Trouble Removing a Rotor...

Ugh…even the most routine procedures turn into PITA’s with me and my luck…

and for a change, it’s not my Nissan causing me problems (well, no problems beyond the small vacuum leak)…this time around, it’s the hatch.

Doing rotors because when i bought it, the previous owner had all new pads done, but left the old rotors on. They have been badly warped, and feeling a car so light shake so violently under braking gets scary…

Problem #1 occurred when NONE of the lugs wanted to come off without me standing on the wrench…soaked them all in WD40, no dice…after constantly putting my weight on each of them, 1 by 1 they came lose…but the most fun was when this happened:

http://nyspeed.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=2742&stc=1&d=1189641845

http://nyspeed.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=2743&stc=1&d=1189641845

SWEET!

Go get a new stud and lug…no big deal, and take the new rotor out with me so i can get a few bolts from Home Depot to use to back the old rotors off…found ones that fit, bought a few of 'em, get home…and find that the old rotors are so rusted that the threads in them for the bolts are just falling apart…i can’t even get the bolts to snug up at all, the threads were just so brittle they immediately went to shit.

Spent a good exhausting 30 minutes pounding away at the back with a rubber mallet, spraying WD40 everywhere, and even using a bigger wrench to try to pry the rotor away, sticking the wrench between the rotor and the caliper bracket…once again, no dice…

Advice?

as audios once said to me: “are you hitting it or just trying to cuddle with it?”

if you didnt shatter the rotor yet, you didnt REALLY beat the fuck out of it

What HRK said.

like hrk said the rotors that are on there are going in the garbage so why not beat them with a real hammer or even a nice little 5 pound sledge.

BFH

Also, use a good spray too. Wd-40 is some soft shit.

PB Blaster FTW.

if you have to, hack at the edge with a hack saw, creating a weak spot, then pound the fuck out of said cut untill it causes rotor to shatter

I’ve never taken a rotor off that really needed changing (ie was worn and rusted to shit) that didnt need to have the shit beat out of it until it was dented and cracked.

Bigger hammer. More effort.

Spray the backs of the rotors and the front around the studs and center with Blaster. It really is your best friend. Then heat if you got it and start hammering away. They will come off.

It helps if you get the car jacked up a ton so you can really get some power behind the swing. But its tough to do without a lift.

#1, WD-40 is a water dispersant, not a penatrating oil.

#2, heat is your friend. Go to home depot, pick up a nice little map gas torch for $30, heat the shit out of lugs that don’t turn, hit them with PB-Blaster, Thrust, or my favorite Kroil (online order only). Then turn them off with no problem.

#3, when pounding doesn’t work, pick up a puller from autozone, use that to put a lot of pulling force on the rotor, then beat the shit out of it with a BFH.
Pretty much just like this, but on the rotor:
http://www.zukiworld.com/month_070102/images/rockcrawler_dl/step7.jpg
Warning, chances are you will bend the ever loving shit out of the rotor doing this. This method is for when pounding and heat don’t work. It’s a hell of a lot easier and safer than trying to cut a V into the rotor hat and risking cutting into the hub though.

Using those 3 things I’ve NEVER had issues removing rusted parts. It’s usually about working smart, not working hard.

Funny thing is, I just helped my boss do pad/rotors on his Trailblazer. Less than an hour start to finish, and that was with me standing there telling him what to do 5 times for each step.

As I’ve said in lots of these threads… when you can’t figure out how to get a rusted ______ off a car, call a guy who used to autocross a 20 year old northern climate Fiero. :wink:

PB Blaster and some patience will honestly get any rusted part off cleanly.

oh. and when you get through with it

(this goes for anyone, esp w/those working on winter beaters)

put some goddam antiseize on the hub face. even just a little. it’ll help this not happen in the future

[quote=“JayS,post:10,topic:35266"”]

#1, WD-40 is a water dispersant, not a penatrating oil.

[/quote]

I stopped reading the first post after seeing this since I figured he was next going to tell me he was using a pillow to try and bash the rotor off.

PB or Seafoam penetrating oil

Heat

BFH!!!

I have a 8# sledge with a 3’ handle I’ve used in combo with the other 2 more often than not to get both Rotors and Drums off cars… just watch for ABS sensors (I’ve taken a couple out with the Sledge)

And Make SURE the car is stable on the jackstands before using a true BFH…

Heat and sledge hammer (5lb) always worked for me.

whats with you guys and you wussy sledge hammers ?

if its not a 20 pounder it might as well be a pillow

make sure your using a deadblow hammer, BUT

‘Big Brake’ application questions? Please see the Big Brake Info page.

‘Big Brake’ install questions? Please see the Big Brake Install page.

This information is taken from the Talon Digest Archives, and was originally posted by Ian Jordan. Although I haven’t personally used this technique, I wish I had, after cracking a rotor during my BigBrake install, and after hearing how well this technique worked. Here’s his account, just cleaned up a bit:

I was doing the Big Brake upgrade a week or two ago, and I spent about two days trying to get the damned driver’s side rotor off. I used the “bolt in the removal hole” trick, but, as expected, it just ripped off the face of the rotor. Big chunks of metal, rotor stayed on. I tried heat, slamming on the brakes with loose lugs, a rubber mallet, a 3lb hand sledge, a chisel, and just about everything else I could think of. The rotor never came off. I literally spent 15 hours trying to get it off. Just for more info, the size for the rotor removal holes is 8 x 1.25, not 8 x 1.0 as listed in the archives. Don’t even bother though. Also, my '93 calipers have 10mm bleeder screws, while my friend’s 95 have 7mm screws. That’s info for Speedbleeder upgrades. 10mm all around for 1st gens, 7mm in the front for 2nd gens, 10 in the back. (TS- Actually, some of the later 1G BigBrakes also have 7mm bleeders, and some 2Gs might have 7mm in the back, so it is best to throw a wrench/socket on them to be sure.)

I’m an engineer so I engineered a solution. Here it is: The caliper bolts to the hub via two holes in the hub mounting bracket, right? Well, if you look carefully, these holes line up with the very inside of the rotor where the rotor and hat meet at a 90 degree angle. So I went out and bought 14mm bolts and nuts. I put these in the caliper bracket holes and tightened the whole system down. The idea is that the nut ends up pushing against the caliper mounting bracket, and the tip of the bolt pushes against the rotor. Use a box-end wrench to hold the nut, and turn the bolts with a ratchet and socket. Tighten the bolts very tight, and then let off. Rotate the rotor 90 degrees and tighten down again. Keep repeating this until the rotor walks off.

NOTE 1: Someone else has noted that 14mm bolts were too large, he used 12mm. He also used regular pitch 12mm bolts instead of fine pitch, they were much cheaper (the pitch used doesn’t matter since you don’t want them screwing into the bracket, you want them fitting loosely through the threads in the bracket)

NOTE 2: Someone else has noted that what worked the best was the super hard, pointed tip, OEM “knuckle to strut” nuts and bolts (part # - MB871888 - he had already removed them, and found they fit perfectly). Using these instead lets you tighten without worring about screwing up threads on the bolt (the tip is pointed with no threads at the end). Because it’s pointed, it is suggested that you put a washer between the tip and the rotor, so you don’t chip tiny pieces off of the rotor (trust him, it’s strong enough to do that! :slight_smile:
Removing rotors with 14mm bolts

This system worked great. I killed the first rotor trying to get it off, denting it, breaking it, and I spent forever doing this. Once I tried the bolts, it took 30 minutes. I went over to the passenger side, and it took 45 minutes, with no damage to the rotor except a couple very small dents where the bolt made contact with the rotor. Obviously I loosened the driver’s side with all my pounding. The dents that were on the rotor are so close to the inside that they aren’t in the path of the pad. The rotors would be reusable if they weren’t so damn small :slight_smile:

Other suggestions:

* Put the lugnuts on, and tighten all the way down against the rotor. Back them of a millimeter or so. This allows you to see if you are making any progress with any removal system. You can see the rotor press up against the lugnuts, which means the rotor moved. Obviously, when you see the rotor against the lugnuts, back the lugnuts off a bit.
* Lightly file the edge of the hub once the rotor is off. This will allow for easy removal any time in the future.
* Use anti-seize on the edge and front face of the hub to prevent future problems - put a thin layer on, and wipe it off with a cloth, leaving a very thin layer that you can see through on the hub face/edge (basically leave the hub a shiny grey color without leaving a layer of anti-seize behind). Use nickel-based anti-seize if you can get it (Locktite 77, available at NAPA) instead of the standard aluminum-based anti-seize, as the nickel is good to 2600 degrees, but the aluminum is only good to 1700.
* Make sure you use 8.8 or 8.9 grade bolts.
* I only used one bolt on each side, even though the picture shows two. I'm not sure which system would work better.
* Make sure you have enough bolts, since I toasted the tips of the bolts when I used them, leading to the destruction of the threads when pulling them out of the holes. They also got bent. Have separate bolts for each side.
* Use anti-seize on the lugnut studs before putting the wheels back on the car - using a heavy layer here doesn't hurt. Just rub it into the threads all the way around the stud, then wipe it off with a cloth (along the length of the stud, not with the threads, to leave a decent layer in the threads).

http://vfaq.com/proj-pics/BigBrakes/works.jpg

Anyway, anyone every trying to get a rotor of the front of a DSM should try this. It works fast, it doesn’t trash rotors, and should be easier on the wheel bearings than pounding on the rotor for hours on end. Good luck!

that method worked AWESOME for me and doesnt hurt the wheel bearings

^ Right up until you bend/snap a caliper mount because they aren’t designed for lateral force like that.

[quote=“JayS,post:19,topic:35266"”]

^ Right up until you bend/snap a caliper mount because they aren’t designed for lateral force like that.

[/quote]

you just need to break the seal… you WONT bend a caliper mount basically you put a lil pressure on it… rotate… pit back on and u walk the rotor off… once u break teh seal its good to go… ive done this method on 3-4 cars…

the caliper mounts are VERY beefy