[GameStar]

Ok so when I picked up my bike yesterday I had a buddy ride it home for me for a few blocks and he said the rear brake isn't working to good. I was wondering if there is anyway to adjust this or is it something further wrong than adjusting. When its in neutral it will stop but doesn't have enough when driving. The pads look good.

 

[eclark53520]

May have some grease or oil on it...try spraying it off with Brakleen

OTherwise i do believe there is a way to adjust the pedal as well...idk, never had to do that...dont use the rear brake besides from keeping the bike from rolling on a hill while stopped.

You want it to be there, but honestly you probably wont need it much while riding...(not trying to start a shitstorm here...but the front brakes are where 99% of your braking power is)

 

[GameStar]

I understand that it is like 70-30 but it does kind of worry me. I took it out and going like 20 and there was only a little bit of grab there. I have read alot about people locking there rear brakes, but with the way its acting that is not possible. What do you all have to take off to check out the rear reservoir. To be able to open the top of it.

 

[eclark53520]

70-30 no...more like 99-1....but anyway

#1, if there is good pedal pressure, meaning you can feel it grab but its just not slowing the bike down, spray off the rotor and caliper with BraKleen or some type of brake cleaner...

#2 if there is not good brake pedal pressure there is (i think) a knurled nut that runs up and down on a threaded rod that adjusts the pedal height, the higher it is the more travel the pedal has, so you can get more pressure on the rear brake...


ETA people lock their rear brake up because they have no weight left on it when they are braking hard with the front...the harder you brake with the front brakes the less weight there is on the rear...which means there is less braking ability...which is also the reason the front brakes do 99% of the work...

 

[GameStar]

Well the guy who rode it home has a 99 gsxr 750. Maybe it just is different to him, I don't know if there rear brake is stronger but i did adjust the pedal an stuff just now and ill have to see if it helped. I can't take it out now because its snowing.

 

[asus]

maybe the pads are low, have you checked them?
have you bled the brakes?

 

[GameStar]

maybe the pads are low, have you checked them?
have you bled the brakes?

Yes I did check the pads, they are not new by any means but do have some life on them yet, Not bled the brakes yet as it was done about 2 weeks ago at the dealer. But if the problem is still there after the pedal adjustment that will be the next thing to do. Now that I think about it the day it was test ridden the chain was pretty dry so I asked them to lube up the chain. So it might just need to be cleaned.

 

[andyauger]

Always start with the basics. Pull the pads and clean them and the rotor with BraKleen or similar product. 0 or 00 steel wool is a good way to scrub everything. Check the reservoir under the passenger seat to make sure it has fluid. If it doesn't there may be fluid in the line. If it does but it's dark yellow or brownish then do a gravity bleed.

Pack an old towel around the reservoir because it is hard to keep it full without spilling a little. Hook up vinyl tubing to the bleed nipple and run it into a container to catch the old fluid. Open both nipples and let the fluid flow until you've got clean fluid coming out of the tube. Close that nipple and try the brake again.

It is true that you have to be a bit careful with the rear brake, and it is true that the harder you are braking on the front the lighter you have to be on the back. Still, proper braking is a technique you should develop. It's important. Proper cornering is not the easiest thing to learn either, but you never hear anyone say to just keep going straight.

 

[imdying]

Always start with the basics.

QFT.

Do this stuff first, never make trouble for yourself if you can avoid it, just do the basic maintenance, it's almost certainly overdue anyway

 

[jdewkilla]

do some general maintenance and then double and tripple check your skill level. the rear is hard to get a feel for.

 

[CTtarheel]

Sometimes for me if I don't touch the rear brake for a long time or the bike sits for a couple weeks it's a bit sluggish at first. Normally pumping the rear brake a few times when I'm coming to a stop gets things going again. If you're rear brakes are working properly you should be able to lock them easily.

 

[Rock Dodger]

At the risk of thread drift, I would comment in regard to front/rear brake usage.

There's a large group of motorcyclists that won't use the front brake at all. They've heard some baloney about using the front brake, like going over the bars, unexpected locking of the front wheel and other tales. They instinctively use only the rear brake and suffer the consequences. You can hear it in some of the stories you hear, the classic line being "I had to lay it down". Yep, too much back brake will often times result in a slide which leads to the mistaken impression of one's controlled, active participation in "laying it down".

A very long time ago when I was learning the fine points of dirt riding/motocross racing I would practice riding on dirt with the front wheel locked. It can be done and it gives you a sense of what to do when the front locks unexpectedly in a race situation.

Learning proper use of both brakes is crucial to stopping effectively and may save one's life at some point.

 

[andyauger]

+1 on Rock Dodger's comments about riding with a locked rear. It's a technique that can be useful. I once rode an aging Triumph down from 60 MPH with the rear wheel locked hard by a broken chain. Not the sort of thing you should practice, but my lower speed practice on wet streets momentarily locking the rear brake sure came in handy.