I, for one, have not done brakes since I was born, but I did do one side today. Rear passenger's side with the sensor. I went really slowly and got it done. Lots of great videos with tips and tricks were incredibly helpful. It's the little things that were the most valuable, things that people who have been doing this forever don't even think about. For instance, I put the LR4 suspension into locked access mode. However, I also pulled the fuse that disables the suspension. Was it necessary? Was it overkill? I don't know. What I do know is that my rig loves to self-level (even when it's off) and I didn't need it doing that jacked up with the tire and wheel off. Call it peace of mind. The other thing was that skinny wrench deal. One guy said he had to sand off some of the thickness on his and I found myself doing the same. It worked. Another was using the old brake pad as a shim to place between the c-clamp and the piston when you are trying to compress it. That makes total sense. Another was the guy that took the time to explain that you would need to allow the piston to slowly compress and then adjust the c-clamp, increasing the tightness until it's fully compressed. This is the kind of stuff that most of the folks here already know and take for granted. Being greener than grass, any one of those things could trip me up if I had no prior understanding of what was going on or how to deal with it.
I could have finished up the other side but it got late and I got tired. Having done the one side, the other should go smoother (assuming I don't run into something out of the ordinary). I probably could have finished it up tonight, maybe should have. But when I get physically tired and mentally exhausted that's when I make mistakes and things go wrong. Plus, it's no fun. Sure, I find it rewarding to finish a new project. But I'm not willing to be staggering around a jacked up 6,000 lbs. vehicle in the middle of the night trying to finish up something that can just as easily wait until tomorrow and be done when I'm fresher and in the light of day.
Update: I got a second wind and decided to finish the other side. Embedded the new brakes. Mission accomplished. I know my own body and figured that if I didn't get it done now, tomorrow I'd be so stiff and sore that it wouldn't be any good. Plus, I'm filthy dirty now. No reason to get that way again. Nice to have it done. It's like paying myself a grand.
. I agree with your approach, don't do the last ski run of the day if you're feeling tired... It's massively empowering to do your own work! Take your time. Well done.
