I think what you are looking for is called an abutment clip. They snap onto the slides to protect them. I looked for a very long time trying to find them with no luck. A brake shop may have an answer, but none around me did. I think I did find some kind of clip that comes in different thickness to take up slop. I'll have to try and find them later, cause I've been up since 2AM and am fairly close to falling out,

 

Youre right they are properly called "abutment clips". Thanks, I may find them now.

 

Most of the aftermarket pads I've bought (but not all) came with the shims to set the pads end play at 0.015". They don't work much if you have grooves. Someone on here did find some stainless slides from another vehicle that worked should be able to find it in the search. I don't know if a thin piece of stainless isn't going to just buckle under the brake thrust from the pads but it probably helps some. I'd just weld them if it were me.

 

Like you said with grooves the shims that set on the ears/tabs of the brake pads wont work.
There is very essentially no pressure from the pads on these. The ears/tabs of the pads just slide on the surface. There is no way they could ever be buckled.
Ive welded them and ground them smooth on other jeeps before. It works but without using these, you are just asking for the same problem in the future. (of course the welded areas will be harder than stock)

 

was this used on only the early ZJs? I have never seen these on any of my other ZJs before.

 

None of the ZJs I've owned have had those clips, and the pad set I got for the Orvis came with all application-specific hardware, which is to say none at all.

I'm pretty sure ZJs don't use those clips.

 

None of the ZJs I've owned have had those clips, and the pad set I got for the Orvis came with all application-specific hardware, which is to say none at all.

I'm pretty sure ZJs don't use those clips.

If you dont want grooves worn into the flat spots that your pads slide on (part of the steering knuckle) then you should use them. Its not a matter of some cars using them and some not

 

I've only ever worked on mine but it had pad shims when I bought it and every pad set I've bought since then except one has had them. Just looking around RockAuto plenty of pad sets come with them. See the pic. They make a difference. Without them my pads were rattling on bumps in the road and clicking when I hit the brakes. They also spread the pad load out over a bigger area so they probably will keep the knuckle from getting grooved as fast. They aren't wide clips like other vehicles, just a little shim that snaps on the end of the pad.

 

those are shims, they are for a different purpose and won't work for me as they will get hung up on the grooves just like the ears of the brake pads.

 

I remember somebody on here buying some full SS clips for another kind of vehicle and grinding/bending them to make them fit his ZJ brake slides but can't remember who it was?

As far as rattling goes I've used the below "CRC Disc Brake Quiet" on all my Jeeps for years on the backs of the pads where they meet the caliper and piston while never have any brake rattling. Even after taking the brakes off after a couple years the pads are still adhered to the pistons/calipers so some pretty good stuff. Just don't get any on the pad material itself.

http://www.amazon.com/CRC-Disc-Brake-Quiet-05016/dp/B000CINV88

BTW, I run Wagner ceramic pads on all my Jeeps and while they used to supply the SS small clips Federal Mogul who owns Wagner brakes went on the cheap where they don't supply them with the pads anymore.

 

can someone post a picture of where/how these clips are supposed to be installed? I can't find anything about them in the FSM and when I do my front brakes I want to put these in.

 

Here is a link to a ZJ anti-rattle clip for the front calipers:

See it here.

See this thread for installation pics.

 

thats an anti rattle spring not clip.

 

Older thread on the same subject and click on the image in the post to blow it up.

http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f13/anti-rattle-clips-1272615/#post12278003

Not to be confused with the anti-rattle springs also discussed in that thread.

 

that is awesome. I have not seen those before, but I will make sure my next pads have those in the box. thank you.

 

I got some off eBay (anti rattle clip) pain to install but work great

 

not finding them.

 

Seems most of you dont understand what my problem is. Here is a link to a thread where someone welded them and ground them smooth like I have done before. I dont want to rent a welder and do all the work when I can just snap these clips in. Especially since I would use the clips in the future, even after making the repair to prevent the same damage from reoccuring.

http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f9/xj-tj-zj-front-knuckle-repair-brake-pad-grooves-924713/

 

Here's somebody, jeepjeepster, who altered some SS slides to also protect his newly welded knuckles/slides. Nice he provided some photos along with a part number.

http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f13/notches-knuckles-brake-pads-2207057/#post21200705

 

Perfect, Thanks!

 

No problem and worth a shot!

 

ZJ clip option - home-made

The brake pad rails on my knuckles were pretty badly worn and I didn't like the idea of possible embrittlement due to welding so went another route. It didn't seem like aftermarket clips would be an option due to clearance issues, so I tried to address both problems at once.

First I carefully re-leveled the rails with a disk grinder, held flat and taking off in small passes until the worn areas were gone, then finished with a flat file to make sure everything was square and level (no grinder marks after filing).

I then used the hardened stainless steel from a the smooth section of a couple large hose clamps to make clips, folding it on the ends for retention. I checked a couple different brands to get the right thickness of metal. Hardened SS shim stock would be a nice way to go if available. I left between 0.012 and 0.015 clearance (similar to original) to allow for expansion of the pads due to heating. If there is inadequate clearance it would be possible for the pads to bind during severe braking conditions.

 

All the grooves Ive delt with were a 1/16 to an 1/8th deep! Too much grinding. I did preheat the knuckles with a torch before I welded on them.

 

I really need to find a place to buy these. Every jeep I touch has deep grooves on the steering knuckles and I dont own a welder. Please someone help.

 

I had to rent a welder, weld up the grooves and grind them smooth, again.

 

I was on a trip to Baja, that was already a bit daunting, as I was going solo and don't speak the lingo fluently, etc. I got caught in major LA traffic while I was still 3-100 hours from the border. Now I don't know if it was somehow from the load or what, but I started getting a squeak from what sounded like my right front brake. I decided not to risk a "brake-down" (SIC) south of the border, and drove home to check out my brakes.

Both front and rear were pretty well baked/glazed from being on for 28K miles and 50K miles respectively. I decided I'd change them out. When I took the fronts off, I did notice that I now had a groove on the inside part of the knuckle. It wasn't deep, maybe 1.5.2.0mm or so, but it was there. I didn't realize what the clips were for. I figured that they were for another type of vehicle. I found out after I put the tires back on and lowered the car, that they were for Chrysler brakes that get the knuckle-grooves.

I suppose I should go back and do it right, but I really don't want to pull those pads off. Like Uni, I spray the back of the pads with CRC Brake-Quiet. That's not a huge deal, but I'd rather not mess with taking them off again. If I get motivated on one cool morning, I may do it. At least now I know what they are for. I'm sure that I've thrown away those clips in the past, not knowing they were for the "groove-thing". Live and learn. I can't help wondering if the new squeal was from the groove hitting a threshold? Thoughts?

(BTW: I realize that it's an older thread, but it has crossed seamlessly into 2015, so I just added my 2 centavos, which amounts to $.0032 cents, I think.)

 

Curious MrR when was the last time you changed your calipers out? You may have one sticking rather than the squealing caused by the pad(s) sticking in the groove in the slide rail. Could also be your caliper hose collapsing not letting the caliper piston/pads return. Of course can't rule out it is the grooves in the slide rail catching the pads but if real shallow may not be the problem.

Older story. I had replaced the pads, calipers and rotors on my 96 4.0 with NAPA parts. Brakes were working great, no noise, and had installed semi-metallic pads. Went to the dealer for some recall work and they changed out my only 3-month old NAPA rotors with new Mopar ones w/o asking. I was in the recall where the road salt was known to rust away the rotor at the hub causing the whole rotor/wheel to break off. Fiqured what the heck since the Mopar rotors have to be better.

The next day my brakes were squealing like crazy. Here the new Mopar rotors where made out of such hard metal the metal particles in the pads themselves where causing this horrible noise. I should have gone straight back to the dealer and asked for my NAPA rotors back.

Moral of the story is I run ceramic pads on all my Jeeps so I don't get any squealing noise and no dust. But should mention I just had a 1-year old WJ rebuilt caliper piston stick which wore the pad down real quick. Luckily it had a lifetime warranty and replaced it. But I did have to buy another set of ceramic pads. I think the heat of the summer brings out the worst on brakes and rebuilt calipers are a crap shoot.

Not sure if I even answered your question? But would check to see if one side of the pads are worn down a lot more than the other side of your ZJ. And you could go ahead and installed those SS clips if you have to fix other problems. Good luck!

 

Do outside ear)tabs need to be bent?