help re-install and removal.

I swear I read that somewhere, too, but I went hunting around and can't find where I read it.
I even bought some of the packets of sauce after reading it.

My plan for now is not to buy new ones, wipe the old ones off with a dry rag, and leave the sauce packets unopened.

[seank]

Originally Posted by inTgr8r

According to TIS, keep them dry.
The only reason I've ever heard is that anything on them gums up the guides with dust & dirt.
I don't have 1st hand experience with that though.

This is truth. They are what they call "self lubricating." I figured this after a year of cleaning, relubricating, cursing, and rebuilding the brakes that were binding after every track weekend.

Clean them thoroughly every 3 months and they run flawlessly. That being said, it's too much trouble for a street cars.

Nothing's a win, win. The track is about compromises, whether we are talking about corners, straightaways, car parts, etc