Wilwood front brakes

[sohcrates]

Hey all,

I just installed my Wilwood front brakes, and ran into something. The caliper bracket bolts that came with the Wilwood kit have very large heads. Large enough that there isn't enough clearance between the bolt head and the spindle to get a socket on it. It is even difficult to get an open ended wrench on it. You can see here that I beat up the bolt pretty good by turning it with an open end wrench that is only halfway on the bolt:

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=162257&d=1644588995

I wasn't happy with this, so I decided to use the caliper bolts that came with the mustang brakes I originally had with the kit. Their 12 point heads are much smaller, so there's plenty of room to get the socket on it. I added the washers that came with the Wilwood kit, even though the original mustang brakes didn't use washers. The bolts still go all the way through the caliper brackets, so they seem fine to me.

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=162258&d=1644588995

Did anyone else run into this, or does anyone see any issue with my solution?

[rich grsc]

Looks just fine. Maybe a thicker washer so that the bolt doesn't stick through as much? Not really a problem, just look cleaner

[sohcrates]

Thanks Rich. Sets me more at ease. The Wilwood bolts stuck through even more...

[Papa]

Yours look about the same as mine -- hard to really see in my photos:

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showthread.php?24916-Papa-s-MKIV-Roadster-Build-9115-(Graduated)-Inglese-8-Stack-on-Order!&p=285442&viewfull=1#post285442

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=84475&d=1524417136

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=84474&d=1524417127

[sohcrates]

Awesome. Glad I'm not alone!! It seems one rarely is in this community, and that's also awesome.

[Jeff Kleiner]

I'd replace them with buttonhead allen bolts of the proper length.
Jeff

[ggunter]

Mine are the same way. The 12 point bolt is a good idea.

[J R Jones]

I'd replace them with buttonhead allen bolts of the proper length.
Jeff

The styling guys at Harley Davidson loved button head cap screws, especially on (exposed) brake parts. The problem for Engineering and the Service departments was that they were hard to torque on the line with the small shallow internal hex, and they are near impossible to remove after Loctite and/or aging. Twelve points and other flange fasteners are much more servicelable. Even a socket head cap screw has a deeper internal hex.
jim

[sohcrates]

The styling guys at Harley Davidson loved button head cap screws, especially on (exposed) brake parts. The problem for Engineering and the Service departments was that they were hard to torque on the line with the small shallow internal hex, and they are near impossible to remove after Loctite and/or aging. Twelve points and other flange fasteners are much more servicelable. Even a socket head cap screw has a deeper internal hex.
jim

I agree with this. I've had nightmares getting rusty old allen head bolts off of sway bars and such. I love all of the experience here, and I think I'll stick with what I've got, and maybe add a washer to reduce the amount of bolt sticking through the bracket.

[Jeff Kleiner]

I’ll keep that in mind if I ever feel the urge to get a Harley :rolleyes:

Jeff