Hi all,
Ok, new day, new problem.
This is kinda long, so please bear with me. My '67 Barracuda has the '73-76 A-body front disc brake setup. I had a very experienced mechanic (he owns his own suspension shop) install them for me (in June, 2011) - I don't have a press or any special tools required to remove or install ball joints, and I just didn't want to mess with it. This same guy has done several other brake and suspension jobs for me over the years, on various cars, and I've always been very happy with his work. But I'm wondering if he didn't drop the ball on this one. I didn't notice any odd noises after they were first installed, nor for the first several hundred miles. Because of various other issues with the car, I've only driven it about 700 miles total since the brakes were installed. I don't drive this car very aggressively, and I've always been pretty easy on brakes on all my cars. Recently, the right front has started making a "clicking" noise. I'm only getting a very slight amount of pulsing at the brake pedal, and that's only when the car is nearly stopped. On removing the wheel, I found that the rotor was pushing against the outboard brake pad at a certain point on each revolution, lifting the little tab on the pad up off of the caliper (see below):
then dropping it back down after the "high point" passed, thus making the clicking noise that is quite noticeable outside the car.
I put a dial indicator on both sides of the rotor, and it appears that it's about .010 off from being perfectly true. I don't know if the rotors were checked for trueness before they were installed. My mechanic says he can't remember, but I'm guessing they weren't - I would think it should be standard practice to do this before installing new rotors(?). So, I don't know if this rotor was not right from the beginning, or if it got warped after I drove it. Btw, I tried to buy decent rotors - these are Raybestos 7032R, but I'm pretty sure they're Chinese.
Unfortunately, I only have a '67 Factory Service Manual, which doesn't cover these disc brakes. My questions are:
1.) Should the rotor be perfectly true, or should a deviance of .010 be acceptable?
2.) My calipers are the "slider" type. Should they be able to accommodate .010 of warpage? Should there be any lubricant where the caliper slides on the bracket and, if so, what type? I don't know if my mechanic put anything on it.
3.) Can I remove the calipers and rotors without having to re-bleed the brakes? I'm thinking I may just be able to remove the two bolts holding the caliper bracket on, start sliding the caliper off, wedge an appropriate sized piece of wood between the pads to keep them in place, then remove the rotor.
4.) What is the torque spec for the two bolts holding the caliper brackets onto the steering knuckle?
5.) If I need to have the rotor(s) turned, can I remove the bearing(s) and/or seal(s) without damaging them? Or will I have to buy any new parts?
I would appreciate any info or advice on a correct course of action. Thanks!!
Roger
