Is it worth it to paint the calipers
either myself - cost of paint/jacks/stands/tape

or by a pro shop - for about $150

....

 

dont let a shop paint em.. lol if you cant do it.. then just leave your car stock... get a friend with a garage and do it yourself...tape off everything around it and paint... spray paint isnt that indimidating once you get used to it.. get that high heat crap and go to town.....

You need this: (pepboys your best bet)
1.high heat paint
2.jacks (do 2 wheels at the same time)
3.newspaper or plastic bags(tape off the area)
4.steel brush(get anything on the caliper the break cleaner wont pick up)
5.brake cleaner(clean before paint)
6.tape(duh)


edit*- i see your a jersey boy ... if u dont have em painted by summer than come down to maryland and ill hook ya up...i have painted calipers on at least 6 or 7 cars so its no sweat..

 

the results start in the prep work...
if you take them off the car it will be easier to clean, sand, grind smooth. and painting into those tight nooks, is better done off the car....

my vote is to take them off.
but instead of painting , try powder coating....

 

Heres a link to a picture of my brakes painted with the G2 kit it cost me about $40 dollars to do all 4 brakes.

Note: I've never tried to post a picture before I guess this will work. Anyway just thought you may want to see a picture.


**edit** dgHotLava---i fixed your picture link

*That did'nt work so well I guess you have to me a member of imagestation to view the image. I'm new to this stuff Anyway I tried.

 

thanks for the input... i like the silver/metalic calipers but i think im gonna color match the tC or atleast attempt to with the high temp paint...
what would you rank all the prep work as in taking off the callipers from 1-ten scale>.
and anyone have a lil guide for taking off tiresand wheels.. and callipers.
and hints on reinstalling

powder coating...?? explain...

 

if you need a guide for removing your tires, this is out of your league...
for me i consider this a 4-5 on the 10 point scale...
it will require rebuilding the calipers and bleeding the brake system....both of which are simple to do, but need to be carefull doing it...

powder coating is a more durable finsih than paint. it goes on in powder form (hence the name)
it then gets baked to bond the powder to the part.

i have done this on many vehicles and find it to be much better +last longer than any paint.

 

...powder coating>.. how much does it cost to be done. or can it be done on your own

 

there are kits to do this yourself... (not recomended...could ruin your oven....)
the cost is simalar to a pro painting them...

here is a link to a good write up about the process...
http://my.execpc.com/~davewrit/Powder.html
its a little long but full of information...

 

power coated calipers? wow i didn't know that could be done. one more thing to shop around for.

 

Anything Metal can be powdercoated. Also you don't have to even remove your calipers to paint them. Its really simple, just take off the wheel and tape everything up then spray away.

 

I used krylon on all my cars...they all lasted years...screw high temp the calipers never get hot. Try it out touch your calipers after a day of driving, the rotors are hit but the caliper is pretty warm.

all u need is a jack, jackstands, simple green degreaser, high grit sand paper and time...

Step 1
Jack up the car, remove wheels.
Step 2
Scuff metal with high grit (i used 800)
then clean with simple green and water, allow to dry
Step 3
Mask off areas you dont want painted and Paint!
Step 4
repaint (i use 3 coats)
Step 5 allow time to dry and remount and enjoy

total cost...
5 bucks for paint
5 bucks for simple green + sand paper

 

i am not saying that paint won't do....
just that it looks extra sharp to sand and grind down the rough castings. then powder coating will look like a mirror...

 

NICE JOB, daemonite!!!!!

 

i got subaru colors on my scion hehe...
indigo blue pearl with gold calipers looks sweet

 

Subaru colors??? I wouldn't say that TOO loud, peeps might shun you!

 

paint them yourself. it's not too hard. just did mine last weekend.

 

painting them is a breeze, but the calipers still look rough...
get out the sanding and grinding tools.... make them look smooth first...

 

Do you have an example picture of the "smooth" caliper. I thought the sanding was used to create scratchs in the metal in order for the pait to adhere more easily to the caliper.

 

if you look at the caliper in the picture you see the texture from the castings (when the parts were made).
notice how rough it looks.
when i mentioned sanding/grinding i am talking about smoothing out the rough surface.
true that sanding helps the paint 'stick', but you also need to shape the parts before painting...

here are some after shots from powder coating...

 

Alright thats what I thought. Can you produce similar results with painting them? I would rather save the money of having a professional do anything, and do it myself. It doesn't matter how much I have to sand and how long, I just want to know if I can produce similar reults as far as smoothness.