Hi Folks,

I've got a 2004 SSM 6MT with 87K mile on which I replaced the rotors and pads and flex lines yesterday.

All was going well until I loosened the passenger side inside bleeder screw and noticed that it would not remove easily. I finally worked it out by alternately tightening and loosening the screw. Well you've probably already guessed it, the alloy threads came off with the bleeder screw. I spent the next 2 hours finding and modifying a hardened bolt (11mm by 1.0 pitch thread, not very common) to replace the bleeder screw: So far this is working. I would like to either rethread the caliper or install a repair kit, sort of like a helicoil kit. Does anyone have any experience with this.

By the way, I had never previously removed or loosened that bleeder screw.

Thank you,
TL-Rocket

 

You can bring it to a parts store and they might have something to match it. Is it just the threads on the bleeder or are the threads in the caliper messed up too?

 

It's the caliper as well.....

 

as a side note- this is one reason you are supposed to flush the brake fluid starting at year 3 and then every year forever

I have seen 2 year old cars with corrosion holding everything shut tight--
start on a program of early prevention~

 

Ewwwwww. This is bad. My advice is to try and see if you can get the proper size helicoil kit.

 

Murphy Strikes Again!... can you post up some pics? I'd like to see this for myself. If you have resolved it, let us know where you went or what you did. I find it amazing that the caliper threads were also stripped. I'm guessing you didn't use a lot of force to strip the thread so a rethread / helicoil kit may do the trick. worst case.. new caliper

 

Why not just try a thread chaser first? I can't see how a bleeder could mess up caliper threads to the point where it needs to be helicoiled. The metal composition is much softer on the bleeder.

 

You would think so but two different metals can react to moisture differently and actually fuse themselves together. I think the scientific word is disimilar corrosion but anyhow. So when the bleeder is removed all it needs to do is hang onto a small chunk of the the caliper material and since the OP was working it back and forth that chunk of metal was acting like a thread chaser....but instead of straightening the threads out it was making doody out of them. It doesnt take much.

 

How about using a larger diameter bleeder? Drill and tap to new size rather than using a helicoil.

 

Should work too. Just be sure to make sure the seat is the same. Would suck to drill out and then the new bleeder doesnt seal. I like the thread chasing idea the best. Try running a tap or chaser down the threads. There may be enough material to hold the bleeder in. Just dont overtighten!

 

Use a bottoming tap opposed to a tapered tap.

 

Retapping it is the cheapest option just make sure that its clean when you reinstall.

 

Thanks for the input everyone:

I finally found a thread chaser with the right pitch, then spent the next 20 minutes truing up the bleeder threads. Since we'd found a plain bolt (11mm by 1.0) in an attempt to just seal the bleeder hole, we were able to clean up the threads in the caliper. I then applied some teflon tape to the bleeder and threaded it in. It went in smoothly and after a couple of turns, pretty tightly.

So far so good, I was able to tighten it securely and it's not leaking.
I'm going to buy a spare bleeder screw ($10.00) to have on hand though.

By the way, the Rotora slotted rotors with the Hawk ceramic pads are great.
For the first time since I've owned the car I actually have braking feel.
I got the setup from Excelerate. I can't wait to install the rear rotors and pads.

Thanks for the suggestions,
TL-Rocket

 

Turbonut and Racing have it right........try chasing the threads out first plus some teflon tape on a new bleeder or tapping to a larger size which is trickier. A cheap and dirty way to determine the tap size if you can't determine it online, is to find a nut that the new bleeder screw fits best is how I'd determine tap sizing.

If you make friends and be honest with your Acura parts guy he will fix you up..these things are cheap!

You might also just take it off and go to a machine shop with it, it will repair just fine ......this isn't a huge problem and happens lots. It could have been worse if it broke off inside the hole!

Regular maintenance does keep these bleeders "excercised" so that they don't seize up. I do my fluid every year, so my reservoir is always clear looking, boiling point high as possible.

QuickRick

 

Are you sure about that?

My 1st guess would be that the bleeder is Grade8 stainless, and that area of the caliper body something less- like billet aluminum. I haven't been into mine yet, though. I'll probably do the first flush this spring.

Stainless in aluminum is a recipe for galling/seizing disaster if you side-load the bolt rotation at all. Put all your energy into rotating the screw, so as not to load the threads. Usually you are safe.

You have no f'in idea how many times I've had to go over this with people at work (unrelated field).

 

Glad to hear! I'm going to save this thread for reference.

 

"Stainless Steel
Stainless steel is an alloy of low carbon steel and chromium for enhanced corrosion characteristics. Stainless steel is highly corrosion resistant for the price and because the anti-corrosive properties are inherent to the metal, it will not loose this resistance if scratched during installation or use.

It is a common misconception that stainless steel is stronger than regular steel. In fact, due to the low carbon content, stainless steel can not be hardened. Therefore when compared with regular steel it is slightly stronger than an un-hardened (grade 2) steel fastener but significantly weaker than hardened steel fasteners.

Stainless steel is also much less magnetic than regular steel fasteners though some grades will be slightly magnetic."

I doubt the bleeder is even SS ... probably plated steel. The rest of your post is spot-on though ... SS in aluminum has a serious dissimilar corrosion/electrolysis issue and should be avoided whenever possible(which is why I doubt the manufacturer would use any grade stainless bleeder considering hydraulic fluid properties ... hygroscopic).

Sorry ... way too many years in a metallurgical environment Sorry for the technical hijack

Glad you got it fixed TL-Rocket ... chase with bottom tap to clean threads and teflon tape would've been my first course of action Have repaired many stripped bolt bosses with a good chase ... trickier when hydraulic fluid is involved though