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Hi Gang,

I have a real rookie brake bleeding question.

I bleed my brakes, and when I hit the pedal the pads pressed up against the rotor, but they wont return. They remain pressed against the rotor.

What should I do?

Thanks for any help,

David

They're supposed to! Well, actually they will release just a bit but not enough to really notice visually. As long as the front wheel rolls you are good.

The wheel does spin, but the pads are constantly rubbing the rotor.

I come from a mountain biking background, where there is no rub when the brakes are off.

Thanks SS.

D.

It should just be very lightly touching the rotor. If you can feel drag when turning by hand then something is wrong.

I can feel some light rubbing.

I can hear it too.

Does it feel like it is holding back the wheel from rotating? If not, you are good.

The wheel spins pretty well.

There is constant rubbing however.

Normal. Because of the limited "power" available on a bicycle, I assume their brake systems actually pull the pads away from the discs a little bit. On a motorcycle, the hydraulic pressure is released, but there is no spring or other mechanism to pull the pads away from the disc. They simply stay right where they are, with no pressure on them, rubbing lightly on the disc. If there were a spring to pull them back (or push the caliper piston back), the first step on the lever would be "dead", meaning that the pedal would simply push all the way down, until the pads contacted the disc again, and then you would have to take another bite with the pedal. A similar thing happens when you bend a disc. The bend pushes the pads back, and you end up with a lot of lever or pedal play.

Thanks Greg!

Thanks everyone!

I am learning.

Have you lubed the caliper slide pins?

if you keep having problem, replace the pin, they get worn a little and you usually can't tell. I was trashing pads every ride then I replaced the pin, no more problem after.

I lubed up the pins really well with Bel Ray grease.

I guess this is just how the brakes function.

I am new.

I guess that goes without saying.

Thanks for all the help.

BTW I was talking about the pins that holds the brake pad (NO grease) not the pin that holds the caliper together (the one going into the rubber piece filled with grease)

scheckaet wrote:BTW I was talking about the pins that holds the brake pad (NO grease) not the pin that holds the caliper together (the one going into the rubber piece filled with grease)

I knew what you meant, but thanks for clarifying.

Often, people do not realize just how critically sized the caliper volume, the brake hose length, and the master cylinder volume (or piston diameter/stroke) have to be to have a system that works well. If you were to change any one of these components with another, say, from another machine, the entire sytem balance can easily be upset, and you end up chasing the problem down the line. I have seen this happen several times on street bikes.
This is why something as simple as a braided hose, or a slightly bent disc can make a huge difference in feel at the lever.

I was worried about that during my fork swap

E series has just a single piston caliper, while the H has a twin. Plus the H hose is longer

But thankfully it all works fine

Mr. Wibbens wrote:I was worried about that during my fork swap

E series has just a single piston caliper, while the H has a twin. Plus the H hose is longer

But thankfully it all works fine

Same here. H series caliper with E series M/C and hose. Works great!

I am glad to hear that swap works well for our bikes. The volume of the larger diameter E series single caliper piston is most likely very close to the volume of the 2 smaller pistons/bores of the H series caliper.