Rotor wear advice

[Quijote]

Look, I don't want to sound like a snob, nor do I want to repeat myself, but I am a mechanical design engineer with 20 years of experience in product development and machine design. You can only squeeze so much in price before you give up quality for it. Those brakes, as discussed in that other thread, are scary cheap. My $0.02.

Don't get me wrong, bedding, in some cars, can make a pretty big difference. But they will not turn crap brakes into Brembos and vice versa.

 

[jwest]

Look, I don't want to sound like a snob, nor do I want to repeat myself, but I am a mechanical design engineer with 20 years of experience in product development and machine design. You can only squeeze so much in price before you give up quality for it. Those brakes, as discussed in that other thread, are scary cheap. My $0.02.

Don't get me wrong, bedding, in some cars, can make a pretty big difference. But they will not turn crap brakes into Brembos and vice versa.

Yes, and while it's less prevalent in heavy land rover crowds, the idea of paying $$$ for "light" multi-piece rotors is mostly goofy. A racing friend explained to me once that what he wants mostly in a rotor is mass, lots of metal to dissipate and take up heat over and over. And that a light wheel is more important. Mainly that on street vehicles, expensive as heck drilled, 2 piece, etc, etc $$$ rotors are a silly waste.

While my EBC happen to be dimpled and slotted, LOL, it was because at the time those were what I could find in EBC quickly and supposedly that surface will help in rain. Mine were downsized though to allow a 17" factory alloy. I think an lr4 converted to that would be cool. My avatar has the 17x7 with studded Nokian E load snow tire. It's insanely good in all snow and ice.

 

[cperez]

FYI, your typo makes it hard to know what was actually said to you....

Wasn't a typo per se but rather two omitted words. Should have read "I was told they were thin BUT THAT I could safely do the round trip."

Re your advice about a light touch on the throttle, I get that way when my brakes get thin, LOL.

Seriously, still no brake sensor warning but I'm hearing the faintest little squeak starting to come up when I brake. I'll probably go for the full brake kit (rotors and pads) and be done with it. I do most of my driving around town and even that is limited because I work for myself from my home office. It's the road trips that pile on most of my miles. I have put nearly 20K on this in 14 months. Nothing compared to some of you guys but slightly above average.

Next road trip is MD>Detroit>MD later this month so I'll get them done before that.

 

[cperez]

Not to be a skeptic but every time a brake conversation comes up out comes Azoo with the maxbrakes recommendation.

TBH, I don't mind @Azoo's Maxbrake reco's. If I had a positive experience with some product over time I would be happy to share it, even if I were an "n" of 1, especially if it was a brand that seemed to be a well-kept secret. Personally I'll either go with OEM or TRW (I think they're the ones who make and relabel the LR part) but it's interesting to know about alternatives others have had success with. All part of the convo between LR enthusiasts.

 

[BikePilot]

Machining rotors is no big deal. Try another shop. If they've got enough meat on them just turn them down and you are all set. Takes 10 minutes with a proper layth setup and one bit will do many, many rotors.

Thanks guys. I did ask about turning my rotors. They said that given the hardness of modern rotors, machining them would eat through the machinery. At that point I had heard enough to know that they had had this conversation many times before. In fact, I mentioned that half-jokingly and they said that virtually everyone complains after slapping new pads in w/o a fresh rotor change.

 

[Cthehentz]

I just don't get it, if there is enough material left then have them turned, now if new rotors are only a few dollars more then buy the new rotors and later on have your old one's turned for your next brake job. For me I have always gone with affordable rotors as long as they meet OE standard.

 

[cperez]

I just don't get it, if there is enough material left then have them turned

I didn't get it either when one shop downplayed the option of turning the rotors, which is why I asked for input from people on this forum I've come to know and trust.

 

[TheWidup]

There's less metal as a base when the rotor is turned. Even if it's in tolerance the rotor will heat faster, wear faster, warp faster. Believe it or not they may be actually trying to save you labor dollars by replacing them.

 

[BBLR3]

Seems that these days, modern rotors arent built with extra material on them like they use to be. Couple of factors I think:
1. Weight savings (however minimal)
2. Manufacturers dont make money when you can turn your rotor three times vs having to replace them at every brake service. My .02 that I think this is the most likely scenario as to why machining tolerances are much narrower now.

Machining rotors is no big deal. Try another shop. If they've got enough meat on them just turn them down and you are all set. Takes 10 minutes with a proper layth setup and one bit will do many, many rotors.

What BikePilot says. Also fwiw, I've done pad only replacements without changing rotors (on many different cars). Some with a lip on the rotor, some with not. I think squealing is probably more of a pad compound factor and lack of a good bed in.

 

[jwest]

Look, I don't want to sound like a snob, nor do I want to repeat myself, but I am a mechanical design engineer with 20 years of experience in product development and machine design. You can only squeeze so much in price before you give up quality for it. Those brakes, as discussed in that other thread, are scary cheap. My $0.02.

Don't get me wrong, bedding, in some cars, can make a pretty big difference. But they will not turn crap brakes into Brembos and vice versa.

Yeah, and along these lines the only reason anyone wants to turn rotors for more use is for cost savings. It's very small though IMO for the life per time and cost to have that done. My time is worth something even if it's being compared to simply eliminating doing the job again so much sooner than if new rotors are installed.

The other thing is the mass and performance on a heavy vehicle. My racing friend saying he wants the most mass for braking applies to long mounting descents or repeated off road use.

My approach is to use up every last bit on a pad/rotor combination right up to the pad scarring the rotor at end of life when the rotor is nearing where it would have to be turned anyway. Then I have no hesitation on replacing with new and I'm good for another 50k or more.