StopTech Rotors - Painting for Rust Ring
 

I have had the front StopTech rotors with Hawk Ceramic pads for a few months and couple thousand miles. Performance is good, but hate the surface rust ring where the pad is not as wide as the machined rotor surface.

So when I got the rear rotors, I decided to paint the slots, holes and the rotor surface not hit by the pads. All three of these areas show the surface rust on my front rotors.

Here is a picture of the rotor before I started any work. For comparison to other rotors, note that the holes have beveled edges and the slots do not come to the edge of the rotor. If you really look closely, you will notice that the pattern of the holes (some 4 per line and some 3 per line) is not consistent all the way around the rotor. Took me a while to figure it out, but it is because StopTech set up the pattern to make sure that none of the holes is drilled through any of the vanes which would weaken the rotor. Not all manufacturers do this.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w...1-Original.jpg

Taped up to spray paint the slots. Used Flat Black VHT Hi-Temp paint good to 2000 degrees. UPDATE: A lesson I learned along the way is that you don't have to tape off like this. Just paint them by hand and sand off the extra paint like I did with the holes below.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w...SlotsTaped.jpg

Used the same paint, but by brush for all the holes.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w...3-Painted2.jpg

Sanded down the surface to get a clean look. Then clear coated the entire surface.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w.../4-Sanded2.jpg

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Update on October 10th.

When I baked the rotors, the instruction called for 30 minutes at 250 degrees, cool for 30 minutes, bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes, cool for 30 minutes and then bake at 600 degrees for 30 minutes.

First two baking temps went fine. The 3rd one was done at 550 degrees due to the oven limitation. Well when I pulled it out, it was a beautiful bronze on both sides. It was a very minor surface discoloration on the backside that easily scratched off. On the front the bronze color was UNDER the now hardened clear coat. I was pissed. :mad:

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w...x/5-Bronze.jpg

No problem where everything was painted black. So changed my mind and decided to paint the rust ring areas black. So I cleaned off the clear coat and bronze color and since I did not want to paint the entire rotor surface, I taped them off again.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w...TapedAgain.jpg

Here is a picture after painting. Note that I painted both the outer edge of the rotor (due to the curved nature of the edge this also shows a little rust ring..see post #12 below) and the inner area where the pad does not touch the rotor (OEM rotors have this coated as well). The pads will cut a little of the black off and should give a good clean line. From looking at the pad against the rotor, it appears that the painted inner black ring will go right through the center of the outermost drilled hole.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w...x/7-Final1.jpg

Tomorrow I am going to bake them at just the first 2 cycles (250 degrees and 400 degrees). Then install and see how they come out. If good, then I am going to pull off the fronts and do the same thing.

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Did the fronts. Came out just as good. Finally got them to look as good as they work. :biggthumpup:

Nice job :)
It'll be interesting how long it lasts

This may sound obvious, but I assume you did sand off the clear from the rotor face?

If you had temp limitation with your oven, you should have stuck them in the grill.

They do look really good.

Yes I cleaned and sanded them before painting the clear, but they have no clear from the manufacturer hence the rust rings.

Can I send u my rotors when I get em hahahaha. Seriously though.

.....I meant sand off the clear from the face after you clear coated.
so that the clear is only on the paint.

Anything left on the rotor face will contaminate the pads.


I have new slotted stoptechs going on next week.... very tempted :biggthumpup:

It is fine, the pads wear. After 2-3 good hard brakes, they will be fine.

No that would defeat the purpose of having clear on the part of the face that the pads do not rub. From what I have read, I would agree with WhosUrBuddie.

Awesome work David! Looking forward to see how they hold up.

Do you have a picture of what the fronts look like now?
Were there any options for coating when you ordered?
How do the fronts look, specifically the drilled holes? Any cracks yet?

I am very torn between ordering the stoptechs and BPs. I am thinking of getting the BP and beveling the holes myself, then painting it all.

Where did you order your stoptechs from?

Picture from tonight posted below.

No options regarding coating. I had exchanged several emails with the StopTech sales manager about the status of the rotors before they were released. After I had the fronts, I wrote them several times about the lack of clear zinc coating after machining, but never got a reply. Several manufacturers say they E-coat or Zinc coat, but if it is not done after machining then will not solve the problem.

No cracks or performance problems with the StopTech so far, but I am not tracking either.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w...6-RustRing.jpg

Wow that looks horrible man.

That would work if you got the machining gear, but would void any warranty with BP. I have seen some other rotors coming out, but nothing in this price range.

I got the fronts from Riverside and the rears from US Autotek. Long story as to why and I leveraged an Paypal/eBay coupon I got in the mail one day, so I ended up at $438 shipped for the entire set front and rear. Have not seen them that low anywhere lately that has them in stock.

Yeah hence my aggravated state of mind and all the work today to try and fix it. I would hate to think of that look behind an expensive custom wheel. :mad:

Hmmmm I wonder if Rotoras turn out the same after a while.

Wow! That is ugly. Even the wear surface looks a little brown. Have they been sitting a while in that picture? Holes look good though (at least no cracks).

Several on the forum have them but have not seen them post up any results so far.

Yeah it rained yesterday and it was put away wet. There is really no problem with the wear surface. Just the surface rust in the holes, slots and "the ring". Most people would not notice anything except "the ring".....it is just us people that take close up photos. :D

I'm gonna have to look into those bro.

If you are going to go the price of the Rotora (unless they have come down), be sure to look around a bit more. I found some that were also posted on here that were plated (nickel?) after machining, but they were over $800 a set. Stillen also has some in that price range that are suppose to be coated after machining. Once you get that high, you have to wonder about just holding out for low weight 2-piece.

Wow $800 a set huh???? I'm gonna have to do some research before I jump on em man. And yea that price is close to 2 piece.

I really love the BP two peice. Pricy but shaves off 22lbs of rotational mass

Update the first post with more info / progress.

I guess I got confused somewhere. Why the baking and what directs this? I like what you are doing. Everything that is not a wear surface will now be painted. That should make it look great.

Baking is to harden the paint per instructions on can. Makes it darn hard. You could put it on the car and let the heat from the brakes do about the same thing, but thought there would be less chance of scratching the paint during install if already cured.

I see. Are you still using the Flat Black VHT Hi-Temp paint?

Yes with Clear over the Flat Black. Both VHT Hi-temp. The clear over the flat gives it a flat-satin finish and helps make sure I didn't miss anything with the black.

Ay bro I'm serious can I send my rotors off to u so u can paint em so they wont get the rust ring.

Why don't you fix your front?

While I was having problems with my brake. My rotors was rusted everywhere. I bought some Evapo-Rust. Put it in a pan with my rotors and all the rust evaporated in the liquid.

http://www.audiforum.ca/general-d-i-...g-rusting.html

I am, but since the rears were new I painted them first and then I am going to do the fronts. Thanks for the tip on Evapo-Rust. :biggthumpup:

That Evapo-rust looks like it's worth trying. Now I just need something to try it on.

LOL put some pipes outside to rust.

It works man! I bought it at autozone cause my rotors look like the rust ring except the entire rotor was rusted! I left it outside and all four rotors were so rusted that it was brown brand new. I put in the evaporust and it was good as new.

I will upload pictures tomorrow:biggthumpup:

How long before they rust up again though?

Anytime it the rotors get wet and left to dry due to the oxygen and etc. If you paint it like hamstersG then only the part where your brake pad will get rusty. This doesn't matter though because your brake pad will brush all of it off when you start driving.

Yea. I figured it would just rust up again when it gets wet out again. So the Evapo-rust will only work until it rains again? Sounds like alot of work for a temporary solution.

Evaporust is only to clean the rotors of rust. Once you clean it then you can paint it like hamster. It won't rust again after you do that. It will only rust the parts that the brake pad does touch but the rust will be brush off as soon as you start driving.

Ahhh. I see what you are saying. That makes complete sense

I bought some evapo-rust. That stuff works like a charm!

stoof painted his red!

RICER! Hahah jk. Pics or ban

stoof post em up!

sorry to bring an old thread back but im in the same boat, I have brand new stoptech rotors that I will be installing this weekend. I have painted the area where the rust ring will be however I did it rather "generously" without taping much so it looks pretty uneven. Will braking with the new pads on those rotors take away the excess paint i got all over the rotor or is the paint there to stay?

yeah as soon as you drive the excess paint will come off where the pads touch.

I didnt mask mine off at all. lol

ok thats good, yea I lack the tools to do a proper sanding and all that mentioned in this thread so I had to improvise by doing it ghetto free hand lol. I do want to paint inside the drills so those dont rust as well..dammn you stoptech

Quick question for those who may know... Do the Stoptech Calipers actually reach all the way to the edge of the rotors you are having to paint, or does this same thing happen with their calipers as well? (I'm aware that the drill holes and slots would need to be painted regardless) Thanks in advance

any update on the rotors? i see you only did the rears with rust spray.

Did you paint the fronts also??

I have the same rotors and followed this guide to paint them. They held up good for a while, but since I track the car they got way to hot and the paint started flaking off. They now have the typical rust rings again. I'm thinking about taking them off and sandblasting everything, then getting them zinc coated or something.

If you are asking me, then yes I did both. Still holding up well.

I looked into Zinc coating and could not find anyone local that was reasonable price. Mine are doing well painted, but do not track.....or even brake all that hard.

There's a couple coating places around here that mainly do powdercoating but they do other stuff too. I might make some calls and see what any of them say.

Sorry to revive an old *** thread but I have the same rotors and also having the dreaded rust ring. Wondering if there has been any top solution for this now in 2012? Would love to see some updated pics on Hamster's rotor job, or if anyone has gotten these powdercoated/zinc coated with any success?

Mine look just about the same as they did when I posted the original pictures. Good luck!

Only issue I have had with any of my mods is the front Eibach springs settling an inch more than spec. Probably going to put in some coilovers sooner or later.

Don't stoptech come with zinc coat that supposedly prevent rust? Or is that like rust proof underside of your car. Tks

Bump.. Haven't installed mine yet and I'm thinking about painting them before the install.

Any updates?

bump!! any updates on anyone using stoptechs that were made recently. wondering if this rust issue is resolved or still the same problems as when this post started....

I'm looking to by rotors and these are priced right but not if they are going to look like a rusty mess....

Much Thanks,

I've seen a few ROTORA likes in here... Any rust issues with those? or any other warnings? they seem to be reasonably priced....

Much Thanks Again,

Sorry for the repeat posts. But the DBA 4000 and 5000 are a bit pricey but they look sweet!!

Any rust issues w/ those? I kindof like the slotted / drilled (for look and performance), but should I avoid drilled all together if I don’t want to see rust? Or will the DBA’s not rust like the stoptechs?

Any help would greatly be appreciated!

Much Thanks Again,

Only about 30K on the car / brakes and it is coming up on its 5 year anniversary, but painting has held up very well. No rust appearance. Some have suggested no need to tape off the center like I showed.....I don't agree with that as the pads will scrape the paint into the slots / holes and not just flake off like a black zinc coating. Good luck.

Well… I decided to go with the DBA 5000 Fronts and DBA 4000 Rears in black for my 2008 G37S. Most places couldn’t confirm that they would fit my 2008 so I called DBA directly. DBA confirmed that they fit my car and they recommended KNSBreaks. Ken from KNS Breaks called me 5 minutes after I got off the phone w/ DBA and gave me a great price on the rotors. Thanks to DBA USA and KNS Breaks for the quick response and for taking care of me! I can’t wait to get the new rotors in!!

KNS Brakes

https://www.myg37.com/forums/brakes-...ing-needs.html

Much Appreciated,
Paul

Bumping this thread cause I'm probably painting mine in a few weeks... I'm considering painting the hub the same color as my calipers...

nice! any updates on how it's holding up?