Lately when stopping I'm getting a pulsing sensation from the front brake. Just like it would in your car with rotors that are warped. Have never run the pads down to metal and have always used factory pads. Only about 2K miles on them right now. I was told that the rotor would be blued if I warped it by overheating it but it looks fine. Nothing is visually wrong at all. Can these rotors be turned or is it replace only? It seems a little odd that the rotor would be shot with all the highway miles I have. Maybe someone has had a similar experience and could chime in.
I did that at last pad replacement. Flushed it very good and used synthetic DOT 4. Still seems odd that it's happening but that's the way it's goes for me. The rear is fine.
If possible, lift the front of the bike so that you can spin the front wheel. if you look at the rotor when it's spinning you should be able to see if it is warped. Remove the caliper if it helps.
You could also have had a "hard spot" develop on the rotor. If so, the rotor won't be warped, but look for a slightly discolored area on it; you may not see anything, but worth a look. If the rotor has this condition, the brake pad(s) will tend to "slip" on it and then grab normally again.
I personally wouldn't waste my money trying an OEM rotor on this bike. Repylacements are a fairly inexpensive upgrade. Why risk it when it is the only thing between you and that trunk deck just in front of you? A little over $100 buys a lot of peace of mind and a much nicer piece.
Lately when stopping I'm getting a pulsing sensation from the front brake. Just like it would in your car with rotors that are warped. Have never run the pads down to metal and have always used factory pads. Only about 2K miles on them right now. I was told that the rotor would be blued if I warped it by overheating it but it looks fine. Nothing is visually wrong at all. Can these rotors be turned or is it replace only? It seems a little odd that the rotor would be shot with all the highway miles I have. Maybe someone has had a similar experience and could chime in.
If your getting a pulsing, it probably is warped. You would be hard pressed to find someone to turn it, and that would only lead to some more warping, if it could be done.
As has been mentioned, forgetaboutit and purchase another OEM or aftermarket.
The pictures are from when I replaced my friend's rotor on his 2001. His wasn't warped, but Maryland inspection miked the thickness and it was just under specifications. They are pretty thorough.
I still can't help but wonder how it got warped. Maybe I'm too hard on the brakes? Most of my miles are hwy and I'm not using the brakes that much. For some reason I thought I would get more out of them but hey these things happen. I saw a pic on a thread on here somewhere of one that was blued and cracked and the guy didn't even notice. Yikes!
I had a similar experience. I changed the pads and a pulsing was felt through the bars. I tried bleeding, then new fluid and bleeding, all to no avail. After reading the Honda calliper upgrade I went that route with a new EBC rotor. As of yet I,ve not had a chance to trial it as of the weather but reading the feedback from others on the forum it should be a big improvement. Why we are getting this pulsing / warping I don,t know but it does seem relatively common. In 40 odd years of riding its a first for me, I,d wager there is an inbuilt problem...but what...dunno
Well since it decided to snow a tad this afternoon and it's gonna be close to single digits tonight, it's not looking like I will be getting to take care of it this weekend. But might be in the 60's in a week. It's crazy here.
I'd replace it with a floating or semi floating rotor. I seem to remember some of the older wheel mating surfaces behind less than perfect. A Floating rotor would help cure that.
I have an old skool surface grinder at work. Guess what I'm gonna butcher....errr....grind on it. And no it will be after I replace it. I know that won't work right. And when i say old, I mean the first real surface on it was in 1970. Yep
Before you grind on the disc, can you measure the thickness at several locations around the disc? I'm betting that the thickness varies around the disc. You will get hints at where to measure by rotating the front wheel and listening to the pads chirp at spots on the discs. These are the thick spots.
My Theory:
Most discs are ground when new and grinding work hardens the surface. Eventually, the brake pads get thru this thin hard layer and start wearing the disc faster in those locations. Giving uneven thickness around the disc and pulsing at the handle.
You can get car discs turned as they have extra material, but not a lot. Turning doesn't harden the surface, but at least it's all the same now. Bike discs have no thickness margin, by the time you can feel a wear ridge at the ID or OD, you can pretty well say you are below min thickness.
If you have access to a surface grinder - give it a go. Hope the disc is magnetic or you will have fun holding it down
Grinding the rotor on a surface grinder may or may not fix a warped rotor, depending on how the rotor will be held down on the table. A magnetic "chuck" will pull out most of any warp so you'll grind it and find out it's still warped after it's released from the big magnet. To grind it successfully you just about have to hold it the same way it's attached to the wheel hub.
And that's why I said I know it won't work. It's bad enough trying to get the tooling on this turret punch press right. Why oh why can't these guys buy some newer equipment!
I've seen damage done to discs by shops while changing the tire. If you don't see it obviously out of true, scrub it down with a soapy steel wool pad. It may have been in contact with oil, wax, or some other contaminant, or like a previous poster said it may just developed a hot spot. I would try that first before I purchased a new rotor.
I'm one of the DIY guys. The dealer changed my first back tire. After I recovered from the price shock I do everything myself. I was looking at it yesterday and looks like it is just a cheap piece of metal. Plus when i stop from hwy speeds because of traffic lights maybe i was a tad hard on said cheap metal. Either way its gotta go soon. Tire change coming up shortly and will do it then. Thanx for all the info everyone
Had to change mine within days of fitting Pretech 6 pot caliper
Disc was fine previously but it could not handle the extra forces from the 6 pot
I think stock disc quality is variable.
I bought two rotors and a set of pads for my car this weekend. $110! I decided I should rebuild the calipers. Turns out, you just buy rebuilt ones, $36 each!
So, my point is, I'd throw some car parts on there. They're a ton cheaper.
You may be on to something there BB. But it might work too good and cause me to flip the bike and me thinks that would be bad. And then no more kill switch. That would be bad too. Me thinks. It's too early here to think. Anyway...
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