Tried to change the pads today and my idiot friend broke off the head of the allen key. is there a way to get the caliper off and just use a new one? or do i have to get it drilled and tapped again.

 

You should be able to get that out. If it is preventing you from removing the retainer, you should be able to drill it down low enough to get it out. If you can't get a drill in there maybe a dremel tool would work. Was he turning it the wrong way or was it rusted in?...Mark

 

looks like it was rusted in, would i need a small left hand thread bit or would any bit work? once i drill it out id have to retap it correct?

 

That depends on how clean you can get it out. I would try to get it ground down enough to get the caliper off, then take it down to a machine shop to get it out. I assume that the caliper is still on the truck, right? All that bolt does is keep the retainer from coming out, it shouldn't be that tight. Try spraying it with pb blaster and letting it soak for a while. I have pretty good luck getting broken bolts out, the most important thing is to drill it out enough to take most of the material, without messing up the threads...Mark

 

yep caliper is still on truck. ill have to get a drill 2morrow and give her a try

 

All you have to do is drill it down enough to get the retainer out, you should be able to do this without going too deep. Once it's off the truck it will be a lot easier to remove the bolt...Mark

 

ok so drill in from the side where the allen head was and try to bang the retainer pin out away from the engine. Got it, thanks

 

You got it...Mark Actually, it can come out either direction...

 

got retainer out but now it looks like the caliper wont come off it moves up and down but not enough. My c clamp wasnt big enough to get around the caliper so i tried pushing on the piston with a flat head but nothing

 

What I do is use a carpenters flat bar type clamp, and clamp it directly on the disk. The piston is probably seized in the caliper. When the piston is pushed back, the caliper should come off. Try removing the brake line from the caliper. Were you able to save the threads in the broken bolt hole?...Mark

 

nope a buddy threw a bouncy ball right into my delicate area today as i was drilling and well you can figure out the rest. Pretty impressive shot i must say. also all i have access to is the screwdriver because although i am at a school for diesel mechanics no one has tools. also is the piston on the inside towards the engine or the outside , I am going in through the slot at the top of the caliper. sorry for the paragraph

 

Its on the inside. It is not an uncommon problem, except here in Phoenix, where stuff doesn't rust and it was 85 degrees on feb 24th...Go figure. Half the city was running ac today. Keep at it, you'll get it off...Mark If you can picture it, any big enough clamp on the disk and the back of the caliper, should push the piston back in...

 

wow it was 50 in pa today and we were all in shorts working on our trucks haha

 

Yeah, but there is no climate change. I figure at this rate we'll be about 150 degrees in July...Mark

 

haha yikes