Important rear caliper maintenance gens 1 and 2

Rear caliper maintenance isn't complete until after you've pulled apart the 1" sleeve UNDER THE RUBBER BOOTS and cleaned and lubed it !!!!!! If it's stuck from corrosion, rear brake won't work best, uneven pad wear. It's something thaT ALMOST NEVER gets inspected, and it needs to move about 1/4 " each way without resistance. Wire-brush and saND the sleeve to remove the corrosion, then lube it up with waterproof grease. Be sure to clean up and lube the hole it came from. If the rubber booties are ripped, replace them to keep water from rusting the shaft like the one in photo.



No mention of this in the FSM :frown-new:

 

This bit of important advice applies to ANY sliding piston caliper, i.e. all brakes up to and including the 6th gen. Supposedly you should use a silicon grease for the application.

 

This weekend I yanked that dang thing off my bike while cleaning up the brake parts, what a pain to get it out. I'm pretty sure they it never been regreased. The pad wear wasn't too uneven, but hey since i'm already redoing every seal in the brakes might as well make it slide as good as possible side to side. Looks like they still sell the part and it costs 8 bucks, eh i think mine'll clean up nice.

 

Thank you.

 

You need to get one of these.
Titanium doesn't corrode.
I asked if he would make me one, he's added it to his range.

http://titanclassics.com/product/honda-titanium-caliper-sleeve-45111-ma3-006/

 

Very cool, i bookmarked that for next time i dig into the brakes. I wire wheeled my old one for now, but if it gives me grief that will be ordered post haste.

 

If your rear disc has grooves, ie) visible channel worn on one side of the disc, the caliper slider pin squirelman mentions has seized.

 

Well said, I did this on my '83 for both rear and my front two calipers. Totally took apart all parts, cleaned, wire brush and buffed, plus replaced all rubber parts. Good for another 32 years!

 

I ran into this on my '84. Blogged about it. Complete with pic goodness.

http://vfrworld.com/forums/entry.php/401-Washington-Rides-Mountain-Loop-Highway?goto=prev

 

Picked up 2 Basket Case Bikes and doing a Restore.

One rear Caliper Glide Pin was Seized.


We Tried Heat and Penetrating Oil.


We tried cracking it loose slowly.


It seemed to be coming loose but it just Snapped Off.


We got lucky with a Clean Drill down the Center of the Pin, but only 90% of the way through.

Then we flipped it over and drilled a small hole through the Aluminum Arm and Pounded the Pin out.


It still took some Pounding to get it out.
Now I need to seal the hole back up. I'll probably Lathe a small Aluminum Plug and TIG it in place.

There is a special High Temp Grease specifically for Caliper Glide Pins, but I can never find it.
I'll probably reassemble with a White Lithium Grease smeared in the Aluminum Arm Hole and Marine Grease on the Glide Pin.

The Rubber Boot was intact, so I don't know where the Factory Grease went, or how the Moisture got in there.
And then there is the Galvanic Corrosion that happens with 2 different metals in contact, with "dielectric".
Moral of the Story, as already mentioned, Get in there and do a full Clean & Lube every so often.

 

Nice fix VF1000fe.

Just a thought on the issue, I think the slides are anodized. Probably not a good idea just to sand them. Best to buy new.

 

unSeize the Moment

The bolt is Anodized Black so the Hex Head looks Black and doesn't Rust.
Internally the Pin is coated with Lube, so it wouldn't matter.
I use a Steel/Brass Pipe Cleaner style brush on a drill, to clean the rust out of the Aluminum Arm Hole.
I put a fine smear of AntiSeize Compound on the Threads.
As another Tip, I swap the Brake Pads around whenever the wheel (rotor) is out of the way.
Helps prevent Groves/Scoring on the Disc (if your Brake Pads are Symmetrical).

 

Best not to reinstall pads until their surface has been by scuffed by an abrasive agent +brake cleaner spray. Glaze looks shiny on the pads, while a medium grey, dull surface has a better friction coefficient. It's common for pads to accumulate road or fork oil related to mileage.

Try scuffing pads on a concrete floor in a random motion for about a minute to have a fresher pad surface.

 

The correct grease for the sliders is medium duty silicone grease.

 

Right I went and fount it.
I have been using a tube of this for 20 years (on the bikes).
http://www.amazon.com/Dow-Corning-Molykote-Medium-Lubricant/dp/B001VY1EL8