Coating brake calipers and rotors/drums

[Rich1]

My body shop is sending out suspension pieces to sand blast and will be coating them in por 15 semi gloss black..They asked if I wanted to paint/coat the brake calipers and rotors/drums. Any thoughts on this? Will this hinder brake performance? If so, is there another to improve the look of these rusty brake components?

Thanks

[280~Master]

Go ahead and have it done. its not gonna hurt anything.

[grantf]

I have heard painting calipers and drums hinder heat dissapation.

[cygnusx1]

I would use brake specific paint on those parts.

[Rich1]

Thanks for the feedback.

I guess Eastwood caliper paint may be the best way to go with these pieces.

[Mike W]

I used a product from G2 recently. It is made for calipers. You can see more info about them here:

http://www.g2usa.com/

I went with a silver color and mine came out great. My only issue is that you cannot see them through my wheels like you can on more modern cars with modern wheels.

Here's a few pictures of the G2 product on my calipers.

Mike.

[conedodger]

Go ahead and have it done. its not gonna hurt anything.

Yes it will. Trapped heat causes brake fade. Plate them. Don't paint them.

[Oiluj]

An auto-cross champ I know told me it's not a big issue for the front calipers, but suggested I leave my rear drums "au natural" for heat dissipation.

[TomoHawk]

If you're worried about heat problems, then you'd be better off switching to iron brake drums. they're said to handle more heat them the stock aluminum ones and don't deform when hot.

The only thing I've noticed with painting the drums is that you can see the impression from wheels when you take them off. It's just a little unsightly, but you won't see it with the wheels on.

[conedodger]

You don't build enough heat during an autocross run for it to make a difference. Fade would come from a 20 minute track session or a bit of canyon carving. Trust me on this. Coming around turn ten at Brainerd International Raceway and finding your brake pedal going all the way to the floor is not the excitement you signed up for...

[tamo3]

How about this one? Did anyone try this?

http://www.amazon.com/Dupli-Color-BCP400-Red-Brake-Caliper/dp/B000B6AF80/ref=sr_1_2?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1333993527&sr=1-2

[John Coffey]

The additional heat insulation provided by caliper paint is probably not measurable. I've noticed no difference with an IR heat gun shooting painted, bare metal, or rusty 204Z front calipers - although I wasn't specifically testing for that. With controlled testing you might be able to show a difference but, IMHO, its not significant. On a race track the front calipers got so hot that most paint just cooks away (I've seen 800 degrees after a 1 hour track stint during an eduro). Same is true with the rear aluminum drums if the brakes are adjusted properly. For a street driven car its not an issue.