caliper piston grease (for rebuild)

[spyghost]

hi,

what do you call the "special grease" used inside the caliper piston during rebuilds? where can you buy that grease locally?

[jick.cejoco]

hi,

what do you call the "special grease" used inside the caliper piston during rebuilds? where can you buy that grease locally?

spyghost,
the grease that comes with some of the caliper repair kits is silicone grease. not that silicone that makes women look great. silicone compound that does not get firm. it is the same grease that comes with the what we called breaker points or contact points for the distributor type ignition decades back. they are readily sold at parts stores. they come in tubes like toothpaste. but in its absence, you can use the same dot 3 or dot 4 brake fluid. the only advantage silicone grease lubricant for reassembly of your brake calipers is that it is not hydroscopic or does not readily absorb moisture. if you can not find this grease, you can try dot 5 brake fluid. this one is silicone type brake fluid only to lubricate the seals for your caliper.
jick

[spyghost]

isn't it dot3/4 cannot mix with dot5? my brake system requires the use of either dot 3 or 4

[jick.cejoco]

isn't it dot3/4 cannot mix with dot5? my brake system requires the use of either dot 3 or 4

spyghost,
dot3 and dot 4 are glycol based, dot 5 is silicone based. these two, glycol and silicone based does not work together. if you decide to use dot 5 instead since it has a longer service life of 5 years compared to dot3/4 of two years, you will have to flush the system with alcohol and change all parts with rubber or neoprene. u.s. federal vehicles which are programmed to be replaced after 5 years usually have dot 5 fluid to save on downtime and service cost. also, the dot 5 fluids have a higher boiling point than dot 3/4.
jick

[speedyfix]

yeah, i wouldn't mix dot 3/4 with 5.