DIY rotor cleaning..., esp for those with slotted & drilled

so, i got tired of seeing the rust in my rotors. now, it's not rust on the rotors per se. it's the brake dust that has built up in the holes. the rotors are cadmium plated, so i don't have to worry about rust on the non-braking surfaces. in any case, here were my tools:


and here's the before shots:



and an after shot:


it took about 15 mins a wheel. all i did was spray them down with P21, scrub them with my handy, dandy brush (be sure to use something that's not abrasive enough to scratch the rotors but strong enough to get the nastiness out), then spray it down with water to see the rust and grime disappear. repeat as necessary. i think it came out great. the reason i stuck with P21 is that you shoudl never use acidic stuff near powdercoat (my calipers). in any case, i really dug in and took that build up out without a lot of work.

I'm gonna have to try this mine are starting to drive me crazy.

great report tanner!
i hadnt tackled mine yet, but now i guess i will have to do it soon!

i just had my first rotor cleaning encounter this weekend and thought i would post my sucess and process. this is an easy fix for a major eye sore. IMO every owner should /can do this.
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WHAT YOU NEED: Naval Jelly (1 bottle), Rags, Water Hose
there are two versions of naval jelly supplied by permatex, one that needs to be applied by a brush (8oz) $3.99 and one that comes in spray form (12oz) $4.99. i went with the spray version for simple application and larger volume, all for only one dollar more.




BEFORE:


PROCESS: this is straight foward and is written on the bottle. SHAKE WELL! don't forget to do this as its the most important step. apply jelly to rusted areas and let sit for 5mins. DO NOT LET JELLY SIT ON ANY PAINTED AREAS. if doing this with your wheels on like i did, place a rag under the rotor to collect all the jelly that will be pulled down by gravity. be sure to use a rag to quickly clean up any overspray that gets on unwanted areas.

DURING:


after the 5mins has elapsed, hose the area down.

AFTER:



wash off the jelly with the hose and your rotors are like new. drive the car around the block to remove residue and bring back the finish of your rotors to achieve the look pictured above.

the bottle instructs that multiple applications may be needed if the rust still exists. i used most of the bottle after going through the entire process twice on all four rotors. now your done and can enjoy a goodnight's sleep knowing that your rotors are rust free.

excellent addition to this thread!!

naval jelly is an incredible rust removal product...

p21s is the "mild" version of products for rust removal, and naval jelly is the real hammer!

i usually inspect and decide just how aggressive to go with the removal process, but nothing wrong with going with both!

how long until the rust comes back?

really depends on how you take care of the rotors... i would say that its usually about a year or so if you keep at them-
really important is to dry them well after washing- and take the car for a spin while doing lotsa soft braking after your detail (heats up the brakes and dries the components)

I can imagine my dismay when I rinse this chit off my rotors and (because I neglect to dry them) they rust again within 30 minutes.

I would be pissed.

would this work for OEM rotors as well?? also how about calipers, im dying to detail my calipers the are nasty full of old brake dust any way i can get rid of it?
What kind of brush can i use? what kind of cleaner would work?
Thanks IA

doing this the next time i wash my car.

i must be missing something...why is this stuff called "navel jelly"?

yes, will work on stockers... just not as well- rust will be back sooner cause the stockers are not plated

good question- why it is naval jelly... maybe was used on battleships? !!
o.k.- whoever answers this first gets a badge -
and if they already have a badge, they get a "hoo-rah" !!

HAHAHAHAHAHA....i was thinking "belly button" this whole time!

Well, I was less motivated because I already have a badge. Naval Jelly is the brand or phosphoric acid.