Mini BBK is done!

[2002maniac]

caliper related question here. why the 120-6805?
on their site, there are lots of small differences to choose from.

please help me understand why this one.

because it has the smallest piston size (still too big. Needs 25mm MC and bias valve) and the rotor width is the best for the vw rotor.

I actually started with the 120-6804 (for 1.25" rotor) and removed a spacer from the center of the caliper to get the rotor width down to 1"

I did this because they popped up for very cheap on ebay.

Is that clear?

[xLibelle]

ok...

[e304me]

because it has the smallest piston size (still too big. Needs 25mm MC and bias valve) and the rotor width is the best for the vw rotor.

I actually started with the 120-6804 (for 1.25" rotor) and removed a spacer from the center of the caliper to get the rotor width down to 1"

I did this because they popped up for very cheap on ebay.

Is that clear?

so does thatn mean you can buy a caliper bigger then 1 and just take the spacer out?

[Massive Lee]

Here is another alternative for e30 318-325 owners. This is not a street kit as it requires wheels with a lot of room (Kosei K1, Team Dynamics Pro Race) but it is a bullet proof kit for the track. It uses thick 11.75" x 1.25" rotors and Wilwood's Forged Superlite clamper with 4 pots. Complete kits is cheap at around $950usd and is a bolt on. Only a small tab needs to be ground off the strut.

Email me if you want more info
massivebrakes@gmail.com

BTW On the pictures, the caliper is installed upside down as it was the only one I had readily available.







Available with Silver, Gold and Dark Grey anodizing. e30 M3 kit pictured below.

[2002maniac]

looks like a nice setup Lee. Mine was a bit more budget minded and it has worked flawlessly so far.

[diegom6]

yeah, looks awesome, and also , mine was more budget as well, but I used the same caliper but was positioned downwards (sp?) than yours, because I think that caliper it's 3.5" center to center. ?

[Massive Lee]

The last picture shows how the 5/16" thick stainless steel bracket is designed to interface the caliper and strut. There is a 5/16" stainless spacer between the bracket and the strut to perfectly center the caliper and rotor. Those who elect to locate the caliper in the "lower" position can simply invert the brackets (left side-to-right side). This will allow avoid cutting the small tab used to locate the heat shield. But in order to keep the caliper away from water, I elected for the upper position. The caliper pictured is the one with the bigger 1.75" pistons (requires a 25.4mm MC if you want a short brake pedal) and I recommend that if owner opts to keep the stock 21mm MC, then to go with smaller 1.38" pistons. The pedal will be shorter, but also harder. Those who use those thick 1.25" rotors can testify that size DOES matter when it comes to brake.

After 15 years of e30 ownership, I still do not understand how come BMW has allowed the bean counters to decide to include those lousy Girling and ATE sliding calipers. I also own an e30 M3, and as though the 5 series brakes are much better than 3 series, they show their limitations on a track when driven very hard. Which is why I also designed a complete front and rear kit for e30 M3s. StopTech and Brembo do not have a kit for that car.

[diegom6]

I will check the thicvk of my custom one piece rotor and wil come back.

So far I blender ( bleed) the brakes like theree times to asure it's OK and I still feel the pedal "sponge" or soft and not sure why. I'm using my stock brake booster/ brake pump. also bit large the travel.

But anyways, your kit looks amazing!

[Massive Lee]

Hey Diego.

Let us know what size of pistons are in your calipers. If you run bigg 1.75" pistons and a stock 21mm master cylinder, that can explain why your brake pedal has a long travel. My 1969 2002 racecar has the bigger pistons and I went from 21mm, to 23.8mm, to 25.4mm before I was satisfied.

[diegom6]

Hi Lee (is that your name ) , anyways, I got these calieprs from ebay, brand new, they were 1.75" pistons, for 1.25" thick rotors and 3.5" center to center base.

I'm runing e36 5 lug swapp, that means I have to use high offest wheels and recentyl got some 16x7· BBS E46 rims for my car, wich clears with a "hair of clearance" between the rim and part of the caliper body.

I had to cut / machine some portion of the two piece caliepr body because I wasn't able to drop a 1.25" rotor in there before hit agianst the wheel. I make my own disc locally and had to reduce the thicknes of the rotors up to 25mm of thick. Also fabebd new brakes lines for it.

here are some pics with OZ 18 rims ( not mine, but are made for e46) and you can see lot of room, but with my 16" rims was tight.


So, my stock boost master cylinder/pump aren't enough for these 1.75" pistons??

[2002maniac]

The only reason I will tolerate threadjacking of this caliber is the fact that Lee included pics of his '02. ;)

What an awesome car...

[Axxe]

The only reason I will tolerate threadjacking of this caliber is the fact that Lee included pics of his '02. ;)

What an awesome car...

QFT.


As a side note, I'm going with RX-7 calipers for my mini-BBK, but thanks a lot for inspiring me 2002maniac. I didn't want to shell out big cash for brakes, but was a bit dissatisfied with stock, especially on heavy braking circuits (read: repeated hard use). SEXY TIME!!

[Massive Lee]

The only reason I will tolerate threadjacking of this caliber is the fact that Lee included pics of his '02. ;)

What an awesome car...

I totally apologize. I will not do it again. Sorry.

Diego, great project.

[Jean]

I totally apologize. I will not do it again. Sorry.

Diego, great project.

Lee, does your kit require using a custom strut housing (as pictured) or will it bolt on to the oem strut assembly ?

[Massive Lee]

Hi Jean.

The strut housing is stock. I only had to cut a small tab. That tab was used to retain the heat shield which must be removed anyway. The stainless steel bracket is custom though.

Lee