DIY brake pad change fail

[Peanut Gallery]

Crazy thought - but when you took the caliper off, did you add an extra twist in the rubber hose?

I have also seen the tabs on the ends of the pads being slightly too large, so just needed taking out, and filing the tabs down ever so slightly, like just remove the paint.

[TwinKam]

Peanut Gallery said:

Crazy thought - but when you took the caliper off, did you add an extra twist in the rubber hose?

I have also seen the tabs on the ends of the pads being slightly too large, so just needed taking out, and filing the tabs down ever so slightly, like just remove the paint.

NO! There is NEVER a case to file the pad, it is ALWAYS baked on scale on the pad carrier that is the problem and it needs to be completely scraped back to bright metal, not merely tickled with a wire brush
If it seems that the pad 'needs' filing, it is because it is a crap quality set of pads.

[stevemcs]

If its the solid discs your probably £50 in parts for discs and pads, i presume you cleaned up all the calipers and the piston pushed back nicely.

[E-bmw]

TwinKam said:

Peanut Gallery said:

Crazy thought - but when you took the caliper off, did you add an extra twist in the rubber hose?

I have also seen the tabs on the ends of the pads being slightly too large, so just needed taking out, and filing the tabs down ever so slightly, like just remove the paint.

NO! There is NEVER a case to file the pad, it is ALWAYS baked on scale on the pad carrier that is the problem and it needs to be completely scraped back to bright metal, not merely tickled with a wire brush
If it seems that the pad 'needs' filing, it is because it is a crap quality set of pads.

Personally, presented with a pad that is interfering with free movement I would MUCH rather dress the pad than the caliper after any detritus is obviously removed from the caliper.

Calipers are machined to fine tolerances, pads are pressed out of a sheet of metal with the precision of an elephant stamping on a cookie cutter!

[TwinKam]

E-bmw said:

TwinKam said:

Peanut Gallery said:

Crazy thought - but when you took the caliper off, did you add an extra twist in the rubber hose?

I have also seen the tabs on the ends of the pads being slightly too large, so just needed taking out, and filing the tabs down ever so slightly, like just remove the paint.

NO! There is NEVER a case to file the pad, it is ALWAYS baked on scale on the pad carrier that is the problem and it needs to be completely scraped back to bright metal, not merely tickled with a wire brush
If it seems that the pad 'needs' filing, it is because it is a crap quality set of pads.

Personally, presented with a pad that is interfering with free movement I would MUCH rather dress the pad than the caliper after any detritus is obviously removed from the caliper.

Calipers are machined to fine tolerances, pads are pressed out of a sheet of metal with the precision of an elephant stamping on a cookie cutter!

Absolutely, but lazy people are tempted to take the easy option of filing the pad to fit the cruddy pad carrier (we're not talking about calipers here) rather than do the correct thing of scraping the carrier channels back to bright metal... I'm not suggesting removing any metal from anywhere, just the scale.
That done, if the pad still doesn't fit, it's a bad quality pad, that's my point. Buy good quality parts first and foremost!

[Smint]

Its an eye opener the first time you do as mentioned above, ie ping the stainless spring clips off and give them a good clean, then using an old chisel scrape all the crud off the pad carrier before refitting the clips, be surprised how easily new (or the old if just a clean up) pads slide into place.

Whilst changing pads or general brake servicing its always worth exercising the pistons a few times in their bores using feel for how much resistance is needed when pushing them back in.