Rear Break Pads again, already?

[nutwister]

pffft.......you can't adjust fluid. There is ABSOLUTELY NO ADJUSTMENT on disc brakes.

The only thing that is adjustable is the pushrod in the MC and if you get it too tight it won't allow the lip of the cup to return past the spooge hole and the brakes will lock up.

I suppose you could do it with the pedal adjustment but you would have to be trying pretty hard.

[XS1100_OEM4ME]

Nut

, are you saying that the fluid "does not move back into the MC when the pistons are pushed back in (ie adjusting the fluid level in the MC to possably over filled)" Well, then how do the pistons move backward? I know the answer, I am just trying to get you to "think", that is the only way the pistons can be pushed back in. pfft, "Even a fool is counted wise in his silence" this might help in the future

[cywelchjr]

, are you saying that the fluid "does not move back into the MC when the pistons are pushed back in (ie adjusting the fluid level in the MC to possably over filled)" Well, then how do the pistons move backward? I know the answer, I am just trying to get you to "think", that is the only way the pistons can be pushed back in. pfft, "Even a fool is counted wise in his silence" this might help in the future

But that doesn't adjust the the fluid, and won't cause the brake pedal to apply sooner, it just doesn't happen that way.

[XS1100_OEM4ME]

Adjust Fluid

But that doesn't adjust the the fluid, and won't cause the brake pedal to apply sooner, it just doesn't happen that way.

Must be my mistake Have no clue what you guys are talking about when you say "adjusting the fluid" The only adjustment you can do to break fluid is the amount of fluid in the system or the amount of air to fluid in the system, ie, that is why we bleed, to get the air out. What other kind of "fluid adjustment, that I have never herard of, are you talking about? (of course there is the proportioning valve to adjust front to rear pressure on autos and some newer bikes, but not on these IMHO) Guess I thought the responce was a responce to my post on fix/adj breaks, my bad (LOL)

[malber]

Seems likely he woulda noticed that kind of drag! I would think he woulda smelled break at the least.

Our bikes are powerful enough that you could have a frozen rear caliper and you might not notice the drag until you try to coast in neutral. That rear brake is extremely weak compared to the weight and power of our bikes that it mostly provides balance while stopping in conjunction with the front brakes, and stability when you're starting from an incline. I think this might be one of the reasons the XJ was designed with linked brakes.

[CatatonicBug]

Sounds like yet another reason to do the work yourself, and not trust a "shop" to work on your ride...

[cywelchjr]

Must be my mistake Have no clue what you guys are talking about when you say "adjusting the fluid" The only adjustment you can do to break fluid is the amount of fluid in the system or the amount of air to fluid in the system, ie, that is why we bleed, to get the air out. What other kind of "fluid adjustment, that I have never herard of, are you talking about? (of course there is the proportioning valve to adjust front to rear pressure on autos and some newer bikes, but not on these IMHO) Guess I thought the responce was a responce to my post on fix/adj breaks, my bad (LOL)

That's what I was saying, there is no "adjustment" for the fluid, and disc brakes by definition have no adjustment to them. I was trying to counter incorrect advice with correct information. Other than maybe overflowing the MC, there is no harm going to be caused by just pushing the piston back in. You should still bleed the brakes afterwards, and it doesn't hurt to put a small hose on the bleeder and open it as you push the piston back in so that the fluid goes out of the system rather than back into the MC, but it's an unneeded step on a non ABS system. On an ABS system there is apparently a small chance of debris moving back up the system causing problems with the ABS system so the opening of the bleeder is considered required on those systems. That said I did it the old way more than once on ABS systems before I learned of the potential for problems and changed to doing it the recommended way, but other than preventing overflowing of the MC, it's not needed on these bikes.

[XS1100_OEM4ME]

My bad!

That's what I was saying, there is no "adjustment" for the fluid, and disc brakes by definition have no adjustment to them. I was trying to counter incorrect advice with correct information. Other than maybe overflowing the MC, there is no harm going to be caused by just pushing the piston back in. You should still bleed the brakes afterwards, and it doesn't hurt to put a small hose on the bleeder and open it as you push the piston back in so that the fluid goes out of the system rather than back into the MC, but it's an unneeded step on a non ABS system. On an ABS system there is apparently a small chance of debris moving back up the system causing problems with the ABS system so the opening of the bleeder is considered required on those systems. That said I did it the old way more than once on ABS systems before I learned of the potential for problems and changed to doing it the recommended way, but other than preventing overflowing of the MC, it's not needed on these bikes.

As I said, my bad, just thought I was getting punched in the chin again for just trying to help

[WMarshy]

Our bikes are powerful enough that you could have a frozen rear caliper and you might not notice the drag until you try to coast in neutral. That rear brake is extremely weak compared to the weight and power of our bikes that it mostly provides balance while stopping in conjunction with the front brakes, and stability when you're starting from an incline. I think this might be one of the reasons the XJ was designed with linked brakes.

That was my entire point, in 4000 miles he woulda been able to tell if he had a dragging break that severe... I like to think I know my bikes behavior enough to notice a dragging break, to me its quite obvious.

[cywelchjr]

Our bikes are powerful enough that you could have a frozen rear caliper and you might not notice the drag until you try to coast in neutral. That rear brake is extremely weak compared to the weight and power of our bikes that it mostly provides balance while stopping in conjunction with the front brakes, and stability when you're starting from an incline. I think this might be one of the reasons the XJ was designed with linked brakes.

It's not weak at all. As a matter of fact, I have to be careful not to hit it too hard and lock the rear wheel. I'll agree that you might not notice it too much under power, but you would certainly notice it when trying to move it around when parking it and such. As a matter of fact, it's a common thread on here for someone to have a problem with the brakes locking to the point they can't push the bike around. If that had been the problem, he WOULD have noticed it. So we are back to the shop having said they did it and not having done so.

Even the front brakes while not great, do a pretty good job. It takes my whole hand, but I can just about lock the front wheel on clean dry pavement, and it's said that just changing to SS lines on the brakes will make it so they are two finger operation.

[natemoen]

It's not weak at all. As a matter of fact, I have to be careful not to hit it too hard and lock the rear wheel. I'll agree that you might not notice it too much under power, but you would certainly notice it when trying to move it around when parking it and such. As a matter of fact, it's a common thread on here for someone to have a problem with the brakes locking to the point they can't push the bike around. If that had been the problem, he WOULD have noticed it. So we are back to the shop having said they did it and not having done so.

Even the front brakes while not great, do a pretty good job. It takes my whole hand, but I can just about lock the front wheel on clean dry pavement, and it's said that just changing to SS lines on the brakes will make it so they are two finger operation.

I wish my rear brakes were that good. I can stand on the pedal and not lock up the rear. But I know that its not working right and just dont want to pull it all apart now.

[cywelchjr]

I wish my rear brakes were that good. I can stand on the pedal and not lock up the rear. But I know that its not working right and just dont want to pull it all apart now.

Mine have always been that good. I have to be careful when bleeding them to not go too fast or the MC will suck air, but other than that the brake system on mine has been really good (that and keep the fork oil off the front pads, they don't work very well all wet). The only thing I have done to mine is change pads and bleed them. I'd like to put SS lines on, but that's just not in the budget at this time.

[Welsh1100]

Braking technique

Often times, less experienced or first time riders fear grabbing the front brakes. A hard nose-dive feels scary. So, they develop a bad habit of using the rear brake first.
For me...my braking technique involves applying the front brake firmly. Then...as the nose begins to dip I apply the rear brake...using just enough pressure to keep the bike as level as possible. When stopped facing uphill...I will hold the rear brake so I can feather the clutch and throttle to take off when the light turns green.

[mrdigitech]

Thanks!

Thank you for all the replies. I've decided they didn't change the pads. There has never been a drag when pushing it around. When I changed the pads the fluid was clean, the caliper pushed back fairly easily. Still no drag on the bike at all.

I've been riding for well over half my life and have grown very used to using both breaks most all the time.

If anything there would have been a drag on my front break as the PO hadn't used them in probably 7 years or better. When I picked this up last April I was sent home on a 6 hour ride with only the rear break and a license plate that said "In Transit" and no title. Thanks Pops!

I had to use a MC off a Honda CB750 to have front breaks.

I should probably add the Left Front caliper to have my duel breaks up front when I find one. Think the CB750 MC can run duel front breaks ok?

Thanks again!

[CatatonicBug]

I should probably add the Left Front caliper to have my duel breaks up front when I find one. Think the CB750 MC can run duel front breaks ok?

Get some brakes on that thing!! Even with dual brakes, the stopping power on these things is really weak. Get a MC that has a large enough bore to support 2 calipers (MikesXS sells a brand new OEM one) and protect yourself!