[dj_chizzle]

so i took the plunge and replaced my own brake pads on saturday with a fellow jeeper buddy of mine. i had some squeeking while braking at very low speeds, and when i looked at my old pads they looked to only have about 1/4 life left on them. old pads popped out fairly easily, lubed up the back of the new pads, and those slid right in. the new pads came with a package of shims but the fit seemed to be fine without them so i didn't use any - was i supposed to?

also while i had the caliper off, i checked out my rotors to see if they were warped cuz i had a little bit of vibration when braking. are rotors supposed to be glass smooth? when i ran my hand around the rotor, it felt like the surface of a vinyl record. is that what they mean by "warped?" i don't have the extra cash to replace them right now, but i know i can take them somewhere and get them turned for cheaper.

 

[dj_chizzle]

They are solid metal, so glass smooth is normal. The "lines" in the rotor are what you want to cut off when you turn them, along with the ridge on the outside of the rotor, and any low spots in the rotor (cant feel those by hand). I didnt have my rotors when I did my rears a few weekends ago, but I only have 25,000 and havent been having any issues with the brakes. Just take em off, and pay someone 5 bucks a peice at a shop to turn them under the table

Edit: BTW, my rear pad set didnt have any shims, but i have heard of such things. Not really sure about that, but mines fine w/o them.

cool, i will probably take them off and have them turned next weekend. is that something most places like autozone can do? how much does that cost? and as far as taking the rotors off, how do you do that? is all that's involved is taking off these little washers and it pops off?

 

[dj_chizzle]

damn, i never knew front brakes were so easy to do LOL