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Painting Rear Drums

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C

CaptRoy

Jedi Hopeful
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I received my Datsun 240Z finned drums for my TR3A. I have the Toyota front calipers on order. I received the TR6 caliper mounting brackets and I'm waiting on the S/S hoses from TSI..

So I want to paint the calipers and drums before I put them on the car. Can I paint the drums with the caliper paint. They appear to be aluminum, but is more than likely to be some sort of alloy, will the caliper paint work on aluminum?? I don't know what material the calipers are made of either.

Did I make sense with all this...

Thanks
 
If the drums are in fact aluminum, as I think they are, I would not paint them at all. It is my understanding that paint will slow down the transfer of heat.

The front calipers should be cast iron. I would pain them only if they were discolored and I think a light colored paint is better than dark.

Of course as I think of it, most radiators are painted black.
 
I was going to paint them silver and I think that would look nice with the wires...
 
Leave them bare aluminium. If they are grubby, get them lightly sand-blasted and leave them shiny. BTW check the central diameter and the holes where they fit on the studs to make sure they seat properly - like your original cast-iron drums.
 
Leave them natural. They will infact disappate heat at a greater rate if they are left un-painted. If they get dirty in the future, you may take a scotch brite to them in order to clean up.
Cheers, David.
 
I personally prefer the look of black drums behind the wires... but the suggestions to leave them natural aluminum sound reasonable.
 
Paint them, Roy, paint them. I used caliper paint (everybody handles it, it is immune to brake fluid) and bought one of those disposable spray guns with the aerosol bottom and glass jar top with a spray nozzle. The paint will need to be thinned to spray it. The instructions will tell you what to thin with (I have forgotten). Clean the outsides really well and block off a circle in the middle where the wheel hub fits to and won't show when the wheel is mounted. The little disposable gun will give you a mirror finish. I painted mine (Alfin-style aluminum finned drums.) 3 years ago and they still look good. They make all colors. Paint them.
 
Don't do it! Please.

Paint the calipers any color you want but please don't paint those nice aluminum drums. (mine are red by the dpo)
 
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