Brake rotor scored

[WineLuvrs]

One of my rear brakes started to squeal, I thought I was down to the the wear indicators. As we are on the road I found a local truck shop for the work. $285all in with Napa parts. Back at the camp site, which has a steep slope to enter I noticed the emergency brake was not really holding the MC while shifting from reverse to drive. Also the emergency pedal seemed to bottom out, instead of having less play, as one would expect after a brake job.

Upon inspection I noticed one of my inner rotors is scored. My guess is a rock lodged between the caliper and the rotor, and that was the squealing I was hearing.

Needless to say I am disappointed the shop didn’t notice the scored rotor.

My question is should I replace this rotor or let the pads smooth it down eventually. And why is my emergency brake not really holding.

[Massparanoia]

Originally Posted by WineLuvrs

One of my rear brakes started to squeal, I thought I was down to the the wear indicators. As we are on the road I found a local truck shop for the work. $285all in with Napa parts. Back at the camp site, which has a steep slope to enter I noticed the emergency brake was not really holding the MC while shifting from reverse to drive. Also the emergency pedal seemed to bottom out, instead of having less play, as one would expect after a brake job.

Upon inspection I noticed one of my inner rotors is scored. My guess is a rock lodged between the caliper and the rotor, and that was the squealing I was hearing.

Needless to say I am disappointed the shop didn’t notice the scored rotor.

My question is should I replace this rotor or let the pads smooth it down eventually. And why is my emergency brake not really holding. Attachment 333045

The parking brake is independent of the service brakes. You should look for a large drum either at the front of the driveshaft just behind the transmission or at the rear of the driveshaft just in front of the differential. That’s your parking brake.

[wolfe10]

Going to be really difficult for us to look at a picture and tell the depth of the grooves.


Another option is there is enough "meat" left to have that rotor turned.



I would probably start by removing it and taking it to a shop that turns rotors. They can certainly give better guidance when we can remotely over the internet.

[Hurricane-TX]

Replace the rotor.

[twinboat]

Yes, replace the rotor.

Are you sure the pad is in there and in the correct way ?

Parking brake is on drive shaft.

[twinboat]

Got me thinking, why use the emergency brake while shifting between foward and reverse ?
Can't you just use the regular brakes ?

[LETMGROW]

Originally Posted by twinboat

Yes, replace the rotor.

Are you sure the pad is in there and in the correct way ?

Parking brake is on drive shaft.

Twinboat,
You're normally good at picking up on things like this. Maybe it's just me but the picture provided doesn't look like a typical service brake rotor to me.

[RELHUB]

Originally Posted by WineLuvrs

One of my rear brakes started to squeal, I thought I was down to the the wear indicators. As we are on the road I found a local truck shop for the work. $285all in with Napa parts. Back at the camp site, which has a steep slope to enter I noticed the emergency brake was not really holding the MC while shifting from reverse to drive. Also the emergency pedal seemed to bottom out, instead of having less play, as one would expect after a brake job.

Upon inspection I noticed one of my inner rotors is scored. My guess is a rock lodged between the caliper and the rotor, and that was the squealing I was hearing.

Needless to say I am disappointed the shop didn’t notice the scored rotor.

My question is should I replace this rotor or let the pads smooth it down eventually. And why is my emergency brake not really holding. Attachment 333045

If it were my MH, I would have two options.

1. Replace the rotor, for me this is always my first choice.

2. See if it can be cut,

The brake pads will not smooth out the cuts in the rotor.

[TeJay]

I hope you didn't spend much on the brake job. There's no way a technician can't not notice a scored rotor. Well maybe it was the Helen Keller repair shop and he was completely blind??

With a rotor as scored as you have you may only have about 50% pad to rotor contact. Brakes can't create enough friction with only 50% contact. The pad will never, never wear down until both surfaces are making contact. That's not how things are supposed to work.

I really doubt a rock got wedged in your breaks. I've worked on and taught brakes for 40 + years. I've never seen a rock caught in a brake system. What you had was new pads rubbing on a very limited surface and they couldn't get enough surface contact to stop your vehicle.

I'd like the name of that shop. They did an awful job on your brakes. They should have told you about the scored rotor. Those groves are deep enough and you need to replace both rear rotors. I will machine my rotors when I need to replace my pads. Your rotors are not decent enough so they should have been replaced.

The rotors are a heat sink. They absorb the heat generated by the brakes. That heat is dissipated into the atmosphere. They have a minimum thickness so they can continue to be a heat sink and absorb the heat. If they get to thin (reach minimum thickness) they can't absorb the heat as well. Therefore they need to be replaced. A thinner rotor will heat up more and glaze the pads which basically ruins them. Glazed pads don't create the heat needed to stop the vehicle.

Never, never only replace only one rotor. WHY?? If one rotor is at say 90% thickness and the other which has been machined is at say 70% then you have two different thicnkess rotors which will aborsb heat differently and that can lead to different abilities to create friction for stopping. One wheel will be stopping better than the other.

[twinboat]

Originally Posted by LETMGROW

Twinboat,

You're normally good at picking up on things like this. Maybe it's just me but the picture provided doesn't look like a typical service brake rotor to me.

I think that damage happened in the drive to the campground, from the shop.

Looks like fresh metal on metal wear.

[amosnandy]

Originally Posted by WineLuvrs

One of my rear brakes started to squeal, I thought I was down to the the wear indicators. As we are on the road I found a local truck shop for the work. $285all in with Napa parts. Back at the camp site, which has a steep slope to enter I noticed the emergency brake was not really holding the MC while shifting from reverse to drive. Also the emergency pedal seemed to bottom out, instead of having less play, as one would expect after a brake job.

Upon inspection I noticed one of my inner rotors is scored. My guess is a rock lodged between the caliper and the rotor, and that was the squealing I was hearing.

Needless to say I am disappointed the shop didn’t notice the scored rotor.

My question is should I replace this rotor or let the pads smooth it down eventually. And why is my emergency brake not really holding. Attachment 333045

You got more problems than just a bad brake job. It's been years since I've turned a rotor or a brake drum. The cost is not effective and as has been posted, you need more metal, not less. Right after I got my previous coach, the local campground guru, who would crawl under everybody's coach before we headed home, found my rears metal to metal. Yes, we through a set of pads in quick to make the 2400 mile journey home. Then it came apart, pads, rotors, calipers, fluid flush. I want my breaks to work.

I also don't understand why you would use the emergency brake to shift for drive to reverse?

[GypsyR]

I've seen a rock get caught in a rotor. We speculated on it being a chunk of granite or something as it almost sliced completely through the rotor.

I'm with twinboat on this. That looks fresh and my added opinion is that someone made a mistake. The pad wasn't put in correctly or something.

" the emergency brake was not really holding the MC while shifting from reverse to drive.." Sorry? The "MC"? Lost me there. But as stated, the parking brake system is totally separate and should have had nothing to do with the rest of your brake job. Unless someone decided to spontaneously "adjust" it for you and went the wrong way with it. All I can think of.

[WineLuvrs]

Thanks for the useful information. New rotors on order. I have sorted out the emergency brake pedal issue.

I poorly described my use of the emergency brake. A further explanation is unwarranted.

[SuperGewl]

Originally Posted by TeJay

I hope you didn't spend much on the brake job. There's no way a technician can't not notice a scored rotor. Well maybe it was the Helen Keller repair shop and he was completely blind??

With a rotor as scored as you have you may only have about 50% pad to rotor contact. Brakes can't create enough friction with only 50% contact. The pad will never, never wear down until both surfaces are making contact. That's not how things are supposed to work.

I really doubt a rock got wedged in your breaks. I've worked on and taught brakes for 40 + years. I've never seen a rock caught in a brake system. What you had was new pads rubbing on a very limited surface and they couldn't get enough surface contact to stop your vehicle.

I'd like the name of that shop. They did an awful job on your brakes. They should have told you about the scored rotor. Those groves are deep enough and you need to replace both rear rotors. I will machine my rotors when I need to replace my pads. Your rotors are not decent enough so they should have been replaced.

The rotors are a heat sink. They absorb the heat generated by the brakes. That heat is dissipated into the atmosphere. They have a minimum thickness so they can continue to be a heat sink and absorb the heat. If they get to thin (reach minimum thickness) they can't absorb the heat as well. Therefore they need to be replaced. A thinner rotor will heat up more and glaze the pads which basically ruins them. Glazed pads don't create the heat needed to stop the vehicle.

Never, never only replace only one rotor. WHY?? If one rotor is at say 90% thickness and the other which has been machined is at say 70% then you have two different thicnkess rotors which will aborsb heat differently and that can lead to different abilities to create friction for stopping. One wheel will be stopping better than the other.

Hey don't insult Helen Keller that way. If it were a Helen Keller shop they would have noticed how badly that rotor is scored because they use the Helen Keller method of touch and feel everything. Only a person that was blind and had no hands or feet would have missed this. Well OK maybe a person that was sitting in the office all day and never actually did the brakes in the first place would have missed this.

Mw personally, I would go back to the idiots that did it and get a refund then go somewhere that knows what they are doing.
you are going to have to replace the pads, again, and the rotor. You might as well replace them both this time.