Rear caliper/brake issues.

[GREGLOUS]

Rear caliper/brake issue AFTER SWING ARM SWAP

Hey guys! So, I recently updated my 04' with an 07' swinger. Everything went great -- until I reassembled my rear brakes. My rear brake is dragging. When the bike is on the center stand I am lucky to get 1/2 turn. I have already disassembled the caliper and cleaned/greased. Also, I have measured for alignment error. Neither of these produced any positive results. I am still dragging Do any of you fellas have any suggestions?


I should also add that I am not getting the best stopping power when engaging the brake. It's actually pretty weak despite the dragging.

 

[erburtt]

Well in your picture the rear caliper seems to be missing! That's why you're not getting the breaking power!!

Realistically though, the caliper has one piston that slides on a pin, take the pin out and scrub down with steel wool or something then grease it with something that will stay put ie. never have a chance of running down to the pads or disk. Also rubbing copper grease on the backside of the pad will help it stick to the piston and retract all the way when you're off the brakes. Final thought would be that you need a new seal on the piston, fronts are usually what go... I've never really messed with my rear.

Are you sure its the brakes dragging as well? it'll always make noise when the bike is off and you spin the wheel, but there's a heck of a lot of drag coming from the chain. Try removing the chain and giving it a spin, you might find it goes a lot farther.

 

[GREGLOUS]

Thanks for the reply! The seals and pin look great, however, slapping some grease on the back of the pad is a great idea. I completely forgot about that trick. I am going to give that a go. Also, I know it's not the chain dragding. When I remove the caliper, I get more than 1 spin. I can see the caliper not opening completely. Greasing the back of the pad might do it though. Thanks! :thumbup:

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Thanks for the reply! The seals and pin look great, however, slapping some grease on the back of the pad is a great idea. I completely forgot about that trick. I am going to give that a go. Also, I know it's not the chain dragding. When I remove the caliper, I get more than 1 spin. I can see the caliper not opening completely. Greasing the back of the pad might do it though. Thanks! :thumbup:

First, use brake specific grease for the back of the pad. Putting grease will ONLY stop any squealing..Brake drag, NO EFFECT...

**Did you make sure the bracket the caliper BOLTS TO is correctly set into the slot on the swing-arm?? There is a large "notch" there and must be on there properly. If it wasn't and torqued down, that bracket is likely bent (destroyed now).

Some suggestions, bleed the rear brake and make sure there's no air in the system.

Its very unusual, for the rear brake caliper, for the seals to drag that bad(un-like the fronts). You may have to replace the seal in the rear caliper. Its cheap enough and easy enough.

As a side note, if you go for a 15 minute ride, 50-60 MPH, and then STOP fairly quickly with your FRONT BRAKES ONLY. Now, feel the rear rotor. If its warm to hot, you have an issue, their dragging excessively. If its cool/cold, your fine..

And lastly, Yamaha recommends seal replacement every TWO YEARS. The fronts generally start dragging at 4-5 years in real life. The rear, extremely rare for them to drag as such.

Please post back what you find...

 

[ChanceCoats123]

Re: Rear caliper/brake issue AFTER SWING ARM SWAP

I agree with the above. Try cracking the bleeder and pumping a few times (after putting a hose on there) to get everything bled out, and try tapping on the caliper to move air bubbles up to the bleed screw.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

 

[GREGLOUS]

Thanks for the replies! After coming home and inspecting further, I believe one of the caliper bolts are slight cross threaded I am assuming this is the reason for the brake offset. I am going to order a new caliper/bracket just to be sure. I will let you guys know if the problem is solved. However, I think it's safe to assume the cross threaded bolt is the problem. :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Thanks for the replies! After coming home and inspecting further, I believe one of the caliper bolts are slight cross threaded I am assuming this is the reason for the brake offset. I am going to order a new caliper/bracket just to be sure. I will let you guys know if the problem is solved. However, I think it's safe to assume the cross threaded bolt is the problem. :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

Was the main bracket, where it slides into the swingarm (to keep it from spinning) correctly in the swing arm slot?

Also, that caliper slides (floating caliper) on the mounting bolts. You'll see the rubber covers for each bolt. They do tend to gum up over time. Clean the bushings, bolts, etc out real good with brake cleaner. The use BRAKE SPECIFIC GREASE and lube them back up. They should slide easily and NOT have slop in it.

 

[GREGLOUS]

Was the main bracket, where it slides into the swingarm (to keep it from spinning) correctly in the swing arm slot?

Also, that caliper slides (floating caliper) on the mounting bolts. You'll see the rubber covers for each bolt. They do tend to gum up over time. Clean the bushings, bolts, etc out real good with brake cleaner. The use BRAKE SPECIFIC GREASE and lube them back up. They should slide easily and NOT have slop in it.

I gave the covers/bolts a good cleaning and greasing. The bracket is sitting in there properly. I have already ordered a new bracket/caliper, however, I am going to continue messing with this until it arrives -- it's my daily driver. What grease do you recommend? I am using off-brand stuff, maybe I need to purchase a better performance product.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Any BRAKE SPECIFIC GREASE, ie; Permatex Ultra Disc Brake Caliper Lube (.5 oz) 85188: Advance Auto Parts

The brake grease holds up to the heat, doesn't fling off, etc. Any automotive parts store will carry it.. I use Permatex, its cheap enough and works well..

This link is exactly what I use;
Specialty Lubricants - Brakes : Permatex

 

[GREGLOUS]

Okay, I am going to pick some up this afternoon. Thanks for all the advice. I will keep the thread updated. Thanks again! :thumbup:

 

[ChanceCoats123]

Re: Rear caliper/brake issue AFTER SWING ARM SWAP

As a side note, how much work went into the swing arm swap? Are you happy with how it turned out (other than the caliper issues)?

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

 

[GREGLOUS]

Re: Rear caliper/brake issue AFTER SWING ARM SWAP

The swap was actually better than anticipated -- other than the caliper issue. I LOVE the way it looks on the bike! In addition, it was relatively easy to do. Nothing about the swap is physically difficult. There are a ton of "little" things so it is bit time consuming. However, it was certainly worth it. I spent a total of 3-4 hours on it. If you need more information/advice just let me know. Here is a picture of my before and after.

 

[payneib]

Re: Rear caliper/brake issue AFTER SWING ARM SWAP

What's actually required for the swap? I'm thinking of doing it next year on my 06 when my next swingarm pivot grease is due.

 

[trepetti]

Re: Rear caliper/brake issue AFTER SWING ARM SWAP

The swap was actually better than anticipated -- other than the caliper issue. I LOVE the way it looks on the bike! In addition, it was relatively easy to do. Nothing about the swap is physically difficult. There are a ton of "little" things so it is bit time consuming. However, it was certainly worth it. I spent a total of 3-4 hours on it. If you need more information/advice just let me know. Here is a picture of my before and after.

Looks like the fairing fell off as well BlahBlah

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Re: Rear caliper/brake issue AFTER SWING ARM SWAP

Looks like the fairing fell off as well BlahBlah

The faster, S2 swing arm will do that!!:thumbup:

 

[GREGLOUS]

You don't need much for the swap. You will need an 07' swinger and you will also need an 07' rear axle & hardware. There are several other Yamaha bikes that have compatible axles. In fact, my rear axle came from an 07' R6S. This is the part number: 5SL-25381-10-00. Make sure that you get the adjusters and hardware with the rear axle. Other than that everything bolts right up. All together I spent $65 -- $40 for the swinger and $20 for the axle/hardware. If you need more information on how to do it, just let me know!

The fairing had to go -- she's on a diet! I am trying to eliminate every piece of unneeded weight. Also, it was bound to happen because I bought the bike with damage to the front fairing. The guy hit his own truck while pulling into the driveway. LOL!

 

[payneib]

Re: Rear caliper/brake issue AFTER SWING ARM SWAP

Just looking at your pics, I might also need a new hugger. But other than that, everything fits: main pivot, brakes, shock? It's just the axle and chain adjusters (which is why I want to swap in the first place)? Tip top. Now I can get shopping over a few months.

 

[GREGLOUS]

I don't have a rear hugger, however, others have said that it should swap over as well. Other than that, you are exactly right. Main pivot, shock, and brakes all switch over without issue. You just need the axle and adjusters. I actually have the rear hugger laying around. Check back later and I will let you know if it fits on the new swinger.

 

[GREGLOUS]

I just put the 04' hugger on the new swinger and it looks like it should bolt right up. I don't have the hardware so I couldn't actually bolt it down but it looks like everything should line up perfectly. FYI I took the hugger off before the swap. It had nothing to do with the new swing arm.

 

[payneib]

Re: Rear caliper/brake issue AFTER SWING ARM SWAP

Brilliant, that's great info, thanks.