front brake

Ok here is the deal. I changed out my front tire today; and when i put the front brake caliper back on, The wheel is hard to spin. Its like i have the brake on or something. I took the caliper off and the wheel spins. I'm not the best at this stuff so if you could explain in simple words what to do that would be cool. Thanks Jesse

 

Something is out of place causing the pads to want to push on the rotor.

Most likely one of two things happened: The brake pads fell out of position relative to the anti-rattle springs and one of the ears on one of the springs is trapped where it ought not be (the problem is in the caliper)

OR

You got something out of position/in the wrong place or mixed up a spacer when you put the front wheel back on (the problem is with the front hub/wheel's alignment.)

 

You will probably need to take the caliper apart and clean/lube it. I had the same problem with mine. I couldn't even push it into the shop they were so bad. After cleaning them up and re-installing them, I've never had a problem since and that was 6 years ago. I used white lithium grease to keep the moisture out and it seems to work wonders. Just don't get any on the brake pads!!

 

Did you possibly flush/bleed the system? We've had many reports of stuck brakes owing to a blocked relief port in the master cylinder (I'm betting this is your problem). I had a similar problem with my 81 750 Seca. Rebuilding the m/c after a very through cleaning fixed it.

 

I had the brake caliper rebuilt. And it worked great when the tire was on, up to the very secound i pulled it in the garage. Then i pulled the brake caliper off and put it back on the new tire and now its real tight. Do i need to re bleed my brakes or is it something else. And how do you bleed brakes. Thanks guys

 

If the piston was extended while removed (pressing the brake lever or just expansion) then it would act like that. Carefully try to press the piston into the caliper a bit with a clamp or pieces of wood and something to pry with. The brake fluid level will rise so be careful, you may have to remove the reservoir cover if its too full.

 

THANKS kontiki that worked, and thanks to everyone else too.

 

OK one last question. got the brake caliper back on and working. But when i spin the tire it seems still a little tight. Is it suppose to be a little tight, or should it spin freely and fast. thanks

 

NOTE2: All original Yamaha front master cylinders have an extremely tiny "blow back" hole (actually a pressure release return passage) in the center of the bottom of the reservoir floor that must be clear and un-blocked in order for your master cylinder to function properly----if this hole is plugged, it will prevent the calipers from fully releasing when the brakes are NOT being applied, causing the brakes to always be slightly engaged. Brake system "dragging" will result, as well as brake rotor over-heating and warpage after a period of time.

This tiny hole is located within an area that is best described as what appears to be the beginning of a drilled hole that was "never completely drilled through" (this will make sense when you actually view the floor of the reservoir). In the very center of such area is this pressure release passage, and it takes about 1-2 un-stranded strands of wire to poke through this hole and remove any debris or gunk. This hole is not the much larger reservoir-to-piston chamber fluid transfer hole, which is huge compared to this pressure-relief passage. The pressure relief passage hole is normally just to the "side" or "behind" the larger (1mm diameter) fluid transfer hole, and "in line" with the centerline of the piston chamber, but "behind" the fluid transfer hole, towards the brake hand lever side of the master cylinder.

When rebuilding your master cylinder, make sure that this tiny relief passage is free and clear! Failure to clean this passage fully is one of the major over-looked "gotch-ya!" situations that arise when rebuilding your master cylinder.


SO MAKE SURE THE TINY, MINISCULE PRESSURE RELIEF PORT IN THE MASTER CYLINDER IS FREE AND CLEAR OR YOUR BRAKES WILL NEVER FULLY RELEASE AND WILL NOT ONLY WEAR QUICKER, BUT THE EXTRA HEAT BUILD-UP WILL:

* warp your rotors.
* wear out your pads.
* dramatically increase your stopping distance.


Brakes work by turning motion into heat, and if your brakes are already heated (due to constant engagement), well........


A good picture of this relief port on the conventional (handlebar-mounted) master cylinders can be seen at:

http://www.xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=12529.html

while XJ750 Seca owners will have to look here:

http://www.xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=14836.html

 

did you put the spacers on the wheel back in their correct position?