Has anyone had their calipers repainted a different color? Where would you recommend taking them? Brother in Law has a 550 with Black, wants them Yellow.
My calipers were black and I wanted them yellow to add contrast to a black 348 with black wheels. I simply cleaned my calipers up with four cans of brake cleaner and a small wire brush. Then taped everything off and spray them with two cans of yellow "Dupli-Color Engine Enamel with Ceramic". I didn't even have to remove the calipers, I painted them right on the car. Yes, it took a long time to tape everything off, and I mean everything, exposing only the caliper! Then after the calipers dryed, I sprayed black engine ceramic paint on a clean rag wrapped around a wood block and tapped the Ferrari logo on the caliper with it. They turned out great!! Better then I expected. After a year, and several washes, they still look great! Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Here's a better photo This is what they look like after a year of hard use... (note they're dirty) Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
D'elegance Detailing has done several of mine over the years. He uses an airbrush setup which seems to work really well for this stuff. He then follows up after the paint cures with a ceramic coating to help preserve and protect the calipers. And it is true the majority of the work is the prep work and just masking everything off. He actually covers the entire car to ensure no over spray lays on the car. Most people only mask off the wheel well area which could be a mistake.
Yes, masking off everything takes several hours. When I sprayed mine, I covered the entire car... top, bottom, engine, shocks, rotors... everything! The only thing left exposed was the calipers. Thoroughly cleaning every millimeter of the caliper with an old tooth brush along with lots of brake cleaner and using quality ceramic paint is key. It's a lot of work for a DIY-er. But, if you take your time and do it right, it's very rewarding. Or... you can simply hire someone to do it for you ;-)
Bullsh*t. My calipers look perfect from a spray can! Even after a year of hard use. No chips, scratches or fading.
Powder coating is nice. Unfortunately to do PC you have to completely remove the calipers which also means you will need to do your brake fluids. I would only do this if my brake fluid needs replacing or my calipers need to be rebuilt. Otherwise just for a color change that is a bit overkill imho. But to each their own. Just curious who did your PC?
I use a guy in Moreno Valley for the PC. I bought new seals from RacingBrake in fullerton. We layed a sticker over the first coat of powder and then a clear powder over to lock in the logos on my 458 calipers.
My friend had a guy tape the entire car. He ended up getting overspray all over the car as it got through the cracks and vents in the fenders then just fumigated inside the plastic wrap on the car :/
OC Wheel Recon is the go to guy. All the reputable shops actually outsource to him (Boden Autohaus, Protective Film Solutions, GMG Racing). He's inexpensive and excellent with his finish. Painted calipers is actually alot more intricate than most people realize. Many unskilled painters will paint bolts, screws, pins, etc. that should not be painted. OC Wheel Recon will make sure to only paint what needs to be painted. He just painted the calipers of an F12 TDF in Azzuro Dino and it literally looks like it came from factory. Also, do not powder coat your calipers. Powder coat is a lot thicker than paint. Brembo does not powder coat any of their brakes from factory, and strongly advises against it. Below I've attached a Speciale that has a careless caliper job with very common mistakes. Notice how a significant portion of the caliper is painted yellow that should not be, such as the upper parking caliper and some rubber plugs. I see this way too often and it really bugs me! Image Unavailable, Please Login
Wow sorry to hear that. I never had any issues with overspray. And if I do I am not worried at all since my cars are ceramic coated. My guy makes sure everything is masked including any vents or louvers. Also he makes sure whatever needs to be painted is painted and what should not be painted isn't.
I have had calipers both painted and PC in the past and haven't had any issues with either even under spirited driving. I know the whole worry is trapped heat due to PC, but that is a myth and I do not think that is the reason Brembo advises to stay away from PC. I believe their reasoning is it won't be the exact finish Brembo provides. But Brembo doesn't even recommend painting their calipers either. As you can see here https://www.brembo.com/en/company/news/5-reasons-not-to-use-repainted-brake-calipers-brembo . At the end of the day, paint or PC is fine as long as the necessary prep work is done properly and the painter knows what to paint and what not too. Also for the people who believe calipers shouldn't be PC, Wilwood and other manufacturers powder coat their calipers. In the end if you are happy with your purchase then that is all that matters.
We do all of our calipers here in house here at TAG Motorsports! We have a few sets a week either shipped to us, or done here while the car waits. We take great pride in our caliper process and it truly shows. We meticulously disassemble, clean, and prep these for paint in our booth. Take a look at some examples here: Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
