Reddit mentions: The best automotive brake quiet

I wrote a huge comment here on how to refurbish a stick, but it was a reply to another comment that was deleted. The deleted comment mentioned Kitsch-Bent brand replacement gears, which I would recommend for sure. You can find them on google and on eBay. (And for the record I'm not associated with Kitsch-Bent, I've just used their product and I don't know of any competitors.)

Keep in mind they're not quite as good as brand new gears, but you can get a pack of 10 controllers' worth for significantly less than you'd spend on a single brand new controller.


In addition to this, here's how you refurbish the rest of the stick: I would highly recommend buying a jar of ceramic grease and applying it to the insides of the stick using a toothpick, or with a q-tip with the end cut off. This is the stuff I use.

You're only going to want to use a little bit. This jar will be enough for every N64 controller you ever repair. Seriously. The other bonus is that the ceramic microparticles embed themselves in the plastic, so instead of the assembly being dry plastic on plastic (which will rub itself to dust, literally) it becomes greased ceramic rubbing against ceramic. Theoretically it'll last forever, and practically it'll most certainly last "long enough."

You want to take the whole joystick assembly apart, keeping in mind the order and orientation of everything. Then you want to actually clean all of the parts as good as possible. (If you replace the gears then just throw the old ones out — don't bother cleaning them). There shouldn't be any plastic dust on them before you continue.

DO NOT REMOVE THE ROUND BLACK GEARS WITH SLOTS ALONG THE EDGES FROM THE WHITE BOWL. These gears are precision designed and are meant for sensing the displacement of the stick. If you fuck them up, your joystick is garbage. Heed my warning.

Now that the parts are all clean, put them together and grease them in this order:

1. Insert the stick through the top part of the assembly further than normal, so the ball is past where it normally sits and the top of the stick is flush with the top of the assembly. Place it upside down on the table, so the insides are sticking up and the top of the stick is against the table. Then use a toothpick to grease the inner "slots" of the ball of the stick. Use VERY little grease here, and do NOT get any on the rest of the stick.
   
2. Take the spring between each hand and tug it lightly to expand it. You want both ends of the spring to still be parallel to one another, so don't tug too hard. DO NOT GREASE THE SPRING.
   
3. Place the smaller end of the spring into the top part of the joystick assembly. At this point, the top plastic should be sandwiched, so to speak, between the top of the joystick itself and the smaller end of the spring.
   
4. Place the white ring, lip side down, on top of the spring. Now use your toothpick to apply very little ceramic grease to the exposed, flat side of the ring.
   
5. The smaller gear holds the top assembly together, but before you put it on we want to grease it. Apply grease somewhat liberally to the oval inside that goes around the end of the stick. Put a little on the convex side, too, but try not to get much on the concave side. It isn't the end of the world if you do, but try not to.
   
6. Notice the gears are shaped with D-shaped ends on their "axles." Apply a dab of grease on the flat side of these D-shaped ends.
   
7. Lock the top half of the assembly back together by putting the smaller gear on. You want to insert the flat "tab" on the end of the stick through the gear, and then turn the gear 90°. The actual gear itself should be towards the top, and the tab should be perpendicular to the slot in the gear assembly.
   
8. You should have, at this point, applied grease to: The slots in the ball of the joystick, the white plastic ring, the slot in the small gear, and the flat sides of the D-shaped ends of the small gear's "axles," and then put the top half of the assembly back together. Now go ahead and apply a little to the sides of the tab on the end of the stick, and a nice sized dab on its ball-shaped tip.
   
9. Now we're done with the top half! Let's focus on the bottom half. Take it all apart, except do not attempt to remove the gears from the white bowl piece. Now clean everything, so there is no plastic dust at all.
   
10. Make sure the white bowl part and its gears are completely dry, and don't apply any grease to any part of it yet. Look closely at the gears and notice there are slots in it. The joystick works because the optical sensors in the circuit board count the number of slots. If you have a steady hand, and you replaced the gears in your stick with Kitsch Bent gears, I suggest applying a very minuscule amount of grease along the teeth of the gears, and ONLY the teeth. If you get any on the part of the gears with slots, clean them very well. The joystick will not work if there are any contaminants the slots. If you don't have a steady hand, or these aren't replacement gears, don't bother greasing their teeth at all. The risk isn't worth it.
    
11. Place the bowl/gear assembly back into the bottom half of the joystick assembly's shell. With the screw hole on the bottom, there should be one gear on the right-hand side, and one gear on top. Feel free to put the circuit board back on at this point, too.
    
12. The white bowl is actually the most fragile part of the assembly, and the part that wears the most. That's why the "joystick dust" is white. To prevent that, apply a rather liberal amount (by which I mean maybe two or three dabs — we really don't want to use a lot of this stuff!) inside the bowl, and then use your toothpick to apply some to the "slots" along the edge.
    
13. Now let's grease the larger gear. Don't apply any grease to the teeth of the gear unless they're new, Kitsch Bent gears and you have a steady hand. Do apply grease to the entirety of the slot part of the gear, so you're actually greasing the concave, convex, and inside of the slot part. Then get the little D-shaped axle ends like on the smaller gear, and drop it back into the bowl. This gear should mesh with the optical gear on the right-hand side of the bowl.
    
14. Put the damn thing back together. Be careful to make sure the tab at the tip of the joystick fits into the slot on the larger gear, and that the teeth of the smaller gear are on the opposite side of the top assembly from the screw hole. Feel free to hold it together with your fingers and play with the stick a little before screwing it together, as you want to work some of the grease in further and you can easily take it back apart if something feels wrong.
    
    As long as you followed this carefully and made sure to not get any grease anywhere near the optical sensors, nor anywhere near the slots they sense your joystick should be as good as can be.
    
    I've purchased two brand new OEM N64 controllers, and I did this to both of them.

https://smile.amazon.com/Permatex-24125-Ceramic-Extreme-Lubricant/dp/B0018PSASU?sa-no-redirect=1


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The front caliper piston on most vehicles do move in and out, but the back piston generally needs to threaded back in, and would need a tool.

A generic clamp of any kind is fine for retracting a push-in piston, you just need to be slow and patient with it. Don't crank the clamp all at once, turn it about 1/8th of a turn and wait 20 seconds, and again. Make sure to use something which won't harm the piston face; Wood works well. Make sure the clamp is straight and the piston is going back in straight.

If rust is an issue in your area get some penetrant like PB Blaster or something and try to get the bolts soaking before it's time for the repair, if possible.

Make sure you have the proper lubricants, and the proper grease for the slider pins. Lube the piston mating surface(s) and the ears of the pads with a film of quality ceramic/synthetic brake grease. Not a GLOB, a film.

Make sure to clean up the shims and replace them if they are at all damaged or deformed. A film of grease where the shims mate to the caliper bracket is a good idea as well.

Be sure to avoid getting the grease/lube on any braking/friction surfaces such as the rotor or pad faces. Rotors can be cleaned with a rag and brake clean.

Make sure the tattle-tale, if present, is going in the correct direction. Make sure the pads are mounted properly. Try to reference the pads your removing first.

If you're replacing Rotors and/or replacing pads with a different compound, you should follow a "bed in procedure." A general bed-in is a few very light brakes from low speed like stop and go traffic, a few stops from 10-20 mph sort of riding the brakes holding them till you roll to a stop, and then one or two good "emergency stops" with a firm foot planted from 20-30mph. This will help ensure that friction material is transferred into the rotor surface which helps ensure proper stopping power.

I hope this helps.

They look okay for a bit longer to me. (from what I can see on the outside pad)















Here's how I go about with pad replacement intervals. I pull the pads out to see how they're doing where I can see the whole pad. I check for things like cracks that go down to the backing plate or of there's a chunk or something missing out of them. After that I check to see how much actual pad is left and if they're okay to keep on the vehicle or if I should get new brake pads. I use what's called a Tread Depth Gauge which I recommend everyone have at home. It's a cheap tool you can get at any auto parts store. While measuring brake pads if it's at 3/32 or below I replace the brake pads, or if the pad squealer is clearly making contact with the rotor. But if they're okay and while they're out I lube up the pad backing plate where it contacts on the piston or bracket, the sides of the pad where it sits on the bracket shims, and the slide pins. I use this stuff from AGS called Sil-Glyde. Works great. Just make sure not to get it on the actual pad itself.















But again with your original question from what I can see they look like they're getting there but okay to still use. If you have any other questions feel free to ask :)

Very easy to do a rotor and pad job yourself. Does require a couple of tools though. Even with the tools you'll be saving a bunch of money.

Changed the front brakes on my sister's civic for less than $150 dollars for the parts.

Besides sockets and a ratchet, you'll want to either get a C-clamp or a a brake caliper tool: https://www.amazon.com/Lisle-24400-Disc-Brake-Spreader/dp/B0002SQU9K

Also some brake lubricant: https://www.amazon.com/Permatex-24129-Silicone-Extreme-Lubricant/dp/B01L1LV9F6/ref=sr_1_11?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1496554333&sr=1-11&keywords=brake+lube

And sometimes its tough to take the rotor screws off, for that you will need an impact driver: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002O16UPM/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Since your car is pretty new, you might not need the impact driver unless your rotors are rusty.

I used this rotor + pad set for the car : https://www.amazon.com/Power-Stop-K1043-Evolution-Drilled/dp/B005FKMOWM

I've put powerstop rotors and pads on 4 cars now and they have worked quiet well. Some people were saying that the drilled rotors are prone to cracks, but that won't happen for a daily drive car on the street. Other rotor and pad options:

https://www.amazon.com/Wagner-BD125669E-Premium-Coated-Brake/dp/B00HJJDSZO

https://www.amazon.com/ACDelco-17D914C-Professional-Ceramic-Front/dp/B000IYY7PW

Rears will be different than the ones I posted, so check and see what will fit. Amazon makes it pretty easy, just enter your car and it'll tell you what fits.

Since you have watched videos on the change, I don't think you need me to tell you how to do it.

Having struggled with more rusted brake caliper hardware and rusted on drums than I care to talk about, I'm definitely in the school of mo-grease. This is my current favorite.

"Disk Brake Quiet" Like this stuff from CRC which I use creates a rubber like film when it dries to stop metal chattering against itself. It is on the pad faces backings and they do not need to move once installed against the caliper bracket and caliper cylinder, so a lubricant is not needed.

As far as the grease Syl-Glide is silicone based and works very well. The Permatex Ceramic lube I use lists as being "Compatible with internal/external brake rubber and plastic hardware, including ethylene-propylene rubber."

The only time I ever had an issue with my elite was after having it for a long long time(about five years as well) chances ate it's the same issue I had which was the pancake motor not spinning well more and more each day.
I went online and asked if I could grease it up with WD40, but was told because of how fast the discs spin it would evaporate real quick. Got suggested to use ceramic brake grease because of it's high temp tolerance.

Permatex 24125 Ceramic Extreme Brake Parts Lubricant, 8 oz. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0018PSASU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_TnWpDbR9N4XCM

Hadn't had a disc problem since. All you need to do is take the part that disc sits on off of the motor, grease up the lil rod, put it back together, and you should be fine.

Also you should be able to get the grease in an auto parts store really cheap, usually up by the registers in little test packets.

There's a Raybestos product with Teflon in it. That's the shit you want.

If you put it on unpainted calipers, after a few weeks you can see it actually seeping into the calipers.

When I had an employer that paid for it, I would use it on any cold parts where you would regularly use anti-seize, because the Teflon would (theoretically) bond with the surface eliminating seizing.

That's probably your brake pad ears rubbing against your brake clips. I had new pads and rotors installed and had the same problem until I took the pads out and lubed the clips and pad ears. It's about $18 a bottle and lasts forever. You might also want to pull your caliper pins and lube them up as well otherwise your caliper might be stuck pressing your pads into the rotors (use a different lube for that). Most dealer brake places don't do it, but good auto shops do (here's a South Main Auto brake change video).

Mine have been quiet. MUCH better brakes than my previous Acura. The Acura didn't stop as well and had much more of a "pulsing" feeling. The only downside to the Volvo brakes is they do generate a LOT of black brake dust. But just wash your car and it's gone!

If you're getting a squeak when breaking then I'd suggest cleaning and re-lubricating the brake hardware. You can have a shop do this, or if you do it yourself, this is a great lubricant: https://www.amazon.com/Permatex-24125-Ceramic-Extreme-Lubricant/dp/B0018PSASU

Silicone lube is good for rubber.

AGS SG8 Lubricant https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000KXLR5E/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_hZf-AbKC79YQV

This is what I use. I can't think of anything better. Permatex 24125 Ceramic Extreme Brake Parts Lubricant, 8 oz. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0018PSASU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_AOgOyb0Y4T5SS

This stuff is better for the slides

http://www.amazon.com/Permatex-24125-Ceramic-Extreme-Lubricant/dp/B0018PSASU

Between the rim and the rotor. ;)

Most decent pads come with little packets of grease you can use, or you can buy a big bottle of the same stuff. Example:

https://smile.amazon.com/Permatex-24125-Ceramic-Extreme-Lubricant/dp/B0018PSASU/

SILGLYDE LUBE COMPOUND-- 8 OZ. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000KXLR5E/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_Th9Cub10EB47C made just for what you are asking for.

Sil-Glyde is what you're looking for. It's preferable because petroleum based lubricants can break down rubber over time.

Replace the boots. They're $6 for both calipers.

For lube, I'm trying this stuff. Some of the lube/grease have bad reactions with the rubber seals. I had mine swell up and that's why I replaced the boots.

https://www.amazon.com/AGS-BK4-Brake-Lubricant-4Oz/dp/B000CIHTPE