After track day lots of grinding!

[ChrisHolmes]

It does say the the design is “based on” the AP caliper which means it is not a replica/duplicate so whilst visually it looks the same the working bits clearly are a different spec from what has been posted.

[rameshr]

I am not concerned about that, although in the spirit of the purchase it should have been specified what the difference is. But none of us asked so

I am concerned that the product is incorrect based on what Zippy said in the orientation of the piston


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[RenesisRaceBuggy]

If you're handy with the spanners it's easy to fix, you can pop the bleed nipples and link pipe from end to end and then fit the calipers the right way up, although you'll probably want to fit new pads at the same time as I imagine if they are all setup like that, then you're all suffering from massive taper wear.

[rameshr]

I just changed to new pads and I am not handy enough, from my point if these were sent out incorrectly then I would expect some sort of compensation. I just pad to change the pads and disc as they were ruined as well.

So to the big piston must be on top when looking at caliper?


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[RenesisRaceBuggy]

Yes, large piston at the top, small piston on the bottom.

[rameshr]

There were a few people that bought this, are others seeing similar issues? If you are could you post some pictures.


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[Dr. FrankenRex]

I hammered mine on track and never had any issues with pads tapering. Not got the car anymore so can't comment.

Ed?

[rameshr]

Can you remember the orientation of the pistons?


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[Freaky]

After looking back on the group buy (over 18 months ago I believe) and having had no customers report uneven pad taper wear, I’d hazard a guess this is a one-off.

The calipers should have been set up as trailing edge calipers (the smaller piston being the first piston on rotation with the larger as the second). This is done by changing the crossover pipe and bleed nipples over. A 5 minute job usually done during the caliper assembly. As they can be supplied either way around we specify this when ordering the caliper from the manufacturer (Compbrake).
It may simply be the case this pair didn’t have the orientation set correctly.
You’re welcome to post them back to me and I’ll swap them over for you, or you can do it yourself. If you’ve stripped the caliper down to clean it up anyway, it will take no more than 5 minutes per caliper.
From memory you need an 11mm spanner (brake pipe spanner ideally if it will fit) and for piece of mind you can use a little threadlock on the crossover pipe thread.

Remove the crossover pipe and bleed nipples
Flip the caliper upside down
Clean out the brake fluid and ensure the threads are clean.
Put a dab of theadlock on the thread of the cross over pipe
Screw it back in evenly on both sides
Nip it up with the spanner
Then stick the bleed nipples in, refit and bleed.

Obviously don’t do this if the orientation is already correct!

[Freaky]

Just to clarify.
The RX8 has a trailing edge caliper setup (at the back of the disc)
The first piston to come in contact with the disc should be the smallest.
If your caliper is fitted with the larger piston at the top and the smaller piston at the bottom, this is the correct setup for a trailing edge caliper.

[Freaky]

Looking at the post you put up on the 22nd December saying the pistons aren’t moving in the caliper, this would indicate a stuck piston which will 100% cause uneven pad wear. Significantly more than having the leading piston as the larger

[Freaky]

viewtopic.php?f=146&t=78845

This mention of seals in the above post makes for interesting reading after the post above!

Unfortunately that thread wasn’t started by us. At no point do we mention the calipers come with dust seals. They clearly don’t as you can see in the pictures. First seals aren’t great on track or race calipers either. They have an annoying habit of catching fire.

[rameshr]

Looking at the post you put up on the 22nd December saying the pistons aren’t moving in the caliper, this would indicate a stuck piston which will 100% cause uneven pad wear. Significantly more than having the leading piston as the larger

Hi

Looks like I have just been unlucky, I used the original pads when I installed these. Would the incorrect orientation cause sticky piston over time?

I am not confident I have the skill to do this, I will have to pay someone. Was hoping to go on a track end of Jan but I think I better get this sorted first.

Will give you a call tomorrow Stuart.


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[RenesisRaceBuggy]

With that amount of taper wear it can cause the sticky pistons, as it twists the piston in the bore slightly when pressure is applied - but it shouldn't cause any long-term issues, a good clean and popping them back in will reseat the seals anyway.

[rameshr]

If only one side had this issue then I can understand that the orientation did not have any effect. But both side have worn identically which means something else is causing the uneven wear. Hence my question.


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[Freaky]

Have you changed the pads since fitting the original set(before recently)?
If so did you follow the correct procedure for fitting pads into these calipers?

[zippyonline]

After looking back on the group buy (over 18 months ago I believe) and having had no customers report uneven pad taper wear, I’d hazard a guess this is a one-off.

The calipers should have been set up as trailing edge calipers (the smaller piston being the first piston on rotation with the larger as the second). This is done by changing the crossover pipe and bleed nipples over. A 5 minute job usually done during the caliper assembly. As they can be supplied either way around we specify this when ordering the caliper from the manufacturer (Compbrake).
It may simply be the case this pair didn’t have the orientation set correctly.

To add a bit of context to these stats, there's a few owners I know who never fitted the kit (Adam, myself, Carl hasn't done any miles with his), there's Dan who's done limited mileage, and others who have effectively only done low stress road miles on them. My brakes from the photos you can clearly see setup for leading edge calipers, as have Ramesh and skimming through the photos on the group buy threads, you Davy has too.

viewtopic.php?f=144&t=73096&start=100#p1098135

Hi folks just got my calipars back from painting really happy with them and here they are

This would suggest that it's more than one set of calipers that have been setup as leading rather than trailing calipers. As an aside, the opening photo for the group buy also shows a leading caliper setup for an EP3 with trailing calipers, but appreciate they could be a collection of stock illustration photos than the photo of the actual kit.

Anyway, I think my point is those with these brakes should check that they're setup in the correct orientation - is this something Dan the originator of the group buy could orchestrate?

And Stewart - thanks for sticking around and supporting your product, it feels like you're getting a hard time with questions etc. but your responses are appreciated.

[AdamGaltress]

To add a bit of context to these stats, there's a few owners I know who never fitted the kit (Adam, myself, Carl hasn't done any miles with his), there's Dan who's done limited mileage, and others who have effectively only done low stress road miles on them. My brakes from the photos you can clearly see setup for leading edge calipers, as have Ramesh and skimming through the photos on the group buy threads, you Davy has too.

Just had a look back at a photo of mine, it looks like at least one is incorrectly set up, can't tell on the other one. The calipers bought changed hands a few times from what I know so unlikely that I'd be able to find the current owner.

[ChrisHolmes]

After looking back on the group buy (over 18 months ago I believe) and having had no customers report uneven pad taper wear, I’d hazard a guess this is a one-off.

The calipers should have been set up as trailing edge calipers (the smaller piston being the first piston on rotation with the larger as the second). This is done by changing the crossover pipe and bleed nipples over. A 5 minute job usually done during the caliper assembly. As they can be supplied either way around we specify this when ordering the caliper from the manufacturer (Compbrake).
It may simply be the case this pair didn’t have the orientation set correctly.

To add a bit of context to these stats, there's a few owners I know who never fitted the kit (Adam, myself, Carl hasn't done any miles with his), there's Dan who's done limited mileage, and others who have effectively only done low stress road miles on them. My brakes from the photos you can clearly see setup for leading edge calipers, as have Ramesh and skimming through the photos on the group buy threads, you Davy has too.

viewtopic.php?f=144&t=73096&start=100#p1098135

Hi folks just got my calipars back from painting really happy with them and here they are

This would suggest that it's more than one set of calipers that have been setup as leading rather than trailing calipers. As an aside, the opening photo for the group buy also shows a leading caliper setup for an EP3 with trailing calipers, but appreciate they could be a collection of stock illustration photos than the photo of the actual kit.

Anyway, I think my point is those with these brakes should check that they're setup in the correct orientation - is this something Dan the originator of the group buy could orchestrate?

And Stewart - thanks for sticking around and supporting your product, it feels like you're getting a hard time with questions etc. but your responses are appreciated.

A question here potentially is "Could the painters have re-assemble the calipers incorrectly?"

[zippyonline]

A question here potentially is "Could the painters have re-assemble the calipers incorrectly?"

That's a good point!

I don't think anyone here is particularly out to blame anyone - no-one involved in the whole process along the whole supply chain wants to set up the brakes incorrectly - especially given the effort levels are identical. In an ideal world, we'd all have the calipers setup the correct way round, and it turns out some of them aren't - wherever that happened along the line. I expect Stewart has learnt he needs to make sure on any future kits before they go out of the door, and any current owners should have a look at their setup.

[rameshr]

Have you changed the pads since fitting the original set(before recently)?
If so did you follow the correct procedure for fitting pads into these calipers?

This is the first time changing pads, in the end I got Luke to do it. Can u confirm the process, I can then check with Luke.






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[Freaky]

Correct process for changing pads is simply make sure you clean the exposed parts of the pistons with warm soapy water and a toothbrush so you don’t push the dirt back into the body of the caliper. This would be the same with any stainless piston setup which don’t run dust seals.

If there is anyone else with these calipers who find them to be setup as leading not trailing edge calipers and aren’t able to swap them, I’m happy for you to ship them back to me and I’ll swap them around.
If you are doing it yourself, don’t go at them hammer and chisel, if you damage the crossover pipe or caliper thread, they’re outside of any warranty.

[Freaky]

Have you changed the pads since fitting the original set(before recently)?
If so did you follow the correct procedure for fitting pads into these calipers?

This is the first time changing pads, in the end I got Luke to do it. Can u confirm the process, I can then check with Luke.

You’ve done well for them to last 18 months out on track then!

[rameshr]

I only did 6 track days a load of low speed auto solo's

[ChrisHolmes]

Anyway, I think my point is those with these brakes should check that they're setup in the correct orientation - is this something Dan the originator of the group buy could orchestrate?

Being flat, no, it isn't something I can or should orchestrate. Ultimately it's not my product, and all I did was organise a group buy.

If people have issues with the product then they should contact the supplier for it to be rectified - as Ramesh is doing and as FreakyParts are advising people to do so

Whilst I consider myself fairly mechanically minded, I didn't design these calipers and don't know much about brakes in terms of their design, so whilst I'd more than happily look at everyone's calipers and go "yep, they're brakes" I can't see it being helpful.

If people are concerned, talk to FreakyParts - it's not like they've gone quiet and disappeared off the face of the planet; they're here and offering help to their customers. What more can you expect from a supplier of parts?