Front breaks binding

[Kevin Daly]

Ok, I took my front wheel and forks off to replace the fork oil and when I put my front wheel back on and pumped the leavers until the hydrolics were pressing the pads against the rotors. I then let go of the handels and gave the front wheel a spin and the wheel didnt turn more than a quarter turn on its own.

That seems wrong to me. Whats up?

 

[wfooshee]

Piston seals, or gunk on the pistons. It wouldn't hurt to remove the pistons and clean the gunk off, that will improve the feel a lot, but the seals are binding, holding the pads against the rotors. New seals are in order, and should be on order.

That part of the pistons which is exposed during daily use gets coated with brake dust and grime, and the act of pressing the pistons into the calipers to remove the wheel puts that gunk into the seals, where it tries to stay.

 

[fjrrider]

Loosen up the bottom pinch bolts and the axle nut, spin it again and apply brakes a few times. See if that works. if it does, tighten all back up in the proper sequence. if it dont work...........

 

[Kevin Daly]

Loosen up the bottom pinch bolts and the axle nut, spin it again and apply brakes a few times. See if that works. if it does, tighten all back up in the proper sequence. if it dont work...........

I am not sure what this would do, the breaks are clearly dragging on the rotors. Otherwise everything is aligned and if the brakes are not pumped up the wheel spins just fine.

 

[Afast03nNJ]

It's perfectly normal for the pads to drag on the rotors a bit. Especially after the wheel or rotor has been removed. Go for a ride and test them again after a heat cycle. You should have a slight drag, which is normal.

 

[fjrrider]

Loosen up the bottom pinch bolts and the axle nut, spin it again and apply brakes a few times. See if that works. if it does, tighten all back up in the proper sequence. if it dont work...........

I am not sure what this would do, the breaks are clearly dragging on the rotors. Otherwise everything is aligned and if the brakes are not pumped up the wheel spins just fine.

It may not be the problem. I have seen some strange things happen when the front wheel becomes bound up between the forks. It cost nothing and only takes a few minutes to make sure thats not the problem. Hope you get it resolved!

 

[yamaholic]

You probably mixed up the spacers. i thought, at least on gen1's, they are slightly different lenghts.

 

[Big-D]

Assuming everything was fine prior to the wheel removal, you must have done something to rack (misaligned) your front axle. Your rotors must run parallel with your pads and a direct 90 degree to your axle. If they rub to the extent they are binding, your front wheel is way out of alignment. Because you removed your fork tubes, I would check the alignment there first.

Do not attempt to ride the bike without first correcting this problem. I am not saying this to sound facetious, because some people tend to think they can correct a problem by riding it out.

 

[wfooshee]

Piston seals, I'm telling you. BTDT.

When the pistons got squeezed into the cylinders to remove the wheel, the exposed gunky surface of the piston was pushed into the seals, so the pistons don't move freely any more. At the very least pull the calipers, remove the pistons and clean them, reassemble and bleed the brakes. Should be much improved. It may turn out that the seals actually need to be replaced still.

 

[Afast03nNJ]

You probably mixed up the spacers. i thought, at least on gen1's, they are slightly different lenghts.

They are very different, you'd never get the wheel back on if you mix those up.

 

[Auburn]

Kevin, here is a link to the Yamaha team mechanic talking about cleaning brakes. (Ben Bostrom's mechanic) Might shed some light.

Road Racing World - brake cleaning Graves Yamaha

PS: loaded slow than **** on our network at work. Hopefully you will have a faster download. It is worth waiting and watching!

 

[Zorlac]

"PS: loaded slow than **** on our network at work. Hopefully you will have a faster download. It is worth waiting and watching!"

You're right, I quit at the hottie announcer.

 

[Auburn]

"PS: loaded slow than **** on our network at work. Hopefully you will have a faster download. It is worth waiting and watching!"
You're right, I quit at the hottie announcer.

B)