Are the brake shims absolutely necessary?

I have heard that without the shims the brakes squeal like a stuck pig. I found that dealer price is about same as mail order when you add shipping.

Bob

Thanks. I asked but I've been driving around without the shims for around three weeks. For the record, they don't squeak at all but that may be due to applying anti-squeal compound to the the back of them.

I just never understood the reason for them although I always made sure to use them when I changed the pads.

"Headknocker via CarKB.com" wrote in news:5e6e8de8679dd@uwe:

Ya think the manufacturer would go to the expense of making,stocking,installing shims if they could just use anti-squeal compound? Do you feel comfortable driving around with parts missing from your BRAKES? (I wouldn't)

Maybe you could get a set of shims cheaper at a junkyard??

I understand that ,Jim. That wasn't my question which you didn't bother to answer. What's their purpose? I'm gonna get new shims. I certainly didn't intend to drive around without them for any length of time.

The stock Honda shims are usually coated with teflon. When they're used with the stock Molykote M77 grease (Honda's anti-squeal compound), there's usually no risk of a comeback with noisy brakes. Aftermarket shims sometimes have a problematic fit and sometimes the aftermarket brake pads don't have the correct pins which help to hold the shims in place. Gluing aftermarket shims to aftermarket pads with the sticky silencer spray can sometimes work, however, I've had bad luck with the shims sliding down so I just removed them. I currently have no shims on the front brakes and haven't noticed a problem. Note that I do use the stock Molykote M77 silencer grease on the pad baking plates.

Eric

Thanks,Eric :)