caliper dust boot; is there a tool?
 

Installing a caliper dust boot is a real challenge: the ring needs to be pressed down upon all sides evenly. There must be a tool for this; what is it?

front or rear?
on the rear ,it helps to have the piston about 1/8" sticking out. there's no need for a tool, just push the boot down all around, pull the ring apart and set it into the groove. Then use a screwdriver to push it all the way down.

Sorry, I wasn't clear. I do mean the front since the rear is really no problem as on-ramp mentions. I was able to get the front boots on, but it was a challenge keeping all sides down as I pushed down on another. I did end up tearing a small hole in one of the boots and I don't want to repeat that when I replace it, ergo the quest for a tool.

on the fronts, push the pistons all the way in. just keep pushing the boot all the way down, keep going all around. at some point, it will stay there and not pop up.then you can stretch the ring over it and put it into the groove.

on-ramp, the collar over the piston is not the problem, but getting the ring on IS the problem. It is not a stretchable ring like the back one. It requires even pressure all the way around simultaneously. I guess I'll just have to make my own tool.

I just did this. isn't it a ring with a gap that opens when you push it down? I just pressed it on with m fingers and pushed it all the way down with a screwdirver. Did I miss something? And also why is it so hard to get the pistons lined up to put them back in?

Some rebuild kits have a split ring that is round and has a tendency to slip off when trying to install. Some kits have the split ring with a square cross section which is easier to put on. There is no tool, just patience and fingerspitzengefuehl. (Finger tip dexterity) ;)
Yes, Pistons have a tight tolerance but the new seals add to that. Lubrication with brake fluid is the answer. Excercise the pistons often and you will have less problems with them freezing (rusting) in the future. SmileWavy

rick-l, maybe I missed something. The back ring is a split ring, the front one is not (unless, like I said, I missed something??). The front one has little "fingers" all the way around to provide the spring tension. Again, this requires (from my experience) even pressure to push it on.

I suppose the pistons are hard to get back in because of the tight tolerance?

The ate kit I bought from our host (it did sit idle for 1 year) had a square split ring. It was for an 88 911.

On the boots on my 89 The trick was to use the lid off of a babyfood jar

Try a couple of pencils (cut in half) with erasers to push them on. That ourght to keep from tearing the boots.

Gerber babyfood jar lid...I'm told...fits perfectly....

Wil

EDIT:
Oops..someone beat me to this.....

Hey, are you sure you've got the right boots? I screwed around for 2 evenings trying to get the boots that came with my caliper rebuild kit to fit before I fugued out that I had the kit for the wring calipers. The ones they sent were for the S calipers... Luckily, I was able to get the right boots in town for a few bucks each and Wayne took care of me.

Yep, I have the right boots, identical to what I removed; Except I gave false information since I was working from memory a week ago. It's the rear caliper that have the ring with little fingers and the front has the split ring:o and not the other way around.

I'll try the "Gerber" solution next time. Thanks for the help all!

Honestly, I would seriously consider just cutting the ring if it wasn't already. A lot of kits use the split ring already, so it's obviously an acceptable option. I suppose there could be some potential problem with turning a 1-piece ring into a split ring, but I think it should work. I'd probably try to do it without doing that first, but if it gave me problems I think I'd just cut it. Also, a set of seal drivers usually works well for installing the dust boots. It lets you get nice even pressure all the way around. You may even want to try a seal driver, a flat piece of...something..., and a clamp. That way you know that you're getting even pressure instead of having to make sure that you hammer evenly. I can also tell you that I've had a bit of experience with the seals I've bought not being capable of fitting the calipers that they are intended to work for. This is usually more of a problem when you are dealing with a boot that has the clip integrated with the rubber of the boot. As in the clip is embedded in the rubber itself. It all goes on as one piece instead of installing the boot, and then adding the clip. Sometimes I find that the seal is like .5 mm too small. No matter how straight or even I'd get it; I'd find that the seal was basically centered over the raised edge that it fit over instead of being big enough to fit around it. No room for stretching it since the hard metal clip is inside it.