Uneven front pad wear

Hi,

I got my '02 Viffer nearly a year ago. It has nearly 12K miles on it now. A few days ago while replacing the front wheel I discovered that my front pads are worn unevenly. On the left side, the pads are worn almost to the metal (lucky me). But the right pads are almost as new. So I put new pads on both sides, and did a little test: I rode around for 10-15 minutes, and then touched the discs. The left disc is hot as hell, but the right one is not hot at all. I can actually hold it with my finger. In comparison, the rear disc is as hot as the left one.

So I am left with 2 possibilities: either the left pads are not releasing properly, or the right pads are not actuated at all. Given the test, I am leaning toward the latter.

I googled around and there seems to be some opinions that this is because of the LBS. Is this true or is it having to do with a bad caliper? I thought I poke around for some opinions before resorting to the dealer.

I appreciate any thoughts on this.

 

My knee jerk here would be the side that's cool to the touch pads are not doing their part thus making the other work harder. Have you had the system open recently; possible air is in there and may require bleeding. If you have a front stand try getting the front end off of the ground, rotating the wheel as to determine if excessive drag is present.

 

+1 to bleeding as your first step in troubleshooting.

You can test the caliper in two ways, 1 slide something thin in there like and apply brake pressure. Can you slide it out? Second, take the wheel off and apply pressure. You should see the pistons on both calipers actuate. You'll need c-clamps or something similar to compress them again.

 

Thanks for the hints guys. Is bike's bleeding similar to car's? I have done this on cars before but never on bikes. What else should I look for besides pumping the brake lever a couple times, holding it tight and then let loose of the bleeder for a sec or two?

Regards.

 

For the most part bleeding a bikes system is just like bleeding the system on a car but keep a close eye on the reservoir and make sure that it does not go empty on you.

 

You also should check the mounting bolts for the caliper and the pins that hold the pads in the caliper. Both need a light coat of grease so that all parts can move freely when the brake is applied. Could have something sticking.

 

This was my thought too. The caliper pins will bind up and the hydraulic pressure will all go to the side thats still moving. Testing before you bleed would make sense. You can put a feeler guage between the pads and rotor on the non-worn side. If it's not pinching the feeler when you apply the brakes, you've found your issue. I'd give the brake calipers a once-over anyway, even if you only suspect one side sticking. They're likey both needing service if one is going south.

 

uneven where??

try lubricating the "slider pins" ( i call them) which allow the caliper to move sideways a small amount, thus bringing both pads into action. they probably need some grease..........