Triumphrat

burgessa23

I put in EBC HH pads this weekend and bled everything.
now it feels like it should, lever travel is about 1/2" before it starts to grab and theres no more pulling the lever to the bar.

they bite almost as hard as stock right now, after they bed in (250 mi. or so) they'll be at full strength.

I suggest everyone try the pads before they go out and spend $300 on a 675 master cylinder.

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thanks,
-Andrew

R100Pilot

That's odd - the brakes on my '01 TT feel a LOT better than the brakes on my '06 Speed Triple, though both stop plenty hard. I'm still debating whether to swap calipers on the S3 or just put up with the occasional bleed-and-push-the-pads-back routine. Did Triumph switch to the "progressive" brakes some time after 01?

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"I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me."
— HST

ezride

There's nothing wrong with the stock master cylinder, pads, etc.. I think there's something with the design or assembly of the hydraulic system that allows air bubbles to hide out. A lot of people seem to have chronic brake squish on these bikes.

I basically lost the front braking while on a ride about a year and a half ago. On minute everything was fine, the next I pulled the lever just about to the stop and...nothing. Scared the ***** out of me; luckily I was coming to a stop on an uphill section with plenty of space. I was sure I had a broken hydraulic line/fitting/etc and would find fluid dismissed from the system -- but a thorough roadside inspection revealed nothing wrong except very squishy brakes. Pumping them up gave back my (squishy) braking but not confidence in them.

I bled the system that night, and the brakes improved...but still were not as firm as the revamped / ss line brakes on my '95 Sprint. Over time, they seemed to get a little squishier.

Now it gets weird. Had new tires fitted a few weeks back, and when I took the bike back I nearly crashed leaving the lot. Rock solid, hair trigger, one-finger squeeze braking. The shop did nothing to the brakes except remove and reinstall the calipers with the wheel change (and maybe dislodge a trapped air bubble?). I don't have a good explanation, but I sure hope they stay like this.... :-D

FuryFour

i was told it had something to do with seals on the pistons or something.....the new pads feel better because they are thicker than stock

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| 2006 Triumph Speed Four - SOLD |
| 2001 Triumph TT600 - SOLD |
| 2008 Triumph Daytona 675 - NEW |
| 1979 Honda CX500 - Old and Ugly |
| 2008 Dodge Ram 1500 Big Horn - Support Vehicle |

R100Pilot

ez, I'd be willing to bet that when they changed your tire, they removed the calipers. Before reinstalling them, they probably pushed the pads back into the calipers to make it easier to fit them back on over the rotors. Once everything's together, you pump the brake lever to push the pistons back out and seat the pads on the rotors.

This is a pretty common quick fix for the mushy brakes on the Speed Triple. When the lever travel gets too long, you take a pair of pliers or channel locks, squeeze the pads back into the calipers, pump the brake, and feel comes back for a while.

It does seem to be an issue with the pistons sticking in the caliper (pushing them back in loosens them up for a while), as well as air getting into the line (probably seals). I do the pliers/pad squeeze for a while, but eventually I have to bleed the brakes. I've gone through an entire bottle of DOT 4 trying to get all the bubbles out on the triple - it can get that bad.

Since I bought my TT used, I'm not sure if there have been any mods. It does have ss brake lines up front, and the brakes feel solid.

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"I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me."
— HST

I got the same prblem on both my 97 Sprint-sports 900 and my 2003 S4.

IMHO I reckon this is about the elasticity of the operating piston seals.

The seals distort as the pistons are pushed out and act as rubber springs, retracting the piston. I think Triumph get the seal spec wrong so they pull the pistons back too far giving you wasted travel.

What do you all think??

Jon

FuryFour

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| 2006 Triumph Speed Four - SOLD |
| 2001 Triumph TT600 - SOLD |
| 2008 Triumph Daytona 675 - NEW |
| 1979 Honda CX500 - Old and Ugly |
| 2008 Dodge Ram 1500 Big Horn - Support Vehicle |

rustbucket

That being the case is there a rebuild kit or alternative calipers that could be fitted to resolve the problem?

I've been using a zip-tie to pull the lever to the bar overnight once a week or so, and have bled the system (on and off the bike) multiple times. I'm sick of dealing with it...

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Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy. -Benjamin Franklin

Will

Change the fluid if you haven't. That helps. EBC pads help a lot, too. I never had any problems with the front brakes as long as the fluid was new and the pads were thicker than OEM.

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Will
It's a squid thing. You wouldn't understand.
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Yak

The people on the dirtbike forums swear by the blue Motul fluid. ... If that means anything.

I always figured that fluid is fluid... but others seem to think it makes a difference.

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2005 Triumph Speed Four - Yellow