Hammer Time: How I shattered a brake rotor with deadblow hammer

I broke a rear brake rotor with a deadblow hammer. As someone with a BMI of less than 20, I view that as a small life achievement.

Months later, my neighbours commented that it seemed really weird having my friend standing in the driveway talking on his phone while I worked on his car. Conversely, I remember it as me standing in the driveway wishing for more coffee while he worked on his car. Though I admit my hand was on the hammer when the rotor went to bits.

As to the backstory, my friends 2003 honda accord needed new rear brakes. The shop asked for a figure larger than $400, and my friend scoffed, bought the parts, then asked me to help him do the deed. How hard could 12 bolts be?

Very.

Turns out the cars life had led it to wet, salty places. The aluminum rims were rusted to the rotors. The rotors where rusted to the hubs. I doubt any of it had ever come apart. The wheel required hammering to remove. We had to drill the rotor set screws, use wire brushes in the dremmel to remove a 1/8" thick bead of corrosion, and lots of penetrating oil and hammering to get it off. So much hammering.

Looking for more leverage and not caring about surface of the rotor being removed (it was to be replaced) I hit the contact surface of one, and to my surprise, it snapped off the hub. The blow managed to defeat a 1/4" steel weld. Unimaginable. While I worried about the car being stuck in the driveway, I figured it all still had to come off, and kept working.

My friend drove home with new brakes that night.

The broken weld: