ZX rear caliper

[Reptoid Overlords]

After my last drive my friend noticed a little bit of brake fluid under the left rear wheel after getting it tucked back into the garage.  With brake fluid being pretty much being made of Xenomorph blood I decided to tear into it sooner rather than later.  It was soon obvious that the leak was coming from a failed caliper seal.  No huge surprise as the rear calipers are the only things on the brake system that I have not gone through and replaced/reconditioned. 

Sadly, upon disassembly I discovered quite a bit of rot on the inner facing piston.  Probably not a good idea to re use it.  Banking on the right side being in close to the same condition.  Luckily I have that parts car.  Unluckily it's buried in snow with wet yard underneath it.  I wouldn't be surprised if the parts car's rear calipers aren't too far off from that same condition.  It's not going to be an easy fight if my parts car ones are toast.  Looks like a lot of the replacements available are for '82-'83 and I have a 1980. 

 

[Patcon]

Those are pretty corroded. Although the corrosion in the bore is probably a bigger concern than the corrosion on the piston

[Captain Obvious]

2 hours ago, Reptoid Overlords said:

With brake fluid being pretty much being made of Xenomorph blood I decided to tear into it sooner rather than later.

All we know is that there's still no contact with the colony, and a xenomorph may be involved.

[Racer X]

Depending on how far you want to go to retain the OEM setup, there are restoration shops that specialize in restoring brake components for cars that parts are no longer available for. You send your calipers to them, they bore the cylinders and press in stainless steel sleeves, then bore and hone them to the correct size. Pistons are either refurbished, or replacements turned out on a lathe. 
 

Probably not cheap, but with the stainless steel they shouldn’t give you any trouble ever again.

[Reptoid Overlords]

1 hour ago, Racer X said:

Depending on how far you want to go to retain the OEM setup

 

I'm not at all worried about keeping the OEM setup.  I will likely research potential replacements from other cars that might have more availability once I have some time and a nice dark beer in my hand this evening .  If such a thing even exists(The brake replacement that is).  Thanks for the tip, and I'll keep that in mind as I explore options. 

Looks like these guys might be worth talking to out near Port Orchard/Bremerton.  Other side of the Sound for me but possibly worth a ferry trip. 

https://www.goldlinebrakes.com/

[heyitsrama]

I feel like this brake set has been on CL for months, maybe the owner will ship... 👀

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/pts/7563156495.html

 

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/pts/7556712122.html

[Reptoid Overlords]

52 minutes ago, heyitsrama said:

I feel like this brake set has been on CL for months, maybe the owner will ship... 👀

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/pts/7563156495.html

 

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/pts/7556712122.html

Yeah that's the later ZX rear caliper.  I'm not above using that setup.  I've wanted this rear suspension from Apex Engineered ever since I found out about it.  it requires the later ZX rear calipers.  Maybe I can convince my boss that a bigger bonus this year means I'll put more money into the economy and he'll be making America stronger.

https://www.apexengineered.com/store/p79/Rear_Suspension_Kit.html

 

 

[Zed Head]

Apex has had had delivery problems for quite a while.  Better check the wait time.

That Gold Line Brakes shop looks interesting.  Worth a call or email.

The seals are in the bore right, so the piston is the part that needs to be perfect.  A rebuild kit might be worth an attempt, they seem cheap.  Figure out where the piston will sit with new pads.  Might be that your pads finally wore down enough to let the crusty piston surface hit the seals.  You'd imagine that a Craigslist part needs a rebuild too.  There's a reason they're not on a car.

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/nissan,1981,280zx,2.8l+l6,1209338,brake+&+wheel+hub,caliper+repair+kit,1720

[Patcon]

52 minutes ago, Zed Head said:

Apex has had had delivery problems for quite a while.  Better check the wait time.

That Gold Line Brakes shop looks interesting.  Worth a call or email.

The seals are in the bore right, so the piston is the part that needs to be perfect.  A rebuild kit might be worth an attempt, they seem cheap.  Figure out where the piston will sit with new pads.  Might be that your pads finally wore down enough to let the crusty piston surface hit the seals.  You'd imagine that a Craigslist part needs a rebuild too.  There's a reason they're not on a car.

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/nissan,1981,280zx,2.8l+l6,1209338,brake+&+wheel+hub,caliper+repair+kit,1720

You are correct, I was thinking it was the other way

C

[Reptoid Overlords]

I do have a Raybestos seal kit from Rockauto I was planning on installing today and having the car on the road. But the corrosion put a stop to that. I believe it's probably worth trying to either have re worked by a reputable shop or replacing.

Good to know about Apex. I won't be doing anything crazy like that for some time. I recently re acquired my 1991 civic Si I sold many years ago and have a B20B from a Japanese CRV/Integra 5 speed to swap into it. I've run out of room in the garage so I was forced to replace that transmission's input shaft bearing in the kitchen.

The Mrs. Is thrilled haha.

[Patcon]

Civic Si, My brother had about the same year. That little car would move and it handled really well too

[Racer X]

5 hours ago, Reptoid Overlords said:

I'm not at all worried about keeping the OEM setup.  I will likely research potential replacements from other cars that might have more availability once I have some time and a nice dark beer in my hand this evening .  If such a thing even exists(The brake replacement that is).  Thanks for the tip, and I'll keep that in mind as I explore options. 

Looks like these guys might be worth talking to out near Port Orchard/Bremerton.  Other side of the Sound for me but possibly worth a ferry trip. 

https://www.goldlinebrakes.com/

Nice to know these guys are close.
 

I like a ferry ride every once in a while. The guy who does my cylinder head porting and flowbench work lives on the other side of a ferry ride.