Nytrosfinder Posted April 13, 2009 Share Posted April 13, 2009 To keep it short, sweet and, simple: At my place we have a 1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee. (Dad said Absolutely No lift kits or mods to it)http://npora.ipbhost.com//style_emoticons/default/thumbsdown_anim.gif I am a high school student and I am in my automotive program at my High school. We have a brake lathe at my school an I am aloud to do any labor for my family or myself free, considering I do the labor myself. A little over a week and 1/2 ago, I noticed my brakes were squeaking and "out of round" or "miss-aligned" or "non parallel." (no they were not squealing from the pads being worn out, already checked that) I told him that all that needs to be done is have .002" (the width of a human hair on your head) machined off each side of the rotor to make them parallel again, and sand a little of the pads off to remove the glazing on the pads. (Keep in mind this is FREE LABOR to do this and my instructor is an ASE Certified Master Technician). I am thinking cost effective and beneficial. He said that considering its only $10 bucks a rotor at napa brand new and $14 for new pads(per axle), we should just get new parts rather than have the rotors be worn down a little and need it again in 3-4 months. He is thinking about what would be the most beneficial thing to do, which is buy new parts that will last longer in the long run. Get them machined= $0 Buy Brand New parts =$34 Help from a forum poll= Priceless help and opinions I keep telling him its free, he would rather spend money.... Doesn't make sense! What do you think should be the proper thing to do? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrimGreg Posted April 13, 2009 Share Posted April 13, 2009 If it's his truck and he says new parts, new parts the end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Posted April 13, 2009 Share Posted April 13, 2009 rotors are THAT cheap............... WTF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nytrosfinder Posted April 13, 2009 Author Share Posted April 13, 2009 Title is in his name I pay for EVERTHING else on it! If you look at it in terms of responsibility, It really should be my vehicle... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nytrosfinder Posted April 13, 2009 Author Share Posted April 13, 2009 rotors are THAT cheap............... WTF when you have connections at napa... yes they are... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted April 13, 2009 Share Posted April 13, 2009 From personal experience, the cheaper the rotor the faster it will warp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kingman Posted April 13, 2009 Share Posted April 13, 2009 (edited) x2. We used to put the crappiest, cheapest rotors we could on our Explorer and they would warp really quickly. I finally made my dad break down and get a set of high quality (bit pricey) ones and they were perfect for the rest of the time we owned the truck. In the end, he spend almost the same amount on repeated sets of crappy rotors as the one set of good ones. Edited April 13, 2009 by Kingman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5523Pathfinder Posted April 13, 2009 Share Posted April 13, 2009 I would measure the rotors first to see how thin they are. Then do a rotor run out check with a dial indicator. This will tell you how much you need to remove. Measure the thickness fo the pad that is left. If you have plenty of rotor and pad left, show him the specs(engineers love numbers). Brake pads wear quicker on a poor surface. Machining them will extend the life and usefulness of the brakes. YOu can put the $20 saved into the fuel tank, or a tune up, or a gift for your dad. IF the rotors are too thin, or too much material will need to be removed, then pony up the dough. Doing all of these things will help you learn and do things the right way instead of just throwing money at a problem. Oh, and 88 is right. Cheap rotors are just that, Cheap. You will end up having to resurface them or replace them much sooner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nytrosfinder Posted April 13, 2009 Author Share Posted April 13, 2009 From personal experience, the cheaper the rotor the faster it will warp. These are a "step up" from the stock rotors. Retail value for a regular customer is like $30 a rotor vs the stock replacement at $20 a rotor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nytrosfinder Posted April 13, 2009 Author Share Posted April 13, 2009 (edited) I would measure the rotors first to see how thin they are. Then do a rotor run out check with a dial indicator. This will tell you how much you need to remove. Measure the thickness fo the pad that is left. If you have plenty of rotor and pad left, show him the specs(engineers love numbers). Brake pads wear quicker on a poor surface. Machining them will extend the life and usefulness of the brakes. YOu can put the $20 saved into the fuel tank, or a tune up, or a gift for your dad.IF the rotors are too thin, or too much material will need to be removed, then pony up the dough. Doing all of these things will help you learn and do things the right way instead of just throwing money at a problem. Oh, and 88 is right. Cheap rotors are just that, Cheap. You will end up having to resurface them or replace them much sooner. I know all about the measuring... and it cant be more than .003"-.004" out of line. Cause it happens when the calipers are fully released at slow speeds.... and I will try that numbers thing... maybe it will work.... Edited April 13, 2009 by Nytrosfinder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k9sar Posted April 14, 2009 Share Posted April 14, 2009 where's the "none of the above" button? I would explain that doing the job myself would gain me valuable experience at my school and for any future repair work that may come up. Hands-on is much better than book. If successful, great... a few dollars saved. If not, it's an easy fallback to buy new ones. now... with that said, the other option I see is to go ahead and buy the cheap ones that Dad is willing to pay for. Take your old ones (now trash) and machine them anyway. Then, you get the experience and when the POS rotors warp, you can pull out the machined ones to replace them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted April 14, 2009 Share Posted April 14, 2009 X2. My dad almost always keeps his old set of rotors....then has them turned before the next brake job. Always have nicely machined rotors on the truck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamzan Posted April 14, 2009 Share Posted April 14, 2009 X2. My dad almost always keeps his old set of rotors....then has them turned before the next brake job. Always have nicely machined rotors on the truck. Dammit why didn't I think of that....I gave my old rotors to a friend. But yeah, listen to these guys, they know what they're talking about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tekazgtr1984 Posted April 14, 2009 Share Posted April 14, 2009 when you have connections at napa... yes they are... Yup, always nice. I'd say try machining the parts. If it doesn't work out, spend the $30 for new stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nytrosfinder Posted April 15, 2009 Author Share Posted April 15, 2009 I have told him that it would be a learning experience... and became semi open to it... not so much though... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted April 15, 2009 Share Posted April 15, 2009 k9sar gets the prize... My dad almost always keeps his old set of rotors....then has them turned before the next brake job. Always have nicely machined rotors on the truck. B B B But Simon, haven't you explained to him that by turning the rotors he is just weakening them and making them much more prone to warping in the future?? B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrimGreg Posted April 15, 2009 Share Posted April 15, 2009 Like my shop teacher pointed out; to the normal person, if they see a guy working on his car all the time, they think he is a good mechanic, however if he was a good mechanic he wouldn't be working on the car all the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted April 15, 2009 Share Posted April 15, 2009 k9sar gets the prize...B B B But Simon, haven't you explained to him that by turning the rotors he is just weakening them and making them much more prone to warping in the future?? B Yes, I have.....and once they've been turned once, and have warped, again, he chucks them. He just has to get his moneys worth out of everything. I don't agree with it, just sharing another view on things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nytrosfinder Posted April 16, 2009 Author Share Posted April 16, 2009 Looks like I will be getting new pads and rotors.... after a new bumper, radiator, Radiator supports, head light, turn signal, and grill. Had a bit of a collision today... my fault.... Pathfinder is gonna rest till Christmas 2015.... this stuff is so much worse than i have heard.... Be expecting to see some parts or things for sale on this forum soon.... And yes... my brakes had something to do with the wreck... they didn't stop me as well as they should have.... Sad thing was, tomorrow morning is when I was gonna get the new high performance rotors and pads put on... If anyone wants to contribute to the cause my address is 9636 stant... forget it... I am just so bummed about this... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kingman Posted April 16, 2009 Share Posted April 16, 2009 Wow bro, that sucks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HankG Posted April 16, 2009 Share Posted April 16, 2009 Like my shop teacher pointed out; to the normal person, if they see a guy working on his car all the time, they think he is a good mechanic, however if he was a good mechanic he wouldn't be working on the car all the time. What if they own a Jeep? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unccpathfinder Posted April 16, 2009 Share Posted April 16, 2009 OUCH...once again pull apart will save you...I found a nice modine radiator there thats in my truck now...it looked brand new when i found it...you can pull/trim fenders/bumpers whatever so the tires clear and drive it..just get the radiator fixed...I drove wheelmanLS1's pathy after his wreck and it was smashed up pretty good my front radiator support is still bent on my truck from where my dad plowed into my truck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nytrosfinder Posted April 17, 2009 Author Share Posted April 17, 2009 OUCH...once again pull apart will save you...I found a nice modine radiator there thats in my truck now...it looked brand new when i found it...you can pull/trim fenders/bumpers whatever so the tires clear and drive it..just get the radiator fixed...I drove wheelmanLS1's pathy after his wreck and it was smashed up pretty good my front radiator support is still bent on my truck from where my dad plowed into my truck Dad said no to pull apart... he wants me to make me know what it feels like to financially suffer... and pay the full cost at a professional auto body shop.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HankG Posted April 17, 2009 Share Posted April 17, 2009 Dad said no to pull apart... he wants me to make me know what it feels like to financially suffer... and pay the full cost at a professional auto body shop.... Wow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87pathy Posted April 17, 2009 Share Posted April 17, 2009 actually, Your SUPPOSED TO machine new rotors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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