are my brakes rubbing?

After coasting the bike home from the shop (waiting to get my voltage regulator) I noticed the brakes where rubbing a fair bit.

Could my brakes be rubbing TOO MUCH? I've had a hard time breaking 40mpg, and i'm leafing through the "Brakes" chapter of the manual, doesn't seem like there's much to back the pads off the disc

 

Most likely culprits are dirty brake pistons, knackered piston seals that need changing, dry-dirty-corroded caliper slider pins not allowing caliper movement sideways.

Get the wheels up and spin by hand. A small amount of drag is normal. Normal drag means that you can feel/hear the pads squeeking a bit when you spin by hand but not feel any heavy drag cuz that is not normal. If you push back the pistons/pads a small amount ( or remove calipers) there should be almost no drag at all or wheel bearings might be shot.

 

^^^^ Wut dah EICHHOERNCHEN sed :smile:

Barf-ah-low cold now? havent ridden much in sunny south FL :sad: bikes look good though...

 

imo if your brakes were dragging "to much" you would get brake fade after awhile of riding from the fluid overheating in the calipers and lines.
The brake caliper pistons have square o-rings that draw the pistons back after release of presure. Heat from the pads and rotors create an air gap that push the pads off the rotors, when pushing the bike that heat is not there so the pads may rub more.
Fuel milage woos probably from elsewhere but as i always say.... I could be wrong, usaully am according to the wiffer

 

Seals are fucked (may re-use or not) problem is that the smigma that accumulated behind the seals prevents pistons from retracting once you release the brake lever, (me-thinks.) Anywho- go to your friendly honda dealer and buy two sets of brake seals along with some dust seals. Me have re-used them successfully in-der-past. Trick is, you have to look at what your remove with a magnifying glass! When they are porus and pock-marked like a crator faced sodomite, you-have-to-replace dem...And you have to clean your calipers nicely and not fuck them up with a pict or other scottish inhabitant. Old scotch-brite pads work nicely :smile:

Gud-luck...

 

It won't snow until i need to ride somewhere, Warren.

Expect a news-rich PM soon !

 

Check the wear indicator plates. If those are not correctly installed, they will act like a spring and push the pads into the rotors with enough pressure to cause drag, but not enough to push back the piston.

 

When brake pads are dragging, while driving, lots of heat is generated. Bikeman is on the right track, if you ride hard, fluid will boil, although you would have to ride pretty hard, since it is DOT4 fluid.
A more appropriate test would be to feel a rim after cruising around town. Heat generated might be enough to heat the rim nicely, but not enough to boil the brake fluid.