SAFETY ALERT Drum rear brake bike owners please take a look

Make sure the head of the bolt sits down into the recess on the back. No need to tighten the snot out of the nut. Just tighten enough for the split washer to flatten out, give it a tweak then install the cotterpin.

 

Hey there - just happened across this post. Welcome to the forums, fellow Calgarian! Did you get this sorted out, or do you still need anything?

 

I did get it back together, thanks!

 

Yikes.

 

Hi just reading about your break shoes issue.ive never know that to happen but I'm going to check mine tnx to you Anthony.

 

most important thing you can bring away from this thread is Change your shoes unless you know how old they are, then check them at the beginning of the riding season. unknown shoes may not be delaminated today but next week may be a different story.

 

Anybody have tips on cleaning calipers the were rings go.

 

Would this be true for any old bike? Or are XJ's more susceptible to this?

 

yes it applies to any bike with linings that are bonded to shoes, first time I ran into the issue was coming out of a nice curve into a straight away rear tire locked up solid

 

small brass rotary brushes work well. chacal xj4ever sells them, they fit right into the grooves

 

This must be a result of the bonding agent drying out. I have some nos shoes I was going to use, but may have to go new.

 

nos for brake shoes is a funny thing seeing you can still get them at the dealership .

 

Can we get a repost of the original image in the first post of this thread (preferably in the first post again, as an edit, so everyone knows where to find it)? The imgur site should do, now that Photobucket is even more evil.

If needed, I could just host the image on a server of mine, too.

 

All pics for Fitz's threads are being fixed a time allows. This will be a slow process. Please be patient.

Apologies for missing pics in posts/threads

The problem is with Photobucket (as every internet forum has found), and there is only one person with permission to access Fitz's Photobucket account and move the images.

 

Hogfiddles is doing some reposting of bigfitz work . I do not think this one is high on his list to rewrite.
if you use chrome to view this site and add the photo bucket extension you can see all the photos

bottom line in this thread is to check your brake shoes before going on that first ride of a new to you bike.
then check the shoes after you replace them on a yearly basis . yamaha spec is a complete rebuild of brake systems every 4 years
maintenance requires you to inspect brake system every 2500 miles,4000 km or 6 months after break-in period.
DO NOT IGNORE YOUR BRAKES

 

Neato. I just an hour ago pulled the drum cover off the parts bike I had bought. Yikes!!
Rusty much??? This kinda stuff is scary

 

Thanks for the info. I wasn't aware this was an in-progress process, and just figured I'd ask.

 

Jeebus. That looks like rust-colored spray paint.

 

Most of that appears to be brake dust (it will discolor to brown over time). I'm only seeing rust on the outer edges of the drum liner.

 

Good read! To do...thanks for posting.

 

Looks like we have a handful of new XJ owners who, from the sound of things, really need to read this. You cannot just get one of these bikes running and start riding it while putting off neglected maintenance. It could literally kill you. REAR BRAKE DELAMINATION COULD KILL YOU if it happens at an "inconvenient" time. When is a convenient time for an unexpected rear wheel lockup? (You won't get to choose, nor will there be any warning.)

So once more, for hopefully the desired effect: If you just got an XJ and have begun riding it, STOP DOING SO until you've checked your rear brake. This failure is very common, easily repaired, and extremely dangerous if the possibility is simply ignored because the brake "feels fine." You absolutely have to take it apart and look. Go back to the beginning of this thread and look at the photos.

 

¡¡Hola!! Empecé con la restauración de mi xj750 82 35000 millas que había estado parada durante 20 años. Encontré los frenos traseros deslaminados como alerta este foro. En mi país no se encuentra disponible el repuesto, por lo que estoy pensando en llevarlo a un especialista para que reemplace el material degradado por uno nuevo. ¡¡Salud!!

 

In the olden days they were riveted to the shoe, sounds a better system having read all the horror stories! - - nostalgia, it`s not what it used to be..

 

I fitted new shoes, bike off road for at least 13 years, as I tighten the axle nut, the wheel binds and almost locks up completely. Its like I am missing a washer/shim somewhere. Gutted cos I was going to a show tomorrow. I have had the wheel in and out 10 times, all washers are present ( though not standard probably) brake torque arm ok, brake adjuster backed off, I did note the hole in the axle for a rod to hold it while tightening the axle nut is partly covered by the swingarm collar. I would have thought it would be well clear.

 

Definitely be sure on that

Here is a good thread that might help, I can't explain why the order of the pinch bolt nut seemed to work for him, as it should be last like k-moe mentions in the thread

https://xjbikes.com/forums/threads/am-i-missing-something-stupid-rear-wheel-installation.73506/

 

OMG - I wish I had been patient and waited for this link before setting off for the bike show (without this spacer) . Going for second gear resulted in the most dreaded grinding crunching noise. I have ordered the spacer mentioned, when it arrives will say several prayers I havent killed the final drive gear. Thanks anyway, I will do some form of penance if I have got away with this

 

Is your clutch cable adjusted properly? That missing spacer would not cause any grinding noises.

 

Did you solve this?

 

I will check cable again, I have received the spacer, it looks too long - part no. 90387-172A5 2 3/4inch/70mm compared to the parts diagram, which is only a schematic to be fair

 

annoyingly, i can only work on the bike outside, and its been somewhat inclement

 

Fitted the spacer, and OEM proper thick plate washers to the axle, and all is well with the wheel (no binding
Set off for a short test ride and the wheel locked completely when second gear was engaged. Had to push it home with the clutch pulled in.

 

Mine look good but I’ll check. It’s been on the garage for 3 years. I recently took the bike on the road again.
Thank for the heads up.

 

Thanks for the info
Yesterday I bought an old bike (Honda 750k)
That was heading for the scrap.
I thought one hundred bucks why not.
This bike has not been registered since 2011 lol.
Got there and the bike’s rear wheel was locked up.
Being a chain drive it was the rear brake is locked up. Who knows what I got myself into lol. Glad I have my reliable xj650 ready and waiting for spring

 

Last time I looked (spring), mine were still OK, but it's a 44-year-old bike and I have nothing better to do this afternoon than go internet shopping (I'm three weeks post-op on knee replacement, so even though we're supposed to see 50 degrees this weekend I won't be riding). Found some inexpensive shoes on eBay. Kinda sucks that the bike's original shoes only have 10K miles on them, and another set with about the same mileage came with the spare back wheel, but delamination is about time and luck, not miles.

I've never had motorcycle brake shoes delaminate, but it did happen to the parking brake on my old Ford police cruiser. This car has discs on all wheels, but the back discs have cute little drums cast into their hubs for the parking brake. Last year I heard a strange grinding noise, noticed the right rear wheel was really hot, figured I had a bearing going. When I pulled the rotor, the linings from the parking-brake shoes fell out. Seems the adhesive had just let go. And the car is a 2009 model, so 25 years newer than my Yamaha! Since the car was fifteen years old and the parking brake cable was rusted solid, I didn't bother replacing the shoes; just removed the detached linings...

 

My parking brakes have no shoes or guts in them!