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Copper grease or not - on brakes?!


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Hi,

Recently, my Dad has replaced my front discs and pads. He used a little copper grease on the anti-squeal plates, hub and backs of the pads.

My Dad has been a mechanic for nearly 40 years and still in the trade.

After speaking to a mate of mine who's had 6 years worth of experience is saying it's a BIG no no!! He said this, "Its got a certain metal in it that can play with the magnetic sensors in the abs sensors. And it actually causes corrosion if u use it where metal meets aluminium. Causes a chemical reaction then it corrodes. E.g alloy wheel onto metal brake disc"

Obviously, I would like to think my dad is correct, but I need some unbiased advice.

Any comments or advice would be very much appreciated.

Thanks

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What ge says is actualy correct but it would have 2 be abosolutly covered in it a little on the pads is nothing to worry about we had a letter at work about it and it is still used by every mechanic i know

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Im in the trade (VW main dealer)

We were told by VW that we were no longer allowed to use copper grease around 8 years ago.

We use "Plasti-lube"

U will find alot if not all back street garages still use Copper grease.

For me its a pain when a car comes in + everything is blathered in copper grease.. wheel bolts.. hubs.. pad backs etc..

There is no need for it at all. Plasti lube on the edge of brake pads after a good clean up + spray grease on hubs/ bolts does the trick without making a propper big mess :D

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Guest BigJase88

Thanks guys.

The question is, will it cause me any problems at all? Just a little worried about hearing this!

No of course not!

I use copper grease on everything!

Its just a load of baloney and smoke and mirrors!

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Thanks guys.

The question is, will it cause me any problems at all? Just a little worried about hearing this!

No shouldnt cause any problems..

Never understood greasing the backs of the pads though??

The rears (if genuine) have sticky backs.. and the fronts have the clips.. a little bit on those makes sense i suppose but iv never had any problems with them sticking..

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No shouldnt cause any problems..

Never understood greasing the backs of the pads though??

The rears (if genuine) have sticky backs.. and the fronts have the clips.. a little bit on those makes sense i suppose but iv never had any problems with them sticking..

matt is right, but your Dad hasn't done anything wrong on your front brakes, he's just an old school mechanic.

In the old days they slathered everything with copaslip to negate the possibility of any brake squeal and to make dismantling easier for the next time they did the job. Nowadays they use invisible products so that the customer can't complain about the appearance of copaslip all over everything because it does look hideous on your bling alloys.

Edit: Forgot to say that your mate is wrong, copaslip is just a high temperature grease filled with a copper compound and it certainly does NOT provoke electrolytic corrosion between different metals, it's still one of the best anti-seize compounds I know of and I always use it on any bolts/nuts which are prone to corrosion. It's non-magnetic so I have no idea why he thinks it can affect the Hall Effect triggers of your ABS system. It's also non-conductive despite the copper content so you shouldn't really use it on your battery terminals.

Edited by sepulchrave
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"copaslip" - yes that is what is written on my tin, it's lasted well - roughly 30 years, but I have bought Pagid stuff to start using sometime in the future!

Just remember this stuff, and most greases, should not be used near/on "rubber" parts - ie guide seals, rubber grease for low temperature applications or silicon grease on any or higher temperatures - and lots of other domestic things!

Although, a maintenance guy told me, when you use copaslip for its original intended use, furnace bolts, it can cause problems - though not as much as not using any anti seize grease!

Edited by rum4mo
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I use it on brakes all the time. This is the first thing I've read suggesting not to.

The only thing I've always heard is Coper slip is Carcinogenic, so try not to get too much on your hands and certainly not eat the stuff! This could be why at some places I've worked at they only use Nickel based anti-seize products.

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most brake component manufacturers will supply a squeeze tube of proper brake grease which is a sort of clear colour, I not like the stuff personally, copperslip ftw, I normally put some of the face of the wheel mating face of brake discs too to prevent alloy wheels from rotting onto the hub.

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Guest BigJase88

I slap it on everywhere!

Nuts and bolts

Wheel bolts

Brake pads

Rear of wheels!

Great tackle!

Old skool is the best! None of this health and safety inferior products!

Its the way of the world though! Old tackle was the best tackle! None of this new jerry tackle you get

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I use it all the time. Smeared a thin layer on the discs and it keeps them from rusting. I just need to go get the brake fluid changed though, as they're a bit spongy and I really have to hold the pedal to the floor.

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Guest BigJase88

I use it all the time. Smeared a thin layer on the discs and it keeps them from rusting. I just need to go get the brake fluid changed though, as they're a bit spongy and I really have to hold the pedal to the floor.

On the discs?

:o

Hope you dont mean on the face of them where the brake pad hits?

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On the discs?

:o Hope you dont mean on the face of them where the brake pad hits?

Eh? It will stop rusting, discs wearing and pads wearing - what's not to like? (joke) Also save wasting fuel as you will not have slowed down!

How very "green".

Actually coating the inner side of a new disc as well as keeping the outer side coated (the hub area only), makes it a very easy job replacing discs, I've done this on a couple of new cars and when it is time to change the discs - they just lift off.

Edited by rum4mo
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Actually coating the inner side of a new disc as well as keeping the outer side coated (the hub area only), makes it a very easy job replacing discs, I've done this on a couple of new cars and when it is time to change the discs - they just lift off.

I can remember my dad trying to change his original discs on his previous car. a 14 lb slege hammer wouldn't budge it. He took the hub to work and it eventually came off using a 50 ton press. It broke into 2 pieces too! :o

It might have come off easier if Austin Rover had put copper slip on the hub on assembly line.

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It took two tyre monkeys 15 minutes to get the rear wheels of my old car when it was 4 years old. They then made a point of applying a small amount of copper slip to the hubs before the wheels went back on.

I tend to use it sparingly on the back of the brake pads and on the hubs.

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Hi, a couple of comments if I may. You should not lubricate wheel bolts; it allows overtightening, stretching and damage.

I'm not sure about the copper v nickel argument. Nickel is very definitely a carcinogen and you should keep it away from skin. All motor oils and greases should be considered as carcinogenic and professionals will be aware.

Copper based greases will cause corrosion if used between two different metals; not a problem with active brake parts.

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I don't think I've ever seen so many half truths, exaggerations and BS.

The decision about whether to apply some form of high temperature grease to the pads requires an understanding of why you do it.

Brake squeal is caused by high frequency vibration of the pad between the caliper and disc, there are two ways to avoid this, glue the pad to the caliper piston, or use something as a damping medium, such as copper grease. Many manufacturers also use anti squeal shims and clips which stealership monkeys excel at loosing or deliberately leaving out.

It's also wrong to make definitive statements based on a generic product description, there is a world of difference between something like Penrite Copper Eze and some unbranded Chinese stuff of Ebay.

Im in the trade (VW main dealer)

We were told by VW that we were no longer allowed to use copper grease around 8 years ago.

We use "Plasti-lube"

U will find alot if not all back street garages still use Copper grease.

For me its a pain when a car comes in + everything is blathered in copper grease.. wheel bolts.. hubs.. pad backs etc..

There is no need for it at all. Plasti lube on the edge of brake pads after a good clean up + spray grease on hubs/ bolts does the trick without making a propper big mess :D

Plasti-lube is a better product than copper grease but not an essential swap and excessive lubricant of any type is a waste, mess and potentially dangerous.

No shouldnt cause any problems..

Never understood greasing the backs of the pads though??

The rears (if genuine) have sticky backs.. and the fronts have the clips.. a little bit on those makes sense i suppose but iv never had any problems with them sticking..

If you read the beginning of this post hopefully I've answered both your points.

In the old days they slathered everything with copaslip to negate the possibility of any brake squeal and to make dismantling easier for the next time they did the job. Nowadays they use invisible products so that the customer can't complain about the appearance of copaslip all over everything because it does look hideous on your bling alloys.

Edit: Forgot to say that your mate is wrong, copaslip is just a high temperature grease filled with a copper compound and it certainly does NOT provoke electrolytic corrosion between different metals, it's still one of the best anti-seize compounds I know of and I always use it on any bolts/nuts which are prone to corrosion. It's non-magnetic so I have no idea why he thinks it can affect the Hall Effect triggers of your ABS system. It's also non-conductive despite the copper content so you shouldn't really use it on your battery terminals.

Anyone 'slathering' external components in any lubricant shouldn't be touching a potential deadly weapon.

Copper grease can promote galvanic corrosion but only under certain specific conditions unlikely to occur in brake mechanisms.

As for it's effect on hall effect sensors, you can't make definitive statements about this because cheap copper grease could have all manner of ferrous contaminants in it. Also excessive application of any lubricant can get on sensors and attract ferrous material causing a malfunction.

Hi, a couple of comments if I may. You should not lubricate wheel bolts; it allows overtightening, stretching and damage.

Utter BS, a bolt holds two items together by pushing it into its elastic range, not by the coefficient of friction of the thread surfaces. Applying grease to wheel bolts compared with clean dry threads should make negligible difference to the overall torque figure.

Over-tightening, stretching and damage a far more likely to occur from dirty, unlubricated threads because torque loads aren't applied evenly along the bolt causing excessive localized stress.

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