| Quote jtcb "ok.. I am planning to paint the caliper. Here's some questions." Unquote
Sorry not to get back to you straight away but I have been away on holiday for a week.
I have painted calipers on several cars that I have owned so here are some points to consider before painting calipers.
I personally think that the best colours to go with are either the silver (as original M/B) or black. Thes go very well with the majority of the Bs colours.
Although red looks very nice on a sleek Ferrari most of us bought our Bs partly because we are discerning people and liked the quality look of the car. In most cases red would look tacky & garish and a bit boy racerish. However it would probably not look out of place with say Derek,s red. (You would not buy the car if it had yellow door handles,would you, same thing with garish pads)
If you painted your calipers say lumi yellow or dayglo orange you might like it fine but what about the person that comes round to buy your car when you go to sell it, and isn't it a nice excuse for the dealer to knock some money off on part exchange.
Regarding paint, I personally have found the easiest and cheapest paint to use is good quality high temperature engine paint ( usually good for about 700 degrees) this paint is thin and goes on very easily. I find that the thick caliper paint tends to look a bit glossy & plastickey but some like that look
Don't think you can paint first thing in the morning and go shopping an hour later it takes time to dry and will probably need a couple of coats.
Follow the manufacturers instructions as some can be painted again within an hour or so and some need several days to dry before a second coat.
Make sure that you clean the calipers thoroughly I wash mine first with water and then used a spirit based cleaner to remove the grease (dont get this on the seals or any rubber brake tubing).
The best job is done if you remove the calipers but this requires more work than most of the members would probably want to undertake.
I find that it is easier (but takes slightly longer) and makes a better job if you use a long handled flat headed brush that is about 1/4 inch wide as with this you can paint all round the caliper, with it on the car, without getting the paint over the disks / rotors. If you do get it on the rotors get it off straight away.
If you are reasonably adept you could probably do a reasonable job in about 1 hour per wheel per coat of paint. Do ensure that you donn't just rely on the jack to support the car whilst working on it we want to gain members rather than lose them.
It is a job that any reasonably competant diy person can do, you do not need to be a mechanic.
Photo below is not a very good one of the calipers as it was designed to show some marks on the wheel, but it shows the calipers which in black look discreet and not obtrusive. |