01 Disco Brake Job?

Cranky CJ said:

Anything that comes up out of the ordinary on a discovery?

Thanks.

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Oh God yes there is!

On a serious note: When doing the brakes I have found that the cheaper generic parts store pads and rotors would squeal and set off The Three Amigos. If you don't know about the Amigos do a search. I think the Genuine LR pads and rotors are made by a company called TRW so try and get TRW's if you can. I got my last pads and rotors from Will Tillery (TRW). He has good prices and knows his stuff. I'm sure others on this forum have good suggestions as to what brands of brake parts to get.

Other then Amigo related problems there is not a great deal special about the brakes. I'm pretty sure that you will need a 3/4" and a 9/16" 12 pt socket to get the caliper carriers off. A c-lamp to compress the pistons, caliper lube, brake cleaner and a socket set is all you should need.

You need a set of metric 12-point sockets (12mm & 19mm if I recall) to get the caliper brackets off so you can pull the rotors. That's about the extent of the "special" requirements. Normal 6-point sockets will fit but if the bolt is seized then it's likely to strip.

Apart from that it's about as straightforward as any other brake job. As Optimusduff said, make sure you get good pads and lube the backs to prevent squeal. I'm partial to Akebono ceramics. No noise, no dust, excellent stopping power.

I'm sure the rear caliper carrier bolts are not 12 mm they are 14 mm (9/16" = 14.28 mm). The fronts are 19 mm (3/4" = 19.05 mm).

I do realize that technically it would be best to use the metric sockets. However, in this instance the standard 12 pt socket will do just fine if you don't have metric on hand.

There are two items that might trip you up. If they are still there, the rotors are held on by large "Phillips" looking machine screws. But they're actually "Pozidriv". And if they're tight, a Phillips will NOT remove them. The bits can be sourced at NAPA.
Secondly, if the rotors are original, have any corrosion, or nobody put any anti-seize on them during installation, the rotors can seem like they're welded on. You might add a 5lb sledge to your "needed tools". You might have to beat the piss out of them to get them off. No big deal since your replacing them.
Have fun!

helievac's totally right - the set screws can be a bitch to remove. I've actually found drilling them out to be the quickest and most effective way to remove them. They're soft so the heads spin off real quick. The shank that's left in the hub can then be removed by hand since there's no torque left after the head is gone.

You can find cheap replacements easily at your local Ace Hardware. I opted for GR. 8 hex-head screws so removal in the future will be easier.

What are y'all coating the back of the pads with?

Also I'm in the process of rebuilding my calipers but I am seriously struggling on getting the Pistons back in the calipers. I've been using a c clamp but these suckers won't budge.

Helievac is right, one of my rotors was so stuck to the hub I ended up breaking it in three pieces with a hammer before it decided to break free.

Clean the hubs very thoroughly, then use a liberal amount of anti-seize on all the surfaces.

Bosnian Discovery said:

helievac's totally right - the set screws can be a bitch to remove. I've actually found drilling them out to be the quickest and most effective way to remove them. They're soft so the heads spin off real quick. The shank that's left in the hub can then be removed by hand since there's no torque left after the head is gone.

You can find cheap replacements easily at your local Ace Hardware. I opted for GR. 8 hex-head screws so removal in the future will be easier.

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Buy some of those extra set screws for future need and buy a hand held Impact Driver to help the existing ones out,