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Stripped caliper bolt threads in knuckle
- Thread starter Jeep450r
- Start date
- Location
- San Diego
yossarian19
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Grass Valley, CA
Heli coil. Worked on mine. It's an 11 ft lb bolt
donthelegend
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- St. Louis, MO
How badly is it stripped? I screwed up a couple of threads on mine and was able to fix it by running a tap in from the backside to clean the threads up.
PahlMc
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Scripps Ranch (San Diego)
Both sides on mine now have heli-coils. Holding fine.
- Location
- Lakeside, CA
Heli-coil, just don't freak out at the sticker price, a kit may cost you more than a knuckle. 
VAhasnoWAVES
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Lake City, Mi
depending on your pad life... you may be able to fit a ground down nut between the pad and the knuckle with a longer bolt, but them you might not be able to replace pads sometime down the road.
your best permanent fix is a helicoil or new knuckle from the JY.
or use it as an excuse to do a WJ swap.
your best permanent fix is a helicoil or new knuckle from the JY.
or use it as an excuse to do a WJ swap.
- Location
- Minneapolis, MN
Buy a Heli-Coil repair kit at your local auto parts store. It will re-use stock caliper bolts.
A kit for one side should cost about $12-16.
A kit for one side should cost about $12-16.
5-90
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Hammerspace
- Remove Knuckle
- Take to drill press (a mill would be better, but a drill press - with care - is doable.)
- Install Heli-Coil.
- Reinstall knuckle.
Done this a few times, no ill effect.
yossarian19
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Grass Valley, CA
Good to remember, in many cases the brake pad is secured by mechanical keying and not the caliper bolt. Most of those cases, the caliper bolt is torqued under 20 ft lbs. so far as I've seen anyway. Short version: go gentle, it's an m8
5-90
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Hammerspace
Also know that the caliper "bolt" (it's usually referred to as a "pin") is primarily there not to so much secure the caliper, as it is to guide the caliper and allow it to "float."
Primary force on the caliper is a "spreading" from pushing internally to clamp the pads on the rotor - apart from that, the pins are there merely to locate the caliper and allow it to slide back & forth (to allow self-adjustment for pad wear.)
Ergo, you don't need much torque on the pins - it's usually 20-30 lb-ft and LocTite #242 is always a good idea.
Primary force on the caliper is a "spreading" from pushing internally to clamp the pads on the rotor - apart from that, the pins are there merely to locate the caliper and allow it to slide back & forth (to allow self-adjustment for pad wear.)
Ergo, you don't need much torque on the pins - it's usually 20-30 lb-ft and LocTite #242 is always a good idea.
- Location
- Rainy side of Washington
I've never needed loctite on them.
Also, if you aren't retarded, you can probably do the drilling without a drill press... unless a caliper bolt is broken off in the hole, then you definitely need a drill press to keep it going straight. With an open stripped out bolt hole it's pretty easy to make it go where it's supposed to.
Also, if you aren't retarded, you can probably do the drilling without a drill press... unless a caliper bolt is broken off in the hole, then you definitely need a drill press to keep it going straight. With an open stripped out bolt hole it's pretty easy to make it go where it's supposed to.
5-90
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Hammerspace
True - I've done 'em freehand (the drill usually follows the hole,) but I prefer to eliminate as many variables as possible.
I've probably not "needed" LocTite either - but it's brakes, I prefer to not take chances. What's a drop of LocTite, against the potential for a catastrophic failure? Cheap insurance, y'ask me...
N8N_99xj
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Berwyn Heights, MD
I would put loctite on the helicoil when you insert it for sure... unless you have fists of ham drilling the knuckles with a hand drill should work.
yossarian19
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Grass Valley, CA
I've seen more one car come in with a missing brake caliper pin / bolt. Didn't crash on the way to the shop, driver didn't report any problem. Still, you for sure want both.
