Easy Motorcycle Brake Maintenance!

Dustin

Moderator
Pulsing front brakes

So I've been fighting with a pulsing front lever and what felt like a warped rotor on the VFR.

I remembered a while back reading about the floating rotors we commonly have on our bikes and that the little 'buttons' that hold the two parts of the rotor together can often get seized from dirt and grime and stop the disc from floating freely.

I found a good video that explains the very simple process of cleaning them
[video=youtube;1qoPqN2GBdw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qoPqN2GBdw[/video]

I just did this a few hours ago and it worked like a charm. Front brake is no longer pulsing badly and is much smoother.

Sticky brake pistons

I went through my brakes again today and did another bit of maintenance as I wasn't fully satisfied with my brakes. I figured I had a stuck piston and thought it a good time to clean those up and check the pads.

What I used:

Hot water + a little dish soap
Old toothbrush
Brake cleaner
Loctite

Remove the calipers (just do one side at a time), remove the pads. Push the pistons out with the brake lever a fair way but don't push them far enough that they come out. Take your toothbrush and soapy water and get in there and start scrubbing until the pistons are clean and shiny; if they're not pitted or damaged, they should look pretty nice after this. When you're satisfied, spray the whole thing down with brake cleaner to remove the soap & water and allow it to dry; once dry, push in the pistons again and put the brake pads back in. If the pin that holds the pads in is grungy, you can clean it up now as well.

This is also an opportunity to lube the 'slider pins' that are covered by rubber boots.

My pads were worn unevenly on the right hand side due to two stuck pistons. They move freely now and the brake feel is much improved.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Thx Dustin, I have to do this as well, feeling slight rattle from the forks when braking and the rotor is not warped.
How long did it take to do this?
 
While no surprise that I keep my bike extremely clean, even though I do get it very dirty at times. I checked mine last night and they were all nice and free moving. It will be something else that I check routinely from now on.
 
I updated the thread with another easy piece of brake maintenance

I went through my brakes again today and did another bit of maintenance as I wasn't fully satisfied with my brakes. I figured I had a stuck piston and thought it a good time to clean those up and check the pads.

What I used:

Hot water + a little dish soap
Old toothbrush
Brake cleaner
Loctite

Remove the calipers (just do one side at a time), remove the pads. Push the pistons out with the brake lever a fair way but don't push them far enough that they come out. Take your toothbrush and soapy water and get in there and start scrubbing until the pistons are clean and shiny; if they're not pitted or damaged, they should look pretty nice after this. When you're satisfied, spray the whole thing down with brake cleaner to remove the soap & water and allow it to dry; once dry, push in the pistons again and put the brake pads back in. If the pin that holds the pads in is grungy, you can clean it up now as well.

This is also an opportunity to lube the 'slider pins' that are covered by rubber boots.

My pads were worn unevenly on the right hand side due to two stuck pistons. They move freely now and the brake feel is much improved.
 
I did this process tonight as I was getting some pulsing. Before cleaning the bobbins & deglazing the disc I was getting roughly 1 turn if I spun the front wheel. 15 minutes spent in the garage and I'm getting 3 now.
 
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