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Hib Halverson
Technical Writer for Internet & Print Media
Registered: January 2001
Location: Southern California
Posts: 5909
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Review Date: Thu May 17, 2007
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 10
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Positive aspects of the product (pros):
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Kent-Moore’s Hub Cleaning Kit is an outstanding solution to a common problem I see with disc brakes on older Corvettes.
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Cons:
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You look at the pictures here and you might wonder, “So, do I really need that little do-dad?” Well, if you have a Corvette with disc brakes, especially an older one, you just might.
All disc brake equipped Corvettes have separate brake discs or rotors which fit to front hub or rear axle flanges, it’s possible that, over the years, rust has developed between the brake disc and the flange.
When corrosion begins, not only does it become difficult to separate the disc from the flange but the rust that develops alters the thickness of the flange. That tends to force the brake rotor and flange apart. As the corrosion will vary in thickness, the surface of the flange becomes uneven and the plane of the hub/axle flange and the plane of the brake rotor friction surface become slightly non-parallel. Additionally, the uneven force the growing corrosion exerts on the brake disc in opposition to the force of the wheel studs exert on the disc, tends to warp the brake rotor slightly.
In the early days of disc brakes this problem was unknown, misunderstood or, perhaps, overlooked by engineers at automobile manufactures which develop the brake systems and their suppliers which make brake parts.
In the last ten years or so, there has been a push by GM, both at the engineering and field service levels, for improved quality in brake systems. A chronic complaint about disc brakes is pedal pulsation or vibration on brake application. Occasionally, these problems are caused by nonparallel and/or warped brake discs due to rust between the flange and disc.
An easy way to eliminate the rust is with the Kent-Moore Hub Cleaning Kit (PN J-42450-A). Several years ago, service tool manufacturer, Kent-Moore, which has provided GM service tools since the 1920s, developed this kit as a solution to field service problems with rust and scale on hub and axle flanges. In the past, to remove this stuff, wire brushing or abrading the flange and the disc rotor with sandpaper were accepted methods. Both are time consuming and can have trouble getting the surfaces close to the wheel studs clean. I own five cars (two of them Vettes) with four-wheel disc brakes so I am very familiar with this task.
The Kit’s Abrasive Pad Holder is designed to be chucked into a die grinder but an ordinary electric drill, which I often use with this tool, also works well. The Holder has a Velcro surface that holds a specially-designed abrasive pad. All you do is press evenly with the drill motor, then run it at its highest speed. Within seconds, rust and scale are abraded away. When you get to areas around wheel studs, the Holder’s lower shank is hollow and fits over the wheel stud. Simply guide the holder over the stud and run the drill again. Viola! The area of the flange, right around the stud is clean of any rust.
Kent-Moore’s Hub Cleaning Kit is an outstanding solution to a common problem I see with disc brakes on older Corvettes. The kit fits any die grinder or drill with a 1/4-inch chuck and kit includes ten abrasive pads. Replacement pads can be ordered from Kent-Moore.
For more information on the Kent-Moore Hub Cleaning Kit, contact: SPX Kent-Moore, 28635 Mound Road, Warren, Michigan 48092-3499. Tel: 800 345 2233. web: www.spxkentmoore.com
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Hib Halverson
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Registered: January 2001
Location: Southern California