post on testing brakes

JimS

JimS

Today is a Good Day to Ride
Joined
Sep 28, 2007
Messages
150
Location
Southern Colorado
Bike
'06
STOC #
7178
Ok, I give. I read an article or post recently about testing the operation of the brakes after replacing pads. I poked, perused, and searched. I know it's sitting there staring at me. Anyone got a clue which one I'm talking about?
Thanks for helping a Jr Geezer.
 
Or you can use the white courtesy :WCP1: and I can talk your ear off :rofl1:
 
John, I used it earlier this year to do my back brakes. A great article, well explained, and along with your other brake related posts,
Mellow's article; https://www.st-owners.com/forums/threads/st1300-rear-brake-piston-cleaning.101206/ ,
and this one by AV8R; https://www.st-owners.com/forums/threads/st1300-rear-brake-pad-replacement.167378/ made the job manageable. I gained some experience and good knowledge about how brakes works. Kudos to all of you.

The reason for this thread, though, is I've developed a small squeak/squeal, which occurs as I'm depressing the back pedal, and only for a moment. It started about 200 miles after the rear pad replacement. I wanted to go back and do some basic testing, and this was a good place to start.

From the get-go, I've been wondering if maybe I put a little too much grease on the slider pins. Of course, I've fixed many things by ignoring them, so we'll see. :)
 
JimS said:
Ok, I give. I read an article or post recently about testing the operation of the brakes after replacing pads. I poked, perused, and searched. I know it's sitting there staring at me. Anyone got a clue which one I'm talking about?
Thanks for helping a Jr Geezer.
Click to expand...
I'm curious as I'm planning to do tires and brakes this winter. Did you use aftermarket or OEM pads?
 
Yes, rear brake. Haven't touched the front yet, on purpose. Riding today, it was intermittent, but one thing for sure, pressing the front brake handle does NOT produce any noise. When pressing down on the rear brake pedal, it's a momentary squeal, not anything that sounds like a semi coming to a stop.

I had to go thru your article several times for it to make sense (must be your accent, and learning what words like doddle meant) :). But once I took the caliper apart it all made sense. I did have the wheel off which made it much easier for a first timer to work with it. I remember wiping off the slider pin, then reinserting, then pulling back out; it made a little suction sound, but it did move freely during the reinstall test per your article.

For the greases, I just checked and verified I'm using a high temp synthetic. That seems to be the anti-squeak piece, right? Maybe I didn't put enough of it on the back of the pads. I couldn't find the copper grease, but I remember shopping specifically for that type.
If my 'ignoring it' approach doesn't work, I'll take it all apart again and double-check everything, once riding season winds down.

Funny thing about my original post. I not only had a copy of your article, but a printout in the garage turned to the very page where it talks about testing the brakes. Aah, I need an assistant. A tall, buxom assistant.
 
Oldbutfast said:
I'm curious as I'm planning to do tires and brakes this winter. Did you use aftermarket or OEM pads?
Click to expand...

Yep OEM. They weren't much more than aftermarket, and my local dealer had them in stock. My original pads lasted 60k miles, so I'm a happy camper.
 
I have this howling effect on the rear pads when riding in the rain like this morning.
The howling happens when I'm coasting to a stop and lightly using the hand brake. I rarely use the pedal to brake on the ST.
What I think it is is, I'm getting 75% braking power on the front and 25% to the rear using the hand brake.
I think It is resonance on the rear pads lightly touching the rotor.
I write it off as nothing to worry about.
My fix would be to apply silicon to the backing plates on the rear pads and then apply pressure to the brake pedal over night so they stick to the pistons and to the movable caliper.
 
John....are you forgetting the post where I discovered why the rear brake was howling and sounding like a chair being dragged across the floor?
You guys may want to re-visit this thread:
"Howling" noise when using the brake pedal
Standing by the :WCP1: if needed.
 
I did a little testing with it in the garage, pressing it w/engine off, and engine on in gear, applying rear brake repeatedly. No noise at all, so my next step is to try after the brakes are warmed up a bit. But won't be able to do any riding for a couple days. Larry (Igofar), I read thru the thread you mentioned. Good stuff. I just hope if I ever break down it'll be near your place. :)
 
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