Front Wheel Locked Up

[moondog]

Had new tires put on my 2005 FJR,ABS, 22,000 miles ,on 10/23/2010. Rode it home in the rain that day only about 6 miles. Next day I noticed the front wheel hard to turn(rotate) so I rode it around the block a few times thinking it would 'shake out'. Then I put it up on center stand for a week. Today I tried to push it off the stand and the front wheel is totally locked!! Will not budge, like someone is got the brake lever squeezed full on. I just had the break fluid changed by the same mechanic last April. He is the only one who ever worked on the brakes and front wheel. Have I got water in the brake lines? How could this have happend???

 

[03HiYoSilver]

The mechanic may have put the spacers on the wrong side.

If you don't want them to fix it... perhaps you can open the bleeders to release the pressure off the pads so you can get the wheel moving.

Good Luck with your fix... best probably have the mechanic to correct the snafu on their dime.

 

[wfooshee]

Remove the calipers and see if the wheel rotates then. If not, your bearing are probably toast. If the wheel is free without the brakes, then you're probably looking at new seals in the calipers.

My front wheel was tight, caused by brakes not fully releasing. Wore through a set of front pads in less than 20,000 miles, so I spent the coin for new seals (about $130 from a discounted vendor) and put them in myself. Wheel is free, and brake wear is certainly much reduced.

But if the wheel is still stiff with the brake parts off, then somebody has hosed your wheel bearings during the tire change.

 

[03HiYoSilver]

In addition, before you have the work done, Contact the Yamaha Regional Supervisor to audit the (authorized?) dealer's work.... this will be way better than BBB.

 

[moondog]

In addition, before you have the work done, Contact the Yamaha Regional Supervisor to audit the (authorized?) dealer's work.... this will be way better than BBB.

They are not an authorized Yamaha dealer. And I am thinking of getting a new mechanic. BUT I SOLVED THE PROBLEM.

At least temporaily. All I did was take a plastic mallet and tapped both front brake housing a few times. Now the wheel turns and I can ride it OK, but the wheel does not turn as freely as the rear.

 

[madmike2]

It's possible that there is some "grunge" built up on the brake pistons. Once they were pressed back into the housing for the wheel R&R, that "grunge" is keeping the pistons from sliding in and out freely.

This is normal and you should be clenaing them periodically. Unfortunatelylk, a little spray-off isn't going to solve the problem. The calipers must be removed so you can get in there with sojme WD-40 and a soft brush to clean the aread around the pistons....yes, it is "tight" in a couple of places). I've done mine a couple of times and not had to replace the seals as Walt (wfooshee) said.

However, I R&R my own wheels so I'm checking for these issues everytime. IIRC, there was a write-up done for this procedure, though I can't find it on any of the normal helpful websites (FJR Tech, Bikes and Spikes, etc.). It may have been an article posted by Ignacio when he was preparing for the Iron Butt.

 

[03HiYoSilver]

Moon,

Glad you are moving in the right direction.

Here is a link to Warchilds's Blackbird Caliper/Piston service that may help you out:

https://www.fjrforum.com/forum//index.php?showtopic=12381&view=findpost&p=151609

 

[wfooshee]

The last sentence of Warchild's first post in the link points out that the FJR's calipers are different, and you don't remove the blank side and then lube the sliding pins. The Feej has pistons on both sides and is not a sliding caliper, which makes getting the pistons out more difficult, just because nobody big enough to be working on these has hands small enough to get in there. Still, I think I only had a couple hours in my caliper rebuild, not counting the pre-soak time I gave to the pistons. Once the pistons were out, getting the old seals out was a pain. A dental pick would have made quick work of it, but I didin't have one, and with the bike disassembled, had no way to go get one.

I tried first time getting by with cleaning the pistons, and it didn't work out. The pads that I put in when I did that only lasted 18K miles or so, maybe not even that. That means they were always dragging the rotor pretty firmly. Not enough to generate enough heat for fade, but enough to scrape the pads down way before their time.

 

[charismaticmegafauna]

...BUT I SOLVED THE PROBLEM. At least temporaily. All I did was take a plastic mallet and tapped both front brake housing a few times. Now the wheel turns and I can ride it OK, but the wheel does not turn as freely as the rear.

This is not good -- brakes that don't work properly (especially, a motorcycle's front brakes) can be very dangerous.

Brakes really need to be perfect.

 

[user 213]

Moondog, do you park your FJR outside?

I can't help but wonder if your pads simply rusted to the rotors after the rain ride. Thing go downhill from there.

 

[moondog]

Moondog, do you park your FJR outside?

I can't help but wonder if your pads simply rusted to the rotors after the rain ride. Thing go downhill from there.

NEVER. Except when I go camping, which is seldom. Like I said, I had my mechanic change the brake fluid front and rear last April. He gave me no indication that I needed new pads then and when I had new tires put on this month. The brakes are working fine today. (And THANKS TO ALL who have answered this post. Brakes are serious business, I HEAR YA!) But I will ask him whats going on with the locked up wheel.

 

[kolonial72]

The mechanic may have put the spacers on the wrong side.

I inadvertantly attempted to do just that after my most recent pad change on the '05 non-ABS. As I recall, it was not possible to put everything back together in that configuration. I think the discs do not line up in the calipers properly, so the wheel will not even go on.

Two possibilities have been put forth, and it sounds like moondog is experiencing one or both of them. It may be that the calipers are not releasing as much as they should due to gummy pistons. (BTW, moisture in the lines should reducing braking once the fluid gets hot, but moondog said that the brakes are fine.) Or the front wheel bearing might be going bad. I would expect other symptoms to surface if this were the case, like front-wheel shimmy and maybe odd tire wear.

Here's the thing that worries me a bit about the situation. It's possible that the problem could get worse in a hurry while riding, and a bearing or brake failure at speed will certainly end up in an accident. What I'm saying is, get it sorted out pronto!

 

[na1g]

Her's my $.02 (actually $.015 in today's economy):

1- First, you have to find whether the problem is with the brakes or the bearings.

2- Unbolt the calipers and slide them off the brake disks. (Or just remove the brake pads) Does the wheel now spin freely? If it does, chase down the brake problem. Most likely sticky pistons, but master cylinder problems could also prevent piston retraction. (Remember that one piston is connected to the rear brake system by the integrated braking.) Are the brake disks centered in the calipers? Is the wheel installed facing the right way? Were the pads installed correctly?

3- If the wheel does not spin freely with the brakes removed, you have a wheel problem. First thing to check is that it is assembled correctly: spacers installed? (I've seen a reasonably competent wrench start to tighten the axle bolts with the outside spacer missing!) If you don't have a shop manual, check the parts diagram (parts fiche) on ronayers.com or other site.

4- Still not spinning freely? Remove the wheel and check the bearings. It is possible your mechanic damaged a bearing and/or grease seal. Stick a finger into the bearing and rotate it back and forth. Smooth as a baby's bottom? Or support the wheel with a finger in each side bearing, and have someone gently spin the wheel while you feel for binding or roughness. (Keep in mind that you could break your finger is a bearing seizes while the wheel is spinning.)

5- By now you should have located the source of the problem. Or maybe it's time to trade for a 2011 model.

pete

 

[ionbeam]

Being an ABS model, check the front ABS sensor cover and be sure the slot on the ABS cover has the tab of the fork in the slot. Take a lookie with a flashlight and you will see what I'm talking about.

 

[LAF]

Being an ABS model, check the front ABS sensor cover and be sure the slot on the ABS cover has the tab of the fork in the slot. Take a lookie with a flashlight and you will see what I'm talking about.

Nice pick up. Would not have thought of this. Fresh from front wheel removal I saw this mentioned many times in the procedures I read before attempting it. I was ready and well versed to look for it in disassemble and reassembly.

A non Yamaha shop not versed in it would be easy to get wrong. I would hope a Yamaha shop would get it right though.

However beyond that what symptom or damage could come of this? Could the nub be rounded or broken off? I don't think the axle would have a chance to be center? If that is the case everything from wheel bearings to spacers, and maybe the axle would need looking at and attention?

Edit I guess that would depend on distance/speed traveled in that condition?

TIA

 

[ionbeam]

Being an ABS model, check the front ABS sensor cover and be sure the slot on the ABS cover has the tab of the fork in the slot...

...However beyond that what symptom or damage could come of this?...

It is subtle to see, if the indexing tab is not in the slot in the ABS cover, the indexing tab presses against outer edge of the body of the ABS cover, thus putting lateral pressure on it. If the motorcycle is on the center stand you should be able to draw a vertical line and the ABS cover should be parallel to this line. If the index tab presses on the ABS cover it will push the cover top to the left and kick the bottom out to the right of the vertical line. This makes the horizontal center line of the axle hole not straight so it binds on the axle and does not achieve circumferential pressure wheel bearing face. This may also cause the fork leg to be slightly out of vertical alignment. Since the axle doesn't move it isn't as bad as it sounds when the ABS cover jams on it; but it is that bad when it only puts pressure on part of the wheel bearing and torques the fork out of alignment. The ABS housing may also rub/bind on the inside reluctor ring.

 

[wfooshee]

(Remember that one piston is connected to the rear brake system by the integrated braking.)

Not on a 2005. Linked brakes started on Gen-II bikes in '06.

 

[LAF]

Being an ABS model, check the front ABS sensor cover and be sure the slot on the ABS cover has the tab of the fork in the slot...

...However beyond that what symptom or damage could come of this?...

It is subtle to see, if the indexing tab is not in the slot in the ABS cover, the indexing tab presses against outer edge of the body of the ABS cover, thus putting lateral pressure on it. If the motorcycle is on the center stand you should be able to draw a vertical line and the ABS cover should be parallel to this line. If the index tab presses on the ABS cover it will push the cover top to the left and kick the bottom out to the right of the vertical line. This makes the horizontal center line of the axle hole not straight so it binds on the axle and does not achieve circumferential pressure wheel bearing face. This may also cause the fork leg to be slightly out of vertical alignment. Since the axle doesn't move it isn't as bad as it sounds when the ABS cover jams on it; but it is that bad when it only puts pressure on part of the wheel bearing and torques the fork out of alignment. The ABS housing may also rub/bind on the inside reluctor ring.

Thank you for the detailed response.

So if I understand this and I believe I do, the horizontal plane of the axle would be off, and along with the fork being off, contact on the bearings would not be centered and could/would lead to the bearings going south?

 

[ionbeam]

So if I understand this and I believe I do, the horizontal plane of the axle would be off, and along with the fork being off, contact on the bearings would not be centered and could/would lead to the bearings going south?

Yes!

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But I only offered this remote possibility because the ABS cover is just a quick go/no go visual inspection. There are several more likely prime causes that others have already covered. I have no faith in self-healing problems and would really like to know the true root cause of the locked wheel. One thing that should be checked are the spring clips on top of the pads in the calipers. It is possible that when the calipers were spread to let the pads clear the wheel the pads got wedged on the top clips.