rear brake locked/seized

[michel]

Hello,

the other nite after a loss of power, yes it was a nice 58 degrees day.... felt like the rear brakes were on.... and yes they were glowing red...... just walk the block back home.... it was smoldering..... the next morning.... i pried the pads away from the disk, there was some resistance.... replaced with new pads.... and it has been doing well.....

What could have cause the pads to stick to the disk

Michel
81 1100 EX

[Billy Ricks]

Most likely debris in the system. There is a pressure relief hole in the master cylinder that may have been clogged. When you pried the pads back it may have dislodged whatever was clogging the system. You should flush it out and start off with new fluid. May also be a warped rotor. Since it has gotten that hot you should use a dial guage to check the rotor to make sure it is still straight.

[michel]

thanks,

yes i did the flushing and new fluid.... it has been running fine yesterday and today....

Cheers
Michel

[Clone]

You should also push the pistons out of the rear caliper, bleed all the old fluid out and hone(?) the cylinder. Often you will get some corrosion around the piston causing it to bind intermittently until it stays locked. Since the rotor got so hot I would check it for warping and get it deglazed at a brake shop. If the piston(s) has(have) corrosion on it (I don't know if it is metal or that phenolic plastic stuff) you will also have to replace it (them).

Ever have one of those nights when you just can't remember how many parts something has.

[KrazyKarl02]

Dirt in the system

I agree, I think it was most likely dirt in your fluid. I have seen this several times in car's brake systems where there caliper or whell cylinder will just lock. If it is that bad, you might want to look at a new caliper.

[Anonymous]

Ever have one of those nights when you just can't remember how many parts something has.

Nah! If I can see past my belly button I can tell how many parts are still hanging there
Seriously though, A motorcycle shop I trust says that you can't do any deglazing of these rotors you have to replace them. If what you are saying is true I may see about doing this. The rotors aren't cheap.

[Clone]

It doesn't hurt to wander down to your local Pop&son brake shop, often what cannot be done will be accomplished. If I went to the local Suzuki shop and they told me I could not get a rotor deglazed and the price of a replacement was more than $50 8O . My next stop would be Bergstum's Brake and Drum 8) (these guys have been around longer than I have been alive), if they told me it could not be deglazed. Then I would pop for a new rotor. Check it out, doesn't hurt to ask.

Aaaaahhhh, Michael, but can your wife?

[Anonymous]

Rear Brake problems

Michael,
I am trying to make a 78 GS1000 roadworthy and had similar problems in both front and rear. I took apart the master cylinders and cleaned out the little holes that allows the fluid to go back into the master cylinders. Even after bleeding the brakes to get nice clean fluid through the system, the rear brakes continued to not release. I took the front and rear calipers apart and found a lot of brown rusty looking residue around the seals and the pistons even after bleeding. I would reccomend taking apart the calipers and cleaning them out. Since you have them apart, you might as well replace the seals. When test driving this bike, I dumped it (going pretty slow) pulling into my driveway when the front brake failed to release. So be careful with this problem.
Frank

[michel]

thank you

i did all the specified recommendation and after a few hundred miles (yes it is california.. and the weather is beautiful... the rear caliper seems to be behaving..... i did not have the time to inspect the brake cylinder for rust... because the part guy gave the wrong rebuilt kit....

i also adjusted the pedal height.... even if my footrest is a little bit bent

i should deglaze/turn the rotor for sure..... it is not too smooth

cheers

Michel
81 1100EX

[Anonymous]

The rusty residue was in the caliper. I don't know what the residue is. I don't think there are actually any parts that can rust. Just be careful. It was a real suprise how fast the bike went down when the front wheel (the front caliper wasn't releasing) hit a patch of moss (maybe 2 ft long) on my driveway.
Good Luck,
Frank

[Anonymous]

Hi all,
My 400 has recently developed a sticky front caliper. I usually lock up the front wheel on the way into the parking garage and my caliper drags after this. It unlocks itself by the morning and doesn't act up until I really lay on the brakes.

I've taken the calipers off and cleaned off all the spots that the calipers slide. I've also pushed the piston all the way in and went in smoothly. The outer surface of the piston looks good too.

I'm going to haul out the piston and change the fluid tomorrow but is there anything else I can do? The fluid (Bel-Ray DOT 4?) has gone cloudy over the last 9 months since it was last changed. Could this be it?

Thanks in advance, Steve

[Anonymous]

brakes

the rubber brake hose can come a part inside and make a one valve
seen this on cars a lot

[redliner1973]

Bisically there are 2 reasons why the rotor canot be 'deglazed', they are 1. too thin 2. no fixture is available at most shops to hold it straight enough as not to warp it severely when doing it. Check the yards or EBAY, much cheaper there than new... :twisted: