Comments on: How To Install and Adjust Disc Brakes

By: gregory meno

gregory meno — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 14:22:28 +0000

I read your howto on disc brake setup. I see someone else has posted this reply but it is a serious oversight. Please change:

“Tighten caliper bolts to 60 ft. lbs.”

to in. lbs. srsly people are going to be breaking bolts and stripping frames

Or you could leave it more generic:
“refer to manufacturer instructions for tightening torque.”

By: Dbag

Dbag — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 07:23:12 +0000

thank you 198. your a stand up guy.

By: 198

198 — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 17:07:15 +0000

Have you checked all of the fittings to make sure there are no leaks or a leak in the caliper. Typically, when there is air in the lines (unless it is A LOT!)…you are able to get the brake lever to stiffen up after pumping it several times…even if it is just a little bit.

By: Socratic Bob

Socratic Bob — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 15:54:10 +0000

I finally got around to bleeding the Hayes So1e. It didn’t go so well. Bled them per the manufacturer’s instructions 3 times, and the levers still hit the handlebars. There were no obvious errors and everything happened the way the Hayes manual described.

It’s interesting that I can find countless accounts of the same thing happening to others, but no explanations beyond the manufacturer’s instructions. For me, the brakes never pump up at the end. If fluid has been lost out of the system, does it take a lot more pumping of the levers? A mechanic in the bike shop said that it should only take a few pumps. Maybe he doesn’t usually bleed bikes that lost most of their braking pressure. Any thoughts?

By: 198

198 — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 01:50:54 +0000

Jon…you just need to push the pads back…your pistons have moved too far out. Using the spacers provided with your brakes is the preferred way, but you can also use a tire lever or flat blade screwdriver. If you end up using a flat head screw driver, make sure that you do not damage the pads while spreading them apart.

Other than that…you should be good to go!

By: jon

jon — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 01:46:15 +0000

hey guys, just got back on my bike after a years because of meitanence issues and me being too lazy to fiz them. i just installed disc breaks and accidentely, while the wheel was out, i pressed on the front break lever and closed up the space where you would put the wheel back in, now its rubbing and the wheel doesnt spin that fast, if it spins at all. anyone know what could be wrong and how to fix it, any siggestions would be appreciated

By: Socratic Bob

Socratic Bob — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 15:56:24 +0000

Thanks. Obviously I’ve never installed a set. My current set (bought on the bike) have been acting up and looking to do some maintenance. Front lever almost bottoms out under hard braking. I’ll find an article on bleeding.

Thinks for filling in the grey area.

By: 198

198 — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 22:29:03 +0000

Bob,

Every single set of brakes I have ever had came fully bled ready to install on the bike. No need to add fluid.

In the rare cases that I have to cut the lines to fit the bike (which I only do if they are extremely long as you can affect resale value), a simple bleed procedure is all that is needed.

By: Socratic Bob

Socratic Bob — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 22:00:35 +0000

I’m puzzled as to when the hydraulic fluid is added. I never saw it mentioned once in the article. Hard to break ‘em in with no fluid, right?

By: Graham

Graham — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 11:30:56 +0000

Good article but you’ve written ft.lb where you should’ve put in.lb. Probably should change it as I’m sure someone will try it with a really big torque wrench….