Front Brakes

[GregShubert]

Where can I buy a full master Cylinder and brake caliper? I had front wheel off today to put the front tire on. Saving money... Right?

Well after breaking off a third of a brake pad and pushing in the caliper piston the front brake is mushy feeling. I always tear up more than I fix. Now I have brake problems and have to replace pads. I would rather buy the full sets than try to rebuild.

This bike has always been almost perfect until now (I had to work on it). Now I have mushy brakes, broken pad, and front wheel isn't turning right. I knew to just take it in and have the tires put on.

[Scrapdog2grand]

replace the pads, bleed the brakes, and make sure the slide pin is greased with a high temp synthetic grease.
And then quit working on s**t.

[GregShubert]

Slide pins on the pads? The brakes were never opened. No way for air to have gotten in. They felt good when I first pumped them up. Then when I went back to it 4 hours later they were spongy the first pump. They got solid after a couple pumps. I think it is the master Cylinder leaking back. Old fluid, in my experience, when pushed back from caliper usually takes out seals in master Cylinders

I..m done. I always spend $10 to save $1. At my age you would think I would've learned.

[oblivion_twister]

it's a good idea to routinely flush it out anyway, So bleed it out with fresh fluid until you see it coming out the bleeder valve and see where you're at. $4 bottle of brake fluid beats the hell outta $125+ in parts.

[Scrapdog2grand]

replace the pads, and bleed the system, make sure you grease the slide pins, and they are not binding up.
if the linning brke and the pads is not seated properly, it can cause a spongy brake, the extra pumps are needed to take up that extra clearance, the piston or caliper may be getting cocked cause of this, check it out as per the service manual, follow it to a tee. and take note of how the anti rattle clip is installed,
you can do this, we here all have faith in you.

[GregShubert]

As soon as my pads come in I will take the front wheel off and start from scratch again. O agree with the needing to replace the fluid periodically. I should have done it when I first saw how nasty it was. Wish now I'd ordered parts to fix the speedometer while I was at it. It quit last summer. If I'd done that and got it all back together right I'd not have to take front end apart for awhile. I just thought I'd use my tach to measure my speed. Another corner I shouldn't have taken.

Anyone have both speedo parts?

[h13man]

Dirty fluid, broken pads, broken speedo for a year, what else could be wrong? Maybe you should seek a reputable shop in your area or.....

You didn't mention the bike model, year, past history, mileage, etc. If it sounds like I'm bustin your arse, I am. You see, some of the things you mentioned so far will get you hurt/killed if not done right.

[GregShubert]

Originally Posted by h13man

Dirty fluid, broken pads, broken speedo for a year, what else could be wrong? Maybe you should seek a reputable shop in your area or.....

You didn't mention the bike model, year, past history, mileage, etc. If it sounds like I'm bustin your arse, I am. You see, some of the things you mentioned so far will get you hurt/killed if not done right.

Well, the bike is an 86 VT 700c. It has less than 25K on the clock. I bought it 6 years ago from the original owner. All I have ever had done to it is fork seals, clutches, fuel filter, air filter, plugs, battery, tires, and now brakes.

As for a reputable repair shop.. Are you joking? The stealerships are just that licensed thieves. I mean come on. There is NO reason for the prices they charge. The "reputable" shops are a joke. That's why my speedometer doesn't work. When I had the second to last front tire put on it quit working. I took it back in and they fixed it. It worked for a good while then quit again. They won't fix it now, I don't think, as I have had a couple of tires installed since then and it's been quite some time. It worked fine until I took it in for a front tire...

For the record, I got my new pads and yesterday morning I took everything apart, spent some time with the manual, and figured out my problem. I actually got everything back together right this time (except for the speedo which I need to order parts for). Everything is working great, torqued to specs, and perfectly safe. After I got done I took a short slow ride came back home and checked it all out. Later yesterday morning I took a longer ride, around 50 miles, and really put it through it's paces. It's all good except the brakes are squeaking some. I think that's just something that's to be expected until they get broke in some. Maybe I should have taken some fine sandpaper and roughed them up a little.

Overall I am satisfied with it. I am VERY satisfied that I saved $$$$. Probably $500-$600 at stealerships and definitely $300 at a so called "reputable " repair shop.

Thanks for the replies.

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[dgraves49]

A large portion of the labor charges is to pay for liability insurance to cover frivolus law suits.and medical insurance for employees.