Rotors

rek · 07-01-03, 03:36

I'm about to do new rotors and pads . Since the rotors will be rust-free(new), I'd like to keep them that way. I'm thinking of removing all the oil from them, then blueing them, as in gun-blueing. Then coating the OD(vanes) ,non-braking surfaces,with synthetic brake grease(enough to coat, but not fling off!) OR what ever will work to keep the rust down. Has anyone come up with a method to keep the rotors looking good? Hi-Temp paint for calipers?? Some exotic coating??? What do the Pro's say??

IndigoGTI · 07-01-03, 03:54

The blueing sounds interesting. Let us know how that goes.

I don't think putting grease on the outside diameter of the rotor is too good of an idea, it will provide a great place for the brake dust to accumulate. I would try a grey or silver high temp paint if you wanted to keep those parts from rusting and looking bad. You could also look into getting zinc plated rotors. Most aftermarket brake rotors (i.e. cross-drilled or slotted or combination of both) come plated to resist rusting on the non-swept surfaces. What kind of car do you have?

rek · 07-01-03, 04:13

I am doing the brakes on my Eldorado. The idea of the Syn Grease was to keep the blueing from rusting. High temp silver would probably be less work, but I was thinking black,(blueing) would be different.

adg44 · 07-07-03, 02:56

It'll probably be easiest just to get new rotors that are CAD plated and then you won't have anything to worry about.

rek · 07-08-03, 05:43

Yes, it would be easiest to get cad plated rotors@ 90 bucks each. I can get OEM rotors for about 50 bucks each. 80 bucks will buy a bit of protective coating-blueing,hi-temp paint, what ever. My cars aren't what you could call"time-savers". At this point, a couple more hours spent on the "toys" doesn't matter. I don't really "worry" about the time spent, or what is easiest, to me it's one of my hobbies. I am stuck in the "It's not what you can buy, it's what you can BUILD" that provides satisfaction to me. Take care, and happy motoring!!

SickOfItAll · 07-09-03, 11:34

Why are you worried about rust on the rotors, would be my first question - does your car sit for THAT long? If it IS a concern - simply go for a drive. 2-3 good stops will clear any and all surface rust from the rotor. If it's more than surface rust - then you're not driving the car enough!

I'd be very worried about doing anything to a brake rotor - brakes are the only part on a car that you can't afford to have fail. If you MUST have rust free rotors - get some of the plated ones. If you try treating them yourself - be very wary about what you do. I've heard some pretty ugly stories from people doing the wrong thing with their brake system - it's a lot easier to deal with surface rust once a month than it is to replace a front end.

rek · 07-10-03, 06:08

Worried about rust? NOT, I just don't like it. To me, things look best, rust-free. You're right about not driving it enough. I have 5 cars, so it's not likely I'll drive all of them everyday. Surface rust on the swept area is an unavoidable thing, as far as I know. The cad plated rotors will rust there, once the plating is worn off. I am just trying to keep the non-swept areas of the rotors rust free. Some time ago, I refinished a Ruger-22 cal. pistol(hot tank blueing). The "treated" pistol performed as well as a non-treated one. The blueing didn't affect it safety-wise, it was still all it could be. I don't see the "blueing" as having any effect on the function of the rotors, other than interrupting the rust process. After some "stops" the blueing will be worn away on the swept surfaces. I wouldn't put a protective coating, on the blueing, of the swept surfaces, only the non-swept surfaces. I DO believe in "Safety First", so I wouldn't do anything to compromise the stopping ability, like you said, replacement of a front end is a bigger deal than rust. Thanks for the concern, my eyes are wide open, but hard to see that, by an internet forum. Better to be safe than sorry.

Aurora40 · 07-10-03, 12:05

Not to say it would have any effect, but I wonder how coating the vanes and such would impact the cooling of the rotor? I doubt the paint/blueing transfers heat as efficiently as the metal does. On the hub I doubt it would matter, but the vaning might be a place to think about it. I definitely wouldn't grease them up.

rek · 07-10-03, 04:38

I don't know about the Paint or blueing(acid induced oxide) not transferring heat as efficiently as a non-coated surface. I do know that a lot of heat transferring devices are painted black(Radiators)(Oil coolers)(Tranny coolers). Gun blueing would be a dark hue, almost black. I mention coating the non swept areas -vanes and hubs with synthetic brake grease, to protect the blueing from rusting. Synthetic brake grease is Hi-Temp, as in won't melt off. I wasn't going to "Pack" the vanes, so air would'nt flow, just a light coating, with a small brush. The coating would be thin, .020, or a half a millimeter, so it should stay put. Something to think about though.....