Write-Up: F-Body Brake Mod

Ordered Hawk HPS pads for F-body today from www.turbowholesale.com ($75)



Found a set of used calipers at www.clevelandpickapart.com ($114)



Waiting for everything to arrive, then... Let the games begin!

You will need to get the sleaves that fit inside the caliper bolt holes or else you will need to tap them so the new Fbody caliper bolts will fit. Looks good! I'm curious if you will feel better about the Hawk brakes with this setup. Didn't you have problems with them before?

Note from Admin: DO NOT USE THE BUSHING SPACER SLEEVES AS SHOWN IN THE CLUBGP WRITE-UP. THESE HAVE SHOWN TO WEAR AND CAUSE LOOSENING OF THE CALIPER. SOLUTION - HAVE YOUR F-BODY BRACKETS DRILLED AND TAPPED TO ACCEPT THE OEM BUICK CALIPER BOLTS.

I used Hawk ceramics before. I'm hoping the HPS composite material will work better. I never disliked the Hawk's performance, but I thought they should've lasted longer than they did.

Might as well paint them, too. I'm thinking black, silver, or gold.

Black or silver.


I disagree with gold.

Thanks. Yeah, black is great because it won't show dirt, but silver is good for being easier to clean. Hmm.

AA wrote:

Thanks. Yeah, black is great because it won't show dirt, but silver is good for being easier to clean. Hmm.

sand blast them! or get them powder coated........... if i had access to a sandblaster i would definately strip the paint off of em'

I have access to a blaster, but I don't want to rebuild the calipers. They're in good shape, so I'm just going to clean them up nice and mask off the rubber parts, then paint. I think so, anyway. We'll see when they get here. These are aluminum, so no paint to strip off, btw.

AA wrote:

Thanks. Yeah, black is great because it won't show dirt,

By dirt you mean brake dust, right? Because I always thought black was the worst for showing dirt dirt.

I painted mine gloss black and it shows everything. I have given up trying to keep them cleen. The brake dust is black so if you don't pay attention you can't see it.

Received the insert bushings today (McMaster is quick!). Also received the rotors, pads, and finally the calipers. The calipers are MASSIVE!!!! Really hope they'll fit under the stock wheels. If not, I'll have to make them fit.

I think a warm yellow would look good with my paint color and wheels, something like this:



Note from Admin: DO NOT USE THE BUSHING SPACER SLEEVES AS SHOWN IN THE CLUBGP WRITE-UP. THESE HAVE SHOWN TO WEAR AND CAUSE LOOSENING OF THE CALIPER. SOLUTION - HAVE YOUR F-BODY BRACKETS DRILLED AND TAPPED TO ACCEPT THE OEM BUICK CALIPER BOLTS.

AA wrote:

Received the insert bushings today (McMaster is quick!). Also received the rotors, pads, and finally the calipers. The calipers are MASSIVE!!!! Really hope they'll fit under the stock wheels. If not, I'll have to make them fit.

I think a warm yellow would look good with my paint color and wheels, something like this:

I can't wait to see how this works out for you. I sure hope the stock wheels fit. I wanna do this so bad, but I like the OG wheels...

Thanks for the kind words, Buck. Good news, the F-Body calipers will fit behind our stock 7-spoke chrome wheels! I'm 90% sure anyway. I'm know more once they are on.

Today I fitted the F-Body calipers to see how they fit. First, here's a shot of the stock wheel with OEM caliper:



Here's the bigger (and lighter!) F-Body caliper:



And here it is bolted to the steering knuckle (with old rotor):



Here's another shot. One thing I can tell already is the stock line that was fitted with the F-Body caliper is much too short. I'll have to order stainless lines, or have some made:



Here is the new caliper with the wheel on. I tightened the lug nuts and then spun the wheel. Success!



You can see there is good clearance from this angle:



And the cooling fins are fitting, too:



Close up of F-Body caliper fins:



After lunch, I started cleaning the new calipers. After trying to use a wire brush and brake cleaner, it just wasn't working. Then I remembered Corey's SC polishing write-up. So, I picked up the disc grinder and went to town with the wire wheel:



If you notice, the old mold flash line on the front of the caliper is gone. I used a Dremel tool to sand it smooth. I also smoothed the sand-cast texture so it's nice and flat. When finished, I used masking tape to plug the fluid line/bleed screw holes, and to cover the pistons:



By evening, I'd put on a few coats of Duplicolor caliper paint:



I used a technique of blending yellow and red to get the warm sunburst yellow I wanted. It's almost a school bus yellow:



All I need now are the stainless brake lines. While they are shipping, I'll be cleaning and painting the caliper brackets.

I'm really excited to get these on the car. Look at the size of the pads compared to stock!



Interestingly, the old Akebono ceramics have held up very well. They have probably 25-30k miles on them, and they still have more compound remaining than the brand new Hawks:



Stay tuned for more...

has anybody tried to see if bigger aftermarket f body calipers will fit???? jus wondering, but this is a mod that i will be doing

Very nice. I am diggin the yellow

'96reese wrote:

has anybody tried to see if bigger aftermarket f body calipers will fit???? jus wondering, but this is a mod that i will be doing

I don't see why not. I looked at the Brembo big brake kit for F-Body: $3000+

What this mod is, it's a very cheap way to get some increased stopping power and hopefully some increased durability for repeated high-speed braking. This entire swap will cost me about $400, including calipers, pads, and rotors. It could cost less if you were only doing the calipers and pads, or if you opted for cheaper rotors.

From what I know, the "big" brake kits are great for racing because they can withstand repeated high-speed stops without fade. Maybe a bit overkill for street use. And if you use racing pads, the rotors won't last long, and they cost big $$$.

Now I guess I'll have to order the rest of my parts today then....

is it a must to change out to SS lines, or will the fbody lines reach?

The F-Body lines will not work (too short), so I will need SS braided. I was talking to a friend who has stainless flex lines on his motorcycle. According to him it is a very noticeable performance increase in regard to braking feel. The lines won't flex, so all the pressure is focused on the pistons.

Eric or anyone know how long the front brake lines need to be with the F-Body calipers? I just ordered some extra-long SS lines from ZZP. They claim the Bonneville requires an extra 1.5" of line up front, and they offer the fronts only for $58.79. This is about $40-50 less than the other kits that include the rear lines.

Just noticed some of the spring clips were missing with the used calipers, and none was included with the Hawk pads. Found them on RockAuto.com for $15.27 shipped - RAYBESTOS Part # H5641A

I'm sure Cleveland Pick-A-Part has spares laying around, but I'd rather have the new hardware anyway.

I can measure my ss brake lines for you tonight AA. I went ahead and did the rears also when I did the front. All four were custom made (with clear nylon tubing aroung the SS lines to protect them from grime). SS lines get dirty very fast in this type application and the tubing lets you just wipe them off. I thi9nk it cost me $85 for all four lines.

You are able to remove the brake bracket from the strut and ziptie it out of the way. It will give you the extra inch until your ss brakes come in.

Hawk did not incluse any of my springs either. Had to buy them seperately.

I'm not installing anything yet. Paint is still drying, and brackets need finished. It's a race between SS brake lines and the spring clip hardware. Should be ready by next weekend.

The clear tubes are a good idea, but my brake hoses aren't protected, so guess they're getting dirty. Shouldn't affect performance, though.

Watching with interest!

AA- Front brake lines are 18" tip to tip. Rear lines are 12.5" tip to tip.

Thanks Eric! I will measure mine when they arrive. Hope they are close to 18". Do you think yours would work if they were any shorter (fronts)?

The stock ones are 18" also but with the SS they are less flexible (so won't sag and get pinched and they hold shape) and you will not need to attach them to the strut mount so you pick up the extra 1" or so for flexibility. I have them installed and they work great.

Caliper supports are iron, and were rusted:



Gave them a wire brushing:



And then some paint:



Got my ZZP SS lines Yesterday. They look exactly like Eric's, except mine have bends in the line near the caliper fittings. 18" long, and the braids are covered with a very thin, clear tubing. From looking at them, they appear to be well-made.

Received the spring clip hardware package today. I felt like I was getting ripped off paying $15 for 6 pieces of spring steel, but now I'm really glad I bought them. The pads fit so nice and easy in the shiny new clips. Also included in the pack were 4 fresh rubber seals for the slide pins, and a small tube of silicone lube!

So basically from the brake lines out, everything is like new except for the rubber seals around the pistons, but they look to be in good shape. I have both calipers assembled, will try to put on the car tomorrow evening.

Anyone concerned with our brake master cylinder being able to support the dual piston set-up? For those who have done this, does pedal pressure and stroke feel okay?