Well, this started with Berlyn0963's thread:
https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/mid-...ml#post5569554

I showed up yesterday to mostly look and ended up getting my mitts on his car, helping with the brake lines and was going to help with beading them... In the process, I managed to snap off one of the bleaders (even using pennetrant, tapping it..., he managed to get the other one out but rounded the hex...). So I pulled off the caliper and decided to drag it home and see if I can get it out.


Soaked it in Kroil (pennetrant), welded a nut, snapped off the nut.


Lather, rinse, repeat... did it 3x, getting it hotter each time.


So now what?

 

At this point at least I was pretty sure that no one was getting that thing out with a wrench, so I didn't feel _that_ bad that i broke it...

 

Over to the bridgeport... I found out that if I put a 123 block in the caliper and clamped down on it it fixtured it up almost perfectly:


Ok, I milled the fitting flat and then indicated in on the center of the hole in the fitting, then used a center drill to bore up the middle... if you look closely you can see the threads just peaking through on the left side of the picture (didn't actually touch the threads in the casting):


I found that the center hole in the fitting was actually .0037" from the actual center of the threads, at this point you usually can take a pin ***** punch, whack what is left of the threads, make a dimple in them and grab them and peal them out with needle nose pliers. No luck, it was fused to the casting, I got a little bit of it out but that was it. OK, recenter the hole so everything is lined up and mill it so all the threads are exposed:

 

Here I cut it down to where the hole is drilled across it to flow the fluid when you open the bleeder, still hoping that this thing comes loose (at this point it would usually just crumble and fall apart, and you just pick the threads clean... no dice):


BTW, at this point the threaded body is no longer connected to the tip that seals the fitting, what is hard to see in this picture is that I've cut past where the threads go and into the cavity around the end that seals the fitting, that cavity is filled with white aluminum corrosion.

different angle where you can see the corrosion better (the white boarder around the outside of the bottom of the hole), and you can see that I put a center drill back in the mill and started drilling into the sealing point in the end of the fitting, I was hoping that if I get it thin enough I could get it to fall apart and come out:


Still no dice. Here you can see the tip of the center drill broke through the end of the sealing point of the fitting, you can see the top of the piston in there. I don't dare going much farther into the hole without knowing what angle that taper is cut at so I don't screw up the seat that it seals on, but I also can't get the threads clear or knock what's left of the tip loose:

 

Shop dog is not amused:


I'm not sure what else to try. I cleaned it out and left it soaking in ATF, but it's been thoroughly soaked by now, I doubt that will help much.

Anyone have any ideas?

 

I got home last night, gave it the evil eye in the garage, sprayed it down with some Kroil, went inside and ate dinner and went to the gym. When I got back I decided that the screw removing bits (cut LH cut) looked really close to the right shape to the tip of one of those bleed screws
and decided to try that in the bottom of the hole. Set the VFD for 10hz and reversed the head (so it was spinning about 1/6 the speed and backwards) dropped the quill with some pressure thinking that I was hoping that it grabbed and ripped what was left of the tip of it out. It did and it came out in a couple of large chunks right away.

I still don't have the threads out, but worst case you can just very carefully run a dremel around them till you have them almost completely out. I dropped it off at his house late last night so he could have a look...

 

I think I would have just bought a new caliper as soon as the 2nd or 3rd welded nut didn't get it out.

 

 

Wow, you have some incredible determination my friend!

 

Hahah holy...

I would have sprung for a new caliper. Cant be that much for one of those. Agree that after the second welded nut didnt do it I would have packed it in.

But good on you for sticking it through! And at least you won!!

J.

 

LOL, it's not my caliper... I bought new calipers for the same swap on my car just so I didn't have to deal with these hassles

 

just buy a new one they arent that expensive

 

normally i'd say that a new caliper is the way to go, but playing on a Bridgeport is fun...

 

Haha yeah... I meant the owner should have just grabbed new ones.

My LS1 brakes were sitting for a while, and all the seals were crap, not to mention rust. Just that alone was enough to push me to grab two new calipers haha. Clean and new...paint, install, done. I hate dealing with brake stuff...

J.

 

Every time I work on my brakes I think it would be great to have stainless bleeders and never deal with problems like this again.

 

Try flushing your systems with alch .and replacing the fluid with silicone fluid. Stays cooler,and its NON caustic. Basicly a lifetme of care free brk work.