in this installment here is a DIY way to salvage rotors even with the toughest stuck side seals.

tools required:

several old used 2mm 13B short apex seal springs
vice grips
hammer
carburetor cleaner or MMO(not required but helps soften the carbon/rust)
grinder of some sort

first take a used set of short springs from your teardown process and set them aside instead of pitching them as they are handy tools at times and fit into the side seal groove and are much more pliable than the cast iron side seals are.

during the process watch the head of the vice grips and make sure they won't interfere with the rotor corner seal slot, once beyond that point simply lay the vice grip side on the rotor face and move it along the track.

1)take an old spring and cut it at a 45* angle on a grinder/dremel to a sharp point
2)insert the spring into the vice grips as shown with a very shallow rake to the the spring won't want to fold over on itself under pressure.

3)insert the sharp end of the cut spring just under the edge of the seal in the corner seal slot and align the spring so that it follows the angle of the side seal perfectly and hold it in in place there. tap the adjustment screw on the vice grips with your hammer gently hitting it harder until the seal pops up and out of the channel.


4)grab the exposed piece of broken side seal and pull it out of the side seal groove.

5)insert your train back into the slot and keep tapping under the edge of the seal, pulling up loose pieces of broken seal as you go to keep it from binding up.


6) the spring will likely break several times for several seals, practice makes perfect. applying MMO or carb cleaner during the process and letting it soak will help with very tough sticky seals. this particular rotor i used was rusted in place and i didn't even need either but did go through 2 springs for all 6 stuck seals.

 

Great write up! I did the same thing but with a bit of Saw blade like in another tutorial. works great!

 

A small screw driver and lots of patience will also work. If you can get an end to pop up just a little, tap it with the screw driver head. Then use a small pick, and pry it back up. Just a little! Repeat. Eventually a little bit of the seal will be able to bounce off the spring underneath. You can then work your way down the sale until the entire thing comes loose. I did a few rotors this way, and was able to get all my seals out.

 

thats a great idea! i just did that this morning without the apex spring, and it wasn't any fun!

 

I would also think vibration could get them out. You just need the right device of course, which many of us probably don't have. I have no idea what frequency would be needed to do something like that either.

 

I think a lot of us would use the "frequency Vibration method" of Picking it up and Throwing it on the floor!..lol,,,followed by a Round of "ah fark it".."
This new method saves toes,floors and rotors!

 

well it's quick, easy and free.

 

Nice work! easy and helpful info!

 

I just did this today! I was frustrated with everything I tried so I thought maybe as search would bring something up. Your thread came up. Worked great! Thanks for writing it up last year!

 

another way is you can break the outer edges of the side seal off with a small flathead screwdriver, then you can grap the side seal spring on each side with vice grips and just pull up on the spring and the side seal should pop out. that is a little gentler and doesnt risk gouging the side of the rotor. granted when you are done, the side seal is toast

 

That will only work with lightly stuck seals. Significantly stuck/locked seals will stay right in the groove, and you'll either pull out the entire spring, or snap it off.

Also as an addendum to this method...applying a propane torch to the side of the rotor adjacent to the slot you're working on (and moving the torch as you work on the seal) will help somewhat, as it will actually open the slot slightly and also begin to burn out some of the contaminants from the groove. I spent a couple hours saving a similar rotor today.

 

I also have a beautiful thin metal fine grit nail file that I use to persuade tough slots into submission after getting then out with a nice angled saw blade and lots of lubricated love.