how do you remove siezed front discs?

[vy4me]

i took the wheels off my VY2 Acclaim and tried to remove the discs to put replacements on (after disconnectiong the brake caliper) but they would not budge - hit them with a rubber hammer then a copper hammer but nothing w- would not come off

they are original ones fitted at the factory and do not have any holes like the after market replacements that allow you to apply screw pressure

do the dealers have a special tool to remove them?

is there a special trick to getting them off?

I never had this problem with past VK and VR holdens I have owned

any advice appreciated

[gonnaenodathat]

not too up on holdens yet(jap guy) but something to check.... did the disc have a grub screw (RETAINER) in the centre part ? (hub area) ..this is to hold and line up the studs before fitting the wheels.... worth a check....

edit.....had a look on the web... i see no retainer screw so maybe a little heat on the centre of the hub area and a go round the disc tapping it at different opposing points to help loosen it !

[DLFHUB666]

i did the 1s on my vx not so long ago an i just went to town on it with a copper hammer( like 5mins each) they were rusted on i think only the fronts rears just came off 1st tap .

[whitey66]

Squirt some penetrant around the hub center and into the wheel stud holes.
Tap the area of the disc between the wheel studs being carefull not to hit them,if you're useless with a hammer put the wheel studs on a few turns each to avoid thread damage.You don't have to hit it real hard,just like you're hitting a nail in some timber,and yes,you hit the disc center towards the hub.This will shock and loosen the rust holding the disc to the hub.
Too many people try hitting the edge of the disc outwards without loosening the center first,that's why they have problems.Once the rusty seal is broken you will see the disc move slightly as you hit it,if it's still tight,rotate the disc while hitting it away from the hub with a rubber mallet at the same time till it comes off.
I've done many hundreds this way and never failed to get one off yet.
Don't forget to apply a light coat of anti-seize compound to the mating surfaces of the new disc and hub so it doesn't happen again .

[wortus]

I wouldn't be belting the crap out of them because there are bearings in your hubs you need to be mindful about damaging those.
When I had a Torana with brake drums they used to rust onto the rear axle and I just heated them gently with a propane torch inside the wheel studs, the drum expanded slightly and just came off you could try this on the rotors hubs?

[whitey66]

I wouldn't be belting the crap out of them because there are bearings in your hubs you need to be mindful about damaging those.
When I had a Torana with brake drums they used to rust onto the rear axle and I just heated them gently with a propane torch inside the wheel studs, the drum expanded slightly and just came off you could try this on the rotors hubs?

Tapping them gently with a hammer won't hurt the bearings at all.
You should never heat or bend any suspension,braking or steering components.

[Surfwagon]

If I'm replacing the discs (throwing them away) then I just belt mine with a large hammer but only hit the disc.
Don't bother with a small hammer because a big hammer with a light hit is better than a small hammer bashing the shit out of the disc.

[markovr]

I just got a piece of hardwood and hit on the edge of the disc in the space where the caliper used to be from inside towards the outside and turn the disc around as you do it ...Maybe a squirt of inox on the hub centre will be of some help if you let it soak for 15 mins before you start the persuading.

[Fletch_QLD]

THe discs have threaded holes in them - get a coupla bolts that fit and wind them in - this seperates the disc from the hub smoothly and easily - no bashing or heating involved!

[whitey66]

THe discs have threaded holes in them - get a coupla bolts that fit and wind them in - this seperates the disc from the hub smoothly and easily - no bashing or heating involved!

The genuine ones don't have the threaded holes,some aftermarket ones do.

[Dayvo]

If I'm replacing the discs (throwing them away) then I just belt mine with a large hammer but only hit the disc.
Don't bother with a small hammer because a big hammer with a light hit is better than a small hammer bashing the shit out of the disc.

AS said before , if you get too carried away with a big hammer and you do happen to damage the wheel bearings your up for big bucks .The bearings are incorporated in the front hub and cost about $200 a side .
JUst something to keep in mind . When i changed mine i gave the hub a good scrub with a wire brush then gave it a good spray with WD 40 then used a hammer and block of wood gave it a couple of hits .
If you are doing the rear ones don't forget to back off the handbrake first.

[wortus]

Tapping them gently with a hammer won't hurt the bearings at all.
You should never heat or bend any suspension,braking or steering components.

I said gentle heat and light tapping was OK. You can heat anything up as long as you don't overheat the metal and change the structure, metalurgy 101.
If you couldn't heat them up at all then how could you ever get them hot while braking!

[Dr HaxZaw]

if you heat a bearing up over 80 degress you screw it... i wouldnt be going near any of my bearing with any gas torches... i've done bearings up at work with a blunt chisel and a hammer and they have lasted for ages... heat will kill the bearing well before any vibrations from hammering do!!!

[wortus]

if you heat a bearing up over 80 degress you screw it... i wouldnt be going near any of my bearing with any gas torches... i've done bearings up at work with a blunt chisel and a hammer and they have lasted for ages... heat will kill the bearing well before any vibrations from hammering do!!!

Light heat = way less than 80 degrees and if you apply a very gentle heat the heat soak wouldn't let the bearing overheat for ages, the kind of heat I have used on drums in the past well they are way cooler than they were after some heavy braking. And if you think belting the disks = a vibration as opposed to a hard jarring I've heard it all.

[S.T.K.E]

Lol i just used a sledge hammer. Few good swings and the thing just flies off. Make sure you don't have anyone standing in front of the disks or they will loose some skin as it flies off.

[Dr HaxZaw]

lol dude you dont heat bearings up.... i work with them all the time... any heat screws the really small tolerances that they have unless you use an electric heating tool that heats the whole thing evenly... a gas torch will create high and low heat ares all over it and that messes it up even worse.... and jarring a bearing wont screw up the tolerances any where near as much

[wortus]

lol dude you dont heat bearings up.... i work with them all the time... any heat screws the really small tolerances that they have unless you use an electric heating tool that heats the whole thing evenly... a gas torch will create high and low heat ares all over it and that messes it up even worse.... and jarring a bearing wont screw up the tolerances any where near as much

Who said heat the bearing up? Applying a small amount of heat to the rotor will make it expand and pop off. Were talking about a quick wave over with a propane torch not an oxy torch. The bearings would get way hotter using the brakes heavily than a quick wave over with a propane torch so if your saying bearings can't be heated at all then they wouldn't be anywhere near brakes.

[DevilDRake]

Tapping them gently with a hammer won't hurt the bearings at all.
You should never heat or bend any suspension,braking or steering components.

The easy way of getting it off is heat, but it also expands the bearings as said above..


Don't slam the shit out of it though.

[Dr HaxZaw]

lol dont worry dude... just reread it and realised that you werent talking about the bearings... thought you were talking about getting the bearings and the brakes off at the same time... heat from the rotors wouldnt heat the bearings up by more than a few degrees cause of the airflow... that and bearings usually run at around 35 degress anyway