Brake calipers, what is judged

[Tony DiGiorgio]

Hello everyone, Can anyone tell me exactly what gets judged on the bake calipers on a mid year? Someone told me not to worry aobut the calipers becqause the wheel covers them and they are in essence hard to judge as a result. What is the real story here? TIA Tony

[Bill W.]

Re: Brake calipers, what is judged

Hi Tony, How your brakes are judged will depend a lot on who the judge is and the level of the meet (ie. local meet vs. national). Some judges are more through than others. One of the nice things about NCRS judging is that from a percentage standpoint, a judge can "kill" you on an item, yet his deduction will make little differance in your total score. Still, it is nice to try and have that perfect car. Delco made the castings, then dipped-squirted-brushed-sprayed (take your pick), a cheap semi-flat black paint (preservative?) on them. Then they were machined,and assembled. What this means for us restorers is that you should see a black caliper with un-painted bolts holding the halfs together, in addition, several points on the caliper should be free of paint(where the machine work was done.) As far as I know, no one is judging first design vs. second design. Since brakes are a safety item, a lot of judges are more interested in this and tend to let origionality slide some. Still, I hate to see silver calipers on a car. Good luck with yours!

[Gene M.]

Re: Brake calipers, what is judged

Tony check the judging manual this is not a big hitter if you didn't detail this area. The entire caliper, caliper mounting, pins, lines, bolts, bare machined pads, correct finish, bleed screws, and correct GM castings are things that come to mind that judges look at. The NCRS manua is a good guide. I would not be too concern about paint inspection marks on calipers because this was not on ALL cars. Hope this is what you were looking for.