Hmmm, part left over after brake job...

[billb]

Got the pads and rotors installed today on the 525. Noticed that the boot on the right rear piston wasn't sealing good, so I took the caliper off, popped the piston out with compressed air, cleaned it all up real good with brake-kleen, then reinstalled after lubing it up with ATE super blue. When cleaning up tonight, I found a small ball-bearing on the floor in my work area. Does it go behind the bleeder screw? I did not see where it came from, and it must have fallen out by chance from somewhere, but I've never had BMW calipers apart before, and I don't know where to reinstall it. ETK doesn't show it, nor does TIS or repair manuals...

Little help, fellas.

Thanks!

[ScottyWM]

Hey Bill,
Did you bleed them yet? If it's from the bleeder, pretty sure it'd be leaking without it. Sure it's not totally unrelated?

[632 Regal]

now thats a spooky thing huh? I wouldnt bet my life on it but I dont think there is any "check balls" in a caliper. I'll look around a bit and make sure I cant find anything about that.

[632 Regal]

no man your good to go.

[billb]

Hey Bill,
Did you bleed them yet? If it's from the bleeder, pretty sure it'd be leaking without it. Sure it's not totally unrelated?

Yes, I bled them, and it doesn't appear to be leaking from anywhere, I have good pedal, and I'm not losing fluid from the reservoir that I know of. Weird. Thanks for the reply!

[Jr ///M5]

No ball bearings used on the brakes. Take a look at your ratchet and see if the keeper bearing is still there....

Hope you had a good busy day....=) Enjoy VIR this weekend, wish I could be there too!

Jr

[billb]

Oh man, this is just scary...


Take a look at your ratchet and see if the keeper bearing is still there....

Jr

Right after my last post, I thought, "you know, that sure looks like a keeper on a ratchet". Went down, looked through my ratchets, and found them all to be intact. Then I remembered, my son was "helping" me the other day with a little Taiwanese 3/8" slide handle...I seem to recall him banging it against the floor, near where I was working tonight...

A picture is worth 1000 words.
http://www.bimmer.info/bmw/fgump/ballbearing.jpg

You can't see it, but the "bearing holder" is empty. Voila.

Thanks for the peace of mind guys. You're all the best. Sometimes it just takes that extra vote of confidence. And for the life of me, I could not figure out how a check ball would fit in the backside of the bleeder screw and stay there!

[billb]

After typing my last post about the t-handle last night, I was running back through the steps of reassembly in my head, and recalled getting a phone call right as I was installing the caliper carrier on the left rear. I then recalled a rattle on the 6-mile test drive that I couldn't place. I rolled the 525 up on ramps last night around 10, and found the two left rear caliper carrier bolts finger tight (or a little less). I don't think there was any damage done, but goes to show how a little distraction can cost you. Generally, I do not answer the phone during repairs, but the wife was on the way home and there was an accident near our house that I was trying to steer her around.

Live and learn. By the way, the Brembo rotors and Pagid D1132P pads (which are now black, used to be red) are a quiet combination, if not a little more dusty than I'd like. The Pagids that I replaced had 53k miles on them, and who knows when the rotors were last replaced (not by me in over 80 miles).

[632 Regal]

did you "bed" them in yet?