NeverSatisfied02

iTrader: (12)

Yeah, my buddy ordered a brake kit from some other site. Came with performance pads and zinc coated black rotors. They do look nice but they were twice the price at $500. Biggest turn off to me is that when he details his car, just a short trip around the block and his wheels are dusted to hell again. I will admit his brake prob bite a little harder then mine due to the performance pads but I'll take my pads anyway over those on the street if they'll keep the dust down and still perform well.

xbladr

iTrader: (2)

Which stuff are u using i have squeeling problems no matter what I do with my brakes. I have uses the CRC/permatex stuff or whatever with no luck

FuzzyLog1c

iTrader: (4)

I use the spray version of the CRC disc brake quiet product, which is sold at just about every AutoZone and Advance Auto Parts in the country. Assuming you install your pads with the titanium shims that came with your car and you have your retainer clips in nice and even (just trying to eliminate possible sources of error, here), almost any brake quiet product should do the job. That said, here's what I do:

1. Remove your brake pads and separate the titanium shims from the pads.
   
2. Use brake cleaner fluid (CRC makes a good product) to thoroughly remove all foreign contaminants from the back of the pads and both sides of the shims. Take this opportunity to clean out the slot between the halves of the pad with a flat-blade screwdriver and check to ensure that you don't have any foreign objects embedded in the pad surface.
   
3. Lay the freshly cleaned pads and shims on a disposable surface (cardboard box / paper towels). Gently spray a nice, thick coat of disc brake quiet to the back of the calipers and the mating surface of the shims. Allow to set for about 5 minutes. The fluid should congeal and no longer run off the pad/shim if you tilt it. It should be a nice, dark, bloody red. If it's not, add a second layer and let it sit for another 5 minutes.
   
4. Place shims on the back of the brake calipers. They should stick together easily and will be hard to slide or separate. Apply another nice, thick coat of disc brake quiet to the back of the shims as they rest on the pads. Allow to set for 5 minutes before installing pads/shims back in your calipers.

Try to remember that if you clean your wheels (and more specifically your calipers) with a harsh solvent, it'll dissolve the brake quiet pretty quickly.

NeverSatisfied02

iTrader: (12)

Or just pull those titanium shims off since the pads come with a metal plate on the rear anyway. On purpose those shims serve is to show when your pads are low by squealing on the low pad indicator pins. Other than that... They are just potential noise makers.

xbladr

iTrader: (2)

Never no shims on it just the metal plate on the pads that came with them...

I will give that a shot fuzzy. Hopefully that will help me out a little and quiet them down

NeverSatisfied02

iTrader: (12)

Yes sir. Those little plate shims are useless. Hey are super thin and cause a rattle if u don't grease them up good enough. No thanks. I'll check my pads visually. That's the best way to do it anyway.

Fuzzy_Wuzzy

iTrader: (8)

If you don't like the brake dust, Armor all makes a spray that keeps the brake dust off the wheels really good.

FuzzyLog1c

iTrader: (4)

The purpose of brake shims are to prevent brakes from squealing, and help prevent heat transfer from the pads from the pistons. This prolongs the life of your calipers by keeping the O-rings from melting, and keeps you from boiling or burning your brake fluid.

Bottom line: if your brakes are squealing and you threw away the excellent shims that came with the car, you're on your own. It'll cost you about $350 to replace them.

pho_phizzat

I am about to do this very thing. I saw the write up on how to remove the pads on cadillacfaq but is there a write up on the rotors as well? Is there anything else I may need besides the pads and rotors?

BudRacing

iTrader: (3)

Just some brake lubricant for the back of the pads as described above. You'll also need brake fluid to top off after bleeding the air out. It might be a good idea to flush all the old fluid out at that point anyway.

xbladr

iTrader: (2)

Fuzzy these pads came with new shims on them and I have switched to using those shims instead however I do still have my old shims. I tried running both sets of shims with no luck I could try switching to the old shims instead of the new ones but i feel like that wouldnt help.

FuzzyLog1c

iTrader: (4)

What kind of pads are you running?

As I understand it, squeal is caused by vibration between the metal pad backing in contact with the metal caliper pistons, or in some cases, the pad compound in contact with the iron rotor.

In my case, the Hawk HP+ brakes always squeal when they're cold, and become silent as they heat up. If I continue to get squealing after the first couple of brake applications, then I know that it's time to start thinking about cleaning the shims and refreshing the anti-squeal lubricant.

NeverSatisfied02

iTrader: (12)

Although that seems like a good theory, metal conducts heat so i highly doubt a sliver of it used as a shim behind the larger and much more solid plate like piece permanently connected to the pad would do anything for heat protection. And as far as the rattle, i haven't heard a single sound since i took them off.

aurora40

iTrader: (1)

I put these on like a year ago. But I'll second the opinion that they have better initial bite than the factory pads. They also dust 1000x less than the factory pads.

That said, I would not try to use these pads on the track, whereas the stockers were great at V-day last year.

I also get a bit of steering wheel shimmy at higher speed moderate braking (nothing through the pedal though). It's pretty annoying because the rotors have had a pretty easy life. They've also mostly always done that. But for 1/4 the price of other rotors, I guess what do you expect? I am still pleased with the package overall.

Onefast V

iTrader: (3)

While you are right metals conduct heat. Not all metal are created equal, not all metals conduct heat the same. Titanium for example has very low thermal conductivity (21.9 W·m^(−1)·K^(−1)) relative to the steel (starts at 31W·m^(−1)·K^(−1) but ranges up to 53.6) backing plate I'm sure the brake pad uses. SO tianium will slow the heating process down (slow down temperature rise on brake pistons and fluid) relative to a steel backing plate.

NeverSatisfied02

iTrader: (12)

Makes sense. I just don't know if it would make a big enough difference to even notice it. On a track car that's riding the brakes non-stop until they're blazing, its probably beneficial to have them but I don't see temps getting high enough on the street to harm a mildly driven daily driver.

Onefast V

iTrader: (3)

On a average street car the benefits would be negligible

FuzzyLog1c

iTrader: (4)

Good to see another person with a good practical knowledge of material science. Couple of thermal conductivity data points:

Copper: 401 W/mK
Aluminum: 237 W/mK
Cast Iron: 55 W/mK
Carbon Steel: 36-54 W/mK (process dependent)
Titanium Alloy: 5.8 W/mK
Air: 0.025 W/mK

aurora40

iTrader: (1)

https://ls1tech.com/forums/cadillac-...placement.html

That thread discusses those shims a bit. They are pretty thin, I can't imagine it's a huge difference one way or the other. I ended up reusing them though. I got some Ti shims later for the front, which I'll put in if I ever put some track pads on the car (fingers crossed on another V-day).

Onefast V

iTrader: (3)

I'm a materials engineer... sometimes helps with these things