disc brake question

AFAIK - it sounds like you got some oil or something on the rotor. Have you
tried cleaning it with alcohol or something?

--
Dave -
www.blurredistinction.com/director
www.macromedia.com/go/team

"Michael Halliwell" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:e4zPe.17700$Hk.8092@pd7tw1no...

Quoted message said:

I've got an interesting one for you, mainly because I don't have a lot of
experience with disc brakes...I'm used to the old V-brakes.

.

Ideas?

Thanks,

Psycho Mike

http://www.hayesdiscbrake.com/index.shtml
--
DTW .../\.../\.../\...

I've spent most of my money on mountain biking and windsurfing.
The rest, I've just wasted.

The rotors are probably still not broken-in. Ride it down a good long
downhill and modulate them (pump evenly) at high speed all the way
down.

JD

"Michael Halliwell" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:e4zPe.17700$Hk.8092@pd7tw1no...

Quoted message said:

I've got an interesting one for you, mainly because I don't have a lot of
experience with disc brakes...I'm used to the old V-brakes.

I've noticed that my front brakes have an unusual feel to them....the
tension at the lever seems good, but I'm not getting much bite (stopping
power) from them. I've pulled out the pads (they look ok as far as I can
tell), tried brushing them off and, other than a little brake dust, they
seemed clean. Lots of pad left (only about 400 miles on the bike in
total), just no bite.

The rear brake seems fine, with lots of stopping power and they've been
through the same general workout in terms of wet/mud/dust.

The brakes are Hayes mechanicals.

Ideas?

Thanks,

Psycho Mike

My hayes 9 Hydraulic disks didn't bed in properly until I did a mile long
descent braking like a real chickenshit most of the way down, before that I
couldn't really notice the difference from my old well worn in V brake set
up.

If wearing them in or using disk brake cleaner on them fails the pads might
be contaminated, if so they're best replaced at this point.

APH

Michael Halliwell said:

I've got an interesting one for you, mainly because I don't have a lot
of experience with disc brakes...I'm used to the old V-brakes.

I've noticed that my front brakes have an unusual feel to them....the
tension at the lever seems good, but I'm not getting much bite (stoppig
power) from them. I've pulled out the pads (they look ok as far as I
can tell), tried brushing them off and, other than a little brake dust,
they seemed clean. Lots of pad left (only about 400 miles on the bike
in total), just no bite.

The rear brake seems fine, with lots of stopping power and they've been
through the same general workout in terms of wet/mud/dust.

The brakes are Hayes mechanicals.

Ideas?

Thanks,

Psycho Mike

Sounds like the pads are contaminated with something. I would think
that 400 miles of use would have bedded them in nicely by now.
First of all, double-check that they are adjusted correctly and are
actually biting down hard enough.
You could try cleaning the rotors with isopropyl alcohol (you can get it
at the chemist) and if that doesn't work, try Shaun's old trick of
getting some nice, fine silty mud and plastering that on and in and
around the rotors and pads and braking repeatedly. Just make sure it
hasn't got small stones in it, you don't want to badly score the rotors.
If that still doesn't work, I'd remove the pads, clean everything with
the alcohol, and then put new pads on.
--
Westie

"Michael Halliwell" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:e4zPe.17700$Hk.8092@pd7tw1no...

Quoted message said:

I've got an interesting one for you, mainly because I don't have a lot of
experience with disc brakes...I'm used to the old V-brakes.

I've noticed that my front brakes have an unusual feel to them....the
tension at the lever seems good, but I'm not getting much bite (stoppig
power) from them. I've pulled out the pads (they look ok as far as I can
tell), tried brushing them off and, other than a little brake dust, they
seemed clean. Lots of pad left (only about 400 miles on the bike in
total), just no bite.

The rear brake seems fine, with lots of stopping power and they've been
through the same general workout in terms of wet/mud/dust.

The brakes are Hayes mechanicals.

Which model, specifically? MX-2? These tend to be down on overall braking
power, especially compared to Avid mechanicals, and somewhat weaker than
Hayes hydros.

--
Phil, Squid-in-Training

Phil said:

"Michael Halliwell" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:e4zPe.17700$Hk.8092@pd7tw1no...

Quoted message said:

The brakes are Hayes mechanicals.

Which model, specifically? MX-2? These tend to be down on overall braking
power, especially compared to Avid mechanicals, and somewhat weaker than
Hayes hydros.

My first xp with Hayes mechs... I had stopped on the trail on a ride,
after descending about 3000', waiting for a bud to catch up. And
waiting. And waiting. Then we see him crest a hill. Walking. Not
walking along side his big. But straddling it. Eventually, he coasts
up to us, and stops by dragging his feet. Both of his Hayes mech disks
had failed, completely. So we start wrenching. The brakes only have a
single piston, I think. Huh? The single piston just sort of presses
the rotor against the other side, instead of clamping on, like real disc
brakes. Well, like my Maguras, anyway.

Maybe the Avid mechs are better...

Per justen:

Quoted message said:

Both of his Hayes mech disks
had failed, completely. So we start wrenching. The brakes only have a
single piston, I think. Huh? The single piston just sort of presses
the rotor against the other side, instead of clamping on, like real disc
brakes. Well, like my Maguras, anyway.

Maybe the Avid mechs are better...

My Avid mechs work the same way: only one piston. The other side is adjustable
for clearance.

Short of the cable parting, a part in the linkage breaking, or a pad falling out
I'm hard-pressed to visualize the nature of the failure.

Any idea of exactly what stopped working?
--
PeteCresswell

Michael Halliwell said:

I've got an interesting one for you, mainly because I don't have a lot
of experience with disc brakes...I'm used to the old V-brakes.

I've noticed that my front brakes have an unusual feel to them....the
tension at the lever seems good, but I'm not getting much bite (stoppig
power) from them. I've pulled out the pads (they look ok as far as I
can tell), tried brushing them off and, other than a little brake dust,
they seemed clean. Lots of pad left (only about 400 miles on the bike
in total), just no bite.

The rear brake seems fine, with lots of stopping power and they've been
through the same general workout in terms of wet/mud/dust.

The brakes are Hayes mechanicals.

Ideas?

Thanks,

Psycho Mike

Thanks for all the help....must have picked up some oil somewhere...the
alcohol cleared it out and I'm stopping well.

Thanks again for the help,

Psycho Mike

Michael Halliwell said:

Michael Halliwell said:

I've got an interesting one for you, mainly because I don't have a
lot of experience with disc brakes...I'm used to the old V-brakes.

I've noticed that my front brakes have an unusual feel to them....the
tension at the lever seems good, but I'm not getting much bite
(stoppig power) from them. I've pulled out the pads (they look ok
as far as I can tell), tried brushing them off and, other than a
little brake dust, they seemed clean. Lots of pad left (only about
400 miles on the bike in total), just no bite.

The rear brake seems fine, with lots of stopping power and they've
been through the same general workout in terms of wet/mud/dust.

The brakes are Hayes mechanicals.

Ideas?

Thanks,

Psycho Mike

Thanks for all the help....must have picked up some oil
somewhere...the alcohol cleared it out and I'm stopping well.

Thanks again for the help,

Psycho Mike

Taking out the pads, setting them on the stove on high for 2 minutes,
letting the smoke clear, and then putting them back in the calipers was
definitely a huge improvement when I had my pads comtaminated by grease.
Your mileage won't vary... it'll most definitely improve your braking more
than just using alcohol.

--
Phil, Squid-in-Training

"Phil, Squid-in-Training" <[email hidden]> wrote in
message news:BqZQe.3387$rj.619@lakeread07...

Quoted message said:

Michael Halliwell said:

Michael Halliwell said:

I've got an interesting one for you, mainly because I don't have a
lot of experience with disc brakes...I'm used to the old V-brakes.

I've noticed that my front brakes have an unusual feel to them....the
tension at the lever seems good, but I'm not getting much bite
(stoppig power) from them. I've pulled out the pads (they look ok
as far as I can tell), tried brushing them off and, other than a
little brake dust, they seemed clean. Lots of pad left (only about
400 miles on the bike in total), just no bite.

The rear brake seems fine, with lots of stopping power and they've
been through the same general workout in terms of wet/mud/dust.

The brakes are Hayes mechanicals.

Ideas?

Thanks,

Psycho Mike

Thanks for all the help....must have picked up some oil
somewhere...the alcohol cleared it out and I'm stopping well.

Thanks again for the help,

Psycho Mike

Taking out the pads, setting them on the stove on high for 2 minutes,
letting the smoke clear, and then putting them back in the calipers was
definitely a huge improvement when I had my pads comtaminated by grease.
Your mileage won't vary... it'll most definitely improve your braking more
than just using alcohol.

--
Phil, Squid-in-Training

i've heard of guys soaking the pads submersed in alcohol for a while then
pulling them out and setting htem on fire waiting till they go out then put
them into the caliper. what the..

"Mitch Pollard" <(mitchpol)@iinet.net.au> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Phil, Squid-in-Training" <[email hidden]> wrote in
message news:BqZQe.3387$rj.619@lakeread07...

Quoted message said:

Michael Halliwell said:

Michael Halliwell wrote:
> I've got an interesting one for you, mainly because I don't have a
> lot of experience with disc brakes...I'm used to the old V-brakes.
>
> I've noticed that my front brakes have an unusual feel to them....the
> tension at the lever seems good, but I'm not getting much bite
> (stoppig power) from them. I've pulled out the pads (they look ok
> as far as I can tell), tried brushing them off and, other than a
> little brake dust, they seemed clean. Lots of pad left (only about
> 400 miles on the bike in total), just no bite.
>
> The rear brake seems fine, with lots of stopping power and they've
> been through the same general workout in terms of wet/mud/dust.
>
> The brakes are Hayes mechanicals.
>
> Ideas?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Psycho Mike

Thanks for all the help....must have picked up some oil
somewhere...the alcohol cleared it out and I'm stopping well.

Thanks again for the help,

Psycho Mike

Taking out the pads, setting them on the stove on high for 2 minutes,
letting the smoke clear, and then putting them back in the calipers was
definitely a huge improvement when I had my pads comtaminated by grease.
Your mileage won't vary... it'll most definitely improve your braking

more

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

than just using alcohol.

--
Phil, Squid-in-Training

i've heard of guys soaking the pads submersed in alcohol for a while then
pulling them out and setting htem on fire waiting till they go out then

put

Quoted message said:

them into the caliper. what the..

The alcohol dissolves the grease. As it evaporates it brings the grease to
the pad surface, where it is then burned off.

if going the stove top route, be careful - some of the glues between metal
and pad can't take that much heat.

Shaun aRe

Shaun aRe said:

"Mitch Pollard" <(mitchpol)@iinet.net.au> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Phil, Squid-in-Training" <[email hidden]>
wrote in message news:BqZQe.3387$rj.619@lakeread07...

Quoted message said:

Michael Halliwell wrote:
> Michael Halliwell wrote:
>> I've got an interesting one for you, mainly because I don't have a
>> lot of experience with disc brakes...I'm used to the old V-brakes.
>>
>> I've noticed that my front brakes have an unusual feel to
>> them....the tension at the lever seems good, but I'm not getting
>> much bite (stoppig power) from them. I've pulled out the pads
>> (they look ok as far as I can tell), tried brushing them off and,
>> other than a little brake dust, they seemed clean. Lots of pad
>> left (only about 400 miles on the bike in total), just no bite.
>>
>> The rear brake seems fine, with lots of stopping power and they've
>> been through the same general workout in terms of wet/mud/dust.
>>
>> The brakes are Hayes mechanicals.
>>
>> Ideas?
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Psycho Mike
>
> Thanks for all the help....must have picked up some oil
> somewhere...the alcohol cleared it out and I'm stopping well.
>
> Thanks again for the help,
>
> Psycho Mike

Taking out the pads, setting them on the stove on high for 2
minutes, letting the smoke clear, and then putting them back in the
calipers was definitely a huge improvement when I had my pads
comtaminated by grease. Your mileage won't vary... it'll most
definitely improve your braking more than just using alcohol.

--
Phil, Squid-in-Training

i've heard of guys soaking the pads submersed in alcohol for a while
then pulling them out and setting htem on fire waiting till they go
out then put them into the caliper. what the..

The alcohol dissolves the grease. As it evaporates it brings the
grease to the pad surface, where it is then burned off.

if going the stove top route, be careful - some of the glues between
metal and pad can't take that much heat.

Shaun aRe

Yep... set it on low to medium... just enough to smoke it off.

--
Phil, Squid-in-Training

"Phil, Squid-in-Training" <[email hidden]> wrote in
message news:o_WTe.11972$Cc5.1136@lakeread06...

Quoted message said:

Shaun aRe said:

"Mitch Pollard" <(mitchpol)@iinet.net.au> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Phil, Squid-in-Training" <[email hidden]>
wrote in message news:BqZQe.3387$rj.619@lakeread07...
> Michael Halliwell wrote:
>> Michael Halliwell wrote:
>>> I've got an interesting one for you, mainly because I don't have a
>>> lot of experience with disc brakes...I'm used to the old V-brakes.
>>>
>>> I've noticed that my front brakes have an unusual feel to
>>> them....the tension at the lever seems good, but I'm not getting
>>> much bite (stoppig power) from them. I've pulled out the pads
>>> (they look ok as far as I can tell), tried brushing them off and,
>>> other than a little brake dust, they seemed clean. Lots of pad
>>> left (only about 400 miles on the bike in total), just no bite.
>>>
>>> The rear brake seems fine, with lots of stopping power and they've
>>> been through the same general workout in terms of wet/mud/dust.
>>>
>>> The brakes are Hayes mechanicals.
>>>
>>> Ideas?
>>>
>>> Thanks,
>>>
>>> Psycho Mike
>>
>> Thanks for all the help....must have picked up some oil
>> somewhere...the alcohol cleared it out and I'm stopping well.
>>
>> Thanks again for the help,
>>
>> Psycho Mike
>
> Taking out the pads, setting them on the stove on high for 2
> minutes, letting the smoke clear, and then putting them back in the
> calipers was definitely a huge improvement when I had my pads
> comtaminated by grease. Your mileage won't vary... it'll most
> definitely improve your braking more than just using alcohol.
>
> --
> Phil, Squid-in-Training
>

i've heard of guys soaking the pads submersed in alcohol for a while
then pulling them out and setting htem on fire waiting till they go
out then put them into the caliper. what the..

The alcohol dissolves the grease. As it evaporates it brings the
grease to the pad surface, where it is then burned off.

if going the stove top route, be careful - some of the glues between
metal and pad can't take that much heat.

Shaun aRe

Yep... set it on low to medium... just enough to smoke it off.

Messed up my first ever set with b/fluid spillage. Did the mole grip/stove
top thing I've done for automotive ones, put 'em back in - rode up and down
fast, hard braking - yup - them's starting to work good again thinks I then
*SCHLING!CRUNCH!* the freaking friction material got ripped off the pad
metal and hurled out in front of me, the spring retaining clips got mangled
in the disc. 10 to 5 Saturday evening, early LONG ride Sunday, zero cash -
arggghhh!

Luckily made it to the LBS before the shut and they let me take a set and
pay later, phew!

Shaun aRe

Per Shaun aRe:

Quoted message said:

The alcohol dissolves the grease. As it evaporates it brings the grease to
the pad surface, where it is then burned off.

if going the stove top route, be careful - some of the glues between metal
and pad can't take that much heat.

Anybody had success with just boiling them in water for awhile?
--
PeteCresswell

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Subject: Re: disc brake question
From: "(PeteCresswell)" <[email hidden]>
Newsgroups: alt.mountain-bike

Per Shaun aRe:

Quoted message said:

The alcohol dissolves the grease. As it evaporates it brings the grease to
the pad surface, where it is then burned off.

if going the stove top route, be careful - some of the glues between metal
and pad can't take that much heat.

Anybody had success with just boiling them in water for awhile?
--
PeteCresswell

Maybe soapy water or alcohol but I doubt regular water will do much.

"(PeteCresswell)" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Per Shaun aRe:

Quoted message said:

The alcohol dissolves the grease. As it evaporates it brings the grease

to

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

the pad surface, where it is then burned off.

if going the stove top route, be careful - some of the glues between

metal

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

and pad can't take that much heat.

Anybody had success with just boiling them in water for awhile?

I doubt it would be hot enough to bring the grease out.

Shaun aRe

Somewhat, but they're still kinda chewy...

"Shaun aRe" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Anybody had success with just boiling them in water for awhile?