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Post by lilpinny on May 27, 2020 22:54:02 GMT -5
Hi,
I have a front disc brake that if you put any pressure on it at all, it wants to lock up and throw me over the bars. How the heck do you adjust them to make them less responsive, a little more squishy, if you will?
Thanks? P
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Post by FrankenMech on May 28, 2020 0:22:18 GMT -5
I suppose you could add some air to the lines but most of us just use our hands gently on the levers.
Have you checked the installation?
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Post by aeroxbud on May 28, 2020 6:39:04 GMT -5
Organic pads have less bite and not as aggressive when first applied. I wonder if you have a sticky piston. If it's not retracting back into the caliper properly. It could give you those symptoms. You can get dirt built up where the seal seats, stopping it from working properly.
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Post by lilpinny on May 28, 2020 9:45:58 GMT -5
Thanks FrankenMech and aeroxbud. The only thing I can tell is that everything looks really "new". The pads, the rotor, everything. This bike didn't have a lot of miles on it when I got it (1700) and it sat for years before I resurrected it. I have not taken the caliper apart. Maybe that's next. I'm so used to trying to get the brakes firmer instead of more "squishy" I'm not really sure where you start.
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Post by FrankenMech on May 28, 2020 10:19:04 GMT -5
My R-trike has two front wheels, both of which have disk brakes. I also have a disk in the rear.
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Post by fugaziiv on May 28, 2020 10:52:12 GMT -5
Hi, I have a front disc brake that if you put any pressure on it at all, it wants to lock up and throw me over the bars. How the heck do you adjust them to make them less responsive, a little more squishy, if you will? Thanks? P When you hit the front, does the tire (not the brake) howl? Matt
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Post by aeroxbud on May 28, 2020 11:22:42 GMT -5
My R-trike has two front wheels, both of which have disk brakes. I also have a disk in the rear. Now, that's just showing off!
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Post by lilpinny on May 28, 2020 11:25:24 GMT -5
Hi, I have a front disc brake that if you put any pressure on it at all, it wants to lock up and throw me over the bars. How the heck do you adjust them to make them less responsive, a little more squishy, if you will? Thanks? P When you hit the front, does the tire (not the brake) howl? Matt I haven’t noticed any howling. It just stops real fast. I’m kinda wondering if the caliper is messed up. We think this bike might have been under water for a period of time when looking at the engine. Maybe the caliper is messed up too. I’ve never had a brake lever this firm.
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Post by fugaziiv on May 28, 2020 11:34:27 GMT -5
When you hit the front, does the tire (not the brake) howl? Matt I haven’t noticed any howling. It just stops real fast. I’m kinda wondering if the caliper is messed up. We think this bike might have been under water for a period of time when looking at the engine. Maybe the caliper is messed up too. I’ve never had a brake lever this firm. Are the brakes OE or aftermarket? I guess also, what bike are we talking about as well? Typically, a front tire will howl at the point of impending lockup; It's a technique used in racing called threshold braking. If there isn't anything else that can be determined to be wrong (like a warped rotor or out of round drum), it may just have more brake than it needs. I've had sportbikes with massive brakes that had no feel at the lever before, and it largely comes down to the caliper and master and how they play together. On my Vespa, my first attempt at a disk up from resulted in a brake that felt like granite, and a bike that wouldn't stop at all. I'm still working to fix that... sigh. Matt
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Post by lilpinny on May 28, 2020 12:25:45 GMT -5
@fugazliv
It’s a 2005 Vespa PX with the stock brake setup. Everything looks ok. Nothing is worn. But I’d have a hard time believing that a dealer would let this out the door (back in ‘05) with the brake that touchy.
But then again it could be that all my other brakes are just too squishy to begin with when comparing them to this bike.
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Post by fugaziiv on May 28, 2020 12:56:46 GMT -5
@fugazliv It’s a 2005 Vespa PX with the stock brake setup. Everything looks ok. Nothing is worn. But I’d have a hard time believing that a dealer would let this out the door (back in ‘05) with the brake that touchy. But then again it could be that all my other brakes are just too squishy to begin with when comparing them to this bike. Those bikes have the most wooden feeling front brake in the history of scooter brakes unfortunately. I remember you having that bike rebuilt too... because water again, right? Probably should consider replacing the front caliper, disk and maybe even the master as well if they've been in the water. I bet that will help. I do know that the PX will dive notably under hard braking, and that can feel weird if you're not used to it. A stretched Ruck doesn't dive much, so they feel way different for sure. Dive will feel like it wants to toss you over the handlebars. Also, if you're running too much pressure in the front tire, that makes the front end feel particularly sharp (for lack of a better descriptor). The PX runs a weirdly low front tire pressure normally, like 18-20 PSI. Even without feeling though, that bike shouldn't lock up in the front too easily and because of the weight forward nature of the seating position will usually lift the rear before completely locking up unless you're sitting way back on the seat. Matt
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Post by johnpainter on May 28, 2020 13:59:40 GMT -5
Motorcycle brakes that catch, usually have either contaminated pad or sticking cylinder. At least hit it with a good amount of brake cleaner or take it off, tear it down and rebuild. It’s not hard to do, and can make a huge difference.
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Post by lilpinny on May 28, 2020 14:39:34 GMT -5
Motorcycle brakes that catch, usually have either contaminated pad or sticking cylinder. At least hit it with a good amount of brake cleaner or take it off, tear it down and rebuild. It’s not hard to do, and can make a huge difference. I think that's what I'll do.... at least take a further look at it. It bakes and it comes off the brake just fine, so i'm not sure if anything is "sticking". So much on this bike has been swapped it only makes sense to swap or clean the caliper now.
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Post by lilpinny on May 28, 2020 14:50:31 GMT -5
@fugazliv It’s a 2005 Vespa PX with the stock brake setup. Everything looks ok. Nothing is worn. But I’d have a hard time believing that a dealer would let this out the door (back in ‘05) with the brake that touchy. But then again it could be that all my other brakes are just too squishy to begin with when comparing them to this bike. Those bikes have the most wooden feeling front brake in the history of scooter brakes unfortunately. I remember you having that bike rebuilt too... because water again, right? Probably should consider replacing the front caliper, disk and maybe even the master as well if they've been in the water. I bet that will help. I do know that the PX will dive notably under hard braking, and that can feel weird if you're not used to it. A stretched Ruck doesn't dive much, so they feel way different for sure. Dive will feel like it wants to toss you over the handlebars. Also, if you're running too much pressure in the front tire, that makes the front end feel particularly sharp (for lack of a better descriptor). The PX runs a weirdly low front tire pressure normally, like 18-20 PSI. Even without feeling though, that bike shouldn't lock up in the front too easily and because of the weight forward nature of the seating position will usually lift the rear before completely locking up unless you're sitting way back on the seat. Matt I can't verify if it was underwater, but that engine had problems and thought it might have been water. In fact I sold that 150 w/DR kit and replaced it with an '87 p200e engine with 1700 on it. But you have the perfect adverb --> "Dive". It nose dives when you hit it. maybe that's just the way it is. It's been that way since I had and I can ride it fine. I just gotta force myself to remember you can't squeeze it like my other bikes. Maybe I have too many scooters? I also haven't ever had it lock up. I've had it feel like it was going to throw me over the bars plenty of times tho.
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Post by johnpainter on May 28, 2020 14:53:26 GMT -5
Motorcycle brakes that catch, usually have either contaminated pad or sticking cylinder. At least hit it with a good amount of brake cleaner or take it off, tear it down and rebuild. It’s not hard to do, and can make a huge difference. I think that's what I'll do.... at least take a further look at it. It bakes and it comes off the brake just fine, so i'm not sure if anything is "sticking". So much on this bike has been swapped it only makes sense to swap or clean the caliper now. Sure sounds like a pad that has some sort of contamination or caliper that’s sticking - when it grabs it grabs hard. Good luck hope you get it worked out, nothing worse than having that front brake just grab and have no feel for it.
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