I have now got hold of a set of Princess 4 pot calipers off ebay (£37 
)
They are pretty shabby and in need of a refurb...
Question is this - What do I need to do / check?
I have my eye on a refurb 'kit' but I think this is just a bunch of O rings - do I need more ?
Should I replace the bleed nipples as a matter of course?
Not sure if they have a spacer for vented discs - will get/fit one if not
Cheers
IMHO you will need at least the rebuild kit, the chances are the nipples will be seized so be very careful about taking them out (if you shear it off
it is just about game over for the caliper) maybe new pistons also.
They should be spotlessly clean before reassembly (blow them out with compressed air)
HTH Mark
[Edited on 3/9/04 by mookaloid]
I learned the hard way with calipers and pistons. 
Blew my first set out with compressed air damaged one of the pistons. Other one didn't come out until I plugged the hole on the other side. Then
managed to blow out the other right into my fingers
OUCH
Decided on my next rebuild to split the calipers.
Bad idea, they never stopped leaking after that.
Finally a friend told me to use a grease gun. you should be able to thread it right into the caliper and you get 10,000lbs pressure instead of 135
from your air compressor. Made things much easier
Aplogies, I meant blow the calipers out with compressed air to clean them out
I use a foot pump to blow the pistons out - it gives better control.
I agree with Jermyn splitting the caliper is often not a good idea. best not to if you can get away with it.
Tip for getting siezed bleed nipples out tap them a few times with a hammer before loosening. it will flatten the end a bit but usually works. better
to replace them anyway.
Good luck
To get old bleed nipples off I used copious amounts of heat and wd40 and even filed down the mangled head to allow the next spanner size down to fit
nicely.
I split our M16 calipers and kind of wish now that I hadn't. We do have the O-rings required but various people have said that the bolts used are
stretch bolts and can only be torqued up once.
Can you not buy replacement stretch bolts?
James
Fortunately a freind if mine has offered the services of his aircraft systems hydraulic servicing bay.........
so I guess i just need to clean them up then supply him the seals and a crate of beer
Cheers for everyones advice
I got a set of Princess calipers, but I am wondering if it's really worth using them? They are unbeliveably heavy, and whilst I'm not at
all worried about adding a few kilos here and there, the weight is in exactly the wrong place.
The standard Cortina brakes were never tarmac rippling monsters, but should work well enough in a locost. Thoughts?
Their not that much heavier than the M16s.
Adam
Des Hammil in his book "Building & Modifying Kitcar Suspension & Brakes" makes the point that the Princess calipers are very little
heavier than the M16 calipers & defintely worth it for the extra retardation, especially if any track work is contemplated. The front brakes on a
clubman do most of the work&, as he says, drums are adequate for the back, but the extra pad area & more efficient application of same with
four pistons as against two is well worth it. For the record, I`m going Princess. 
Out of interest..
The seal kits I was watching on eBay went for £31 in the end plus p&p...
I paid £24 inc p&p for the same kits from Brakes International.
[Edited on 5/9/04 by protofj]
quote:
Originally posted by protofj
Out of interest..
The seal kits I was watching on eBay went for £31 in the end plus p&p...
I paid £24 inc p&p for the same kits from Brakes International.
[Edited on 5/9/04 by protofj]
I am using princess 4-pots and they are only 0.2 of a kg heavier each.
Adam
Re: Brakes international
if you look up the calipers in the online shop there is a button marked 'Associated items' IIRC which shows both the seal kits and spare
pistons (only 1 set of 4 pistons left though for my calipers)
Thanks for that Dave!
i've got m16's spaced out for capri vented discs, which may be overkill, but i'm waiting til the car is on the road, then i'll go
for some nice ally outlaws/brembos/wilwoods
Ned.
Have you tried Brakes International in Rochdale (remanufactured calipers at realistic prices)?
www.brakesint.co.uk