Maverik Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Yo, I've got a full set of new calipers for the td5 defender to fit up as the originals are past it. Had a brain wave thought to swap out the steel pistons for stainless ones, I've seen some, namely STC201S I believed are bearmach branded, if I purchase them, is it as easy as just pulling the present ones out and putting the new ss ones in? Cheers Mav Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Yes, with new seals, I intend to swap the pistons on my calipers to stainless steel when funds allow, the kit I'm looking at includes new seals for all 4 calipers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maverik Posted March 4, 2015 Author Share Posted March 4, 2015 Hey Ralph, you mention seals too... The calipers I have are brand new, for the pistons to work I presume they are exactly the same size at the standard steel ones, I should'nt think I need to change the seals too...? Or am I missing something? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 the set I'm looking at is 46mm diameter, so same size as steel pistons, it's just normal practice to replace the seals when any brake work is done, they are your last line of stopping safely. existing seals new or not could be damaged [it may not be visible] when fitting new pistons. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/400122887045?_trksid=p2060778.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Early90 Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 When i put stainless pistons into new calipers last year i fitted new seals too. I thought the actual seals would be ok but was worried about deforming/reusing the retainers.For the cost you might aswell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maverik Posted March 4, 2015 Author Share Posted March 4, 2015 Yup, understood, sound advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Team Idris Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 I have to say I did use the old seals. I would only change the square ones if any. The new SS Pistons were absolute fecks to get in there and had to be Bob on square to fit in, for no reason I could see or measure? I suppose I normally fit Pistons into calipers with metal missing from rust that made the hole bigger? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muddy Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 I was reading the new ****part catalogue yesterday and notice they do SS piston sets and a seal fitting tool now. Will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bowie69 Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 I wonder if they make seal retainers that actually fit now? Somehow I doubt it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reb78 Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Haha ^^^^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejparrott Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 I decided in the end to use the steel pistons in my callipers when I rebuilt them for the 88, and I've got brand new callipers for The 109 when it's time comes. I'm not going to bother changing them. When they need new pads, I'll have a damn good inspection of them, I fully expect the pistons to be well corroded, and I'll change them then. Why waste a perfectly good set of pistons and seals? When I've got a bit of spare cash I'll get a set of stainless pistons for the 88 in stock. That way, when the time comes, they'll be sitting there waiting, and I won't be left with a vehicle off the road, needing to find lots of money for new pistons. The only think I won't buy is the seals, but they're cheap anyway, and I can get them at my local motor factors same day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maverik Posted March 5, 2015 Author Share Posted March 5, 2015 Well the thought was to put ss pistons in thus giving me "maintenance" free calipers for a good while that's all, all the calipers I've ever found ready for new pistons usually means the casting bodies are usually pretty ugly too... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Team Idris Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 It's a good plan, and I imagine that when you push any rusty pistons back into the new caliper the rust crystals start to act on the caliper metal. I put the chromed steel pistons on the shelf incase somebody needs some one day. It was interesting that the SS pistons that came out of my old caliper (which bust a lug) had rust on them. I wiped it off with Jenolite phosphoric acid because it was well stuck on the surface. The surface underneath was pristine, the rust having come from the caliper casting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Brock Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 I went for new calipers and stainless pistons using the as unused seals. my thought were to start rust free and hopefully stay the same inside the calipers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejparrott Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 I'm working on the basis that when she has her first set of new pads I'll just push the old pistons out and fit the new stainless. There won't be any pushing back of rusty pistons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snagger Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 I wouldn't bother replacing the main seals in the new callipers when fitting ss pistons - what damage can be done to them can also be done to replacement seals, so what's the point? The wiper seals at the top, though can fold over as the pistons are inserted. I found the best way of fitting them was to press the piston in half way and then fit the wiper seal followed by the retaining ring. So, buying a set of rings so you can remove the wiper seals and do it that way if you run into difficulty with folding wipers would be a useful precaution. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyb Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 I've had stainless caliper pistons in my Discovery for must be 12+ years now. It was sat for about 3 years until I recently stucks some new pads it in and took it to a trial. Every single piston slid back in just fine, not one of the them was stuck. Whatever method you use from suggested above, you won't regret changing to stainless caliper pistons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheffield Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 I purchased the Britpart SS pistons and seal sets to do our '96 Discovery. I also bought a set of good quality seals in case the seals in the kit were no good, but the markings on both sets of seals was the same. I did however find the spare extra seals useful to replace one damaged in fittting. The pistons seemed to be alright, and after a battle to get the old rusted ones out fitted well. Also I used silicon brake fluid and do not expect any trouble with the brakes for some years to come. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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