Frozen front caliper on an '87...Replace both? OEM?
 

The front left caliper on my '87 is frozen. It has been exercised pretty well in the last few hundred miles, but still howls slightly at speed on occasion (though it is rare). You can feel a bit of "stick" at stop signs and what not. The rotors and pads seem good.

I can't jack the car up or take the calipers off myself, and it seems to cost about the same money to buy an ATE caliper from Pelican at $275 than it does to pay someone $100/hr to rebuild the ones that are on there while my car sits in a shop. As such, I planned to simply replace the frozen one with new. Should I replace the other front caliper as well? The car has 100k miles, and I don't think the calipers have ever been touched. Should I just go with the ATE or is there a better alternative? The car is never tracked, and (performance-wise) the OEM brakes feel great.

The brake lines like they could stand to be replaced. Should I go OEM rubber or stainless steel for performance and reliability/longevity? Is there any advantage to "DOT approved" lines outside of legality?

I guess my suggestion would be to ask this shop (where it's currently at) if they can rebuild the calipers? It's a simple bench job that any wrench can do and the parts are very available.

And the rubber lines are fine, maybe even better in some cases than the SS lines.

EDIT: Forgot to add, do them both of course to maintain bias, do all four if you can.

Contact Eric @ PMB.

I think I misread the PMB site...If I'm not mistaken, it seems I can buy a new pair of calipers beforehand, put them on the car, and send PMB the "old" calipers for a refund of $100 after. Seems like a pair of zinc-coated "Wide A" binders would suit me quite well. Presumably I can use the pads and rotors that are on there...

I'd rather not double the cost of this job if I can avoid messing with the rears. Even with the stuck piston, the car stops strong and true as is. Opinions welcome.

PM Sent.

Caliper rebuild.
 

I had all four done at a local machine shop for $300.

And yes, do all four.

What's happening to the caliper is a condition of the internals of the entire system. We tore apart over 100 calipers this week. I see the insides of a lot of calipers :D.

You have a rust/old fluid sludge build up on the piston sides above the bore seal. Your system has the same fluid in it and the same conditions throughout. So... best to do both calipers at least. All four if you can swing it.

Calipers are not rocket science but, rust never sleeps. It's best to have them replated and properly cleaned or the rust will come back in a few years and you'll become an expert at brake rebuilding rather quickly. It's exasperated by those who think you should hone the bore. Fresh steel... iron oxides favorite food.

Tip: I'm going to sound like a dentist asking you to brush but; If you change your brake fluid annually, I would wager you would never have to rebuild your brakes. ;)

basically, that's it. you get a set of newly rebuilt calipers from pmb, then have 2 months or so to get them on your car and send the old ones back to pmb and you get some money back. i kept the boxes that they were sent in and re-used them for the return. i think the old lady at the post office almost fell over trying to get the box off the counter.

Erc's Mom dresses him funny but his direction is hard to dispute....he knows the business.

Indeed. I'll probably skip the rears this go around. If it takes a year for them to bind or start acting funny, it's worth it to me to wait.

Eric, I'm going to email you about particulars...

http://ensaster.com/pics/pelican/brakes.jpg

PMB goodness. These things are sweet. The whole assembly looks new. The zinc is scratching in off a few tiny spots, but nowhere that really matters. Eric was more than helpful in answering my questions. Can't wait to start stoppin'.

The gold is a bit much for me, so I might try and hit them with some high-temp black caliper paint (just on the outside). If I don't get around to it, I'm sure brake dust eventually will.