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Lost my brakes in the rain

  • Thread starter Thread starter BluePlateSpecial
  • Start date Start date
B

BluePlateSpecial

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Got caught in a little rain on my way back from a bike show yesterday. It had only been raining for a couple of minutes and I hadn't ridden through any puddles, but as I turned into my subdivision I realized that my front brakes were gone. Tried to use my back brake to stop but with the wet pavement it locked up and I started to slide. Somehow I managed to recover and avoid hitting the median or laying it down and I managed to make my way home SLOWLY.

Awhile back I noticed a small drip of brake fluid coming from the lower part of one of the front calipers. I am assuming that the rain washed some of this down onto the rotors which caused my front brakes to fail.

It has been raining off and on here since so I haven't tested the bike now that it is dry but does that sound plausible?
 
Dj66 said:
These bikes have famously bad wet weather brakes stock.
Click to expand...

This was the first time I've been in the rain with a GS so I have nothing to compare it to but I can't imagine that they would fail completely without having ran through deep water or some other external factor affecting them.
 
As soon as you noticed the drip from a vital part such as your front brakes you should have taken action to identify and correct.:eek:
Now that I am done scolding you for that:o
I would make sure that the problem is from your drip and not from some douche messing with it at the show.
If somebody was messing with it give the bike a thorough inspection!
 
Stock brakes for me have always been about the same wet. HH pads in the twin-pot caliper upgrade are no good in the wet for the first few rotations.

The front brakes are "gone"? Meaning no pressure at the lever, or just completely ineffective? If you can still build pressure, find the leak, fix it, and put on some fresh pads. It's probably long overdue for a caliper rebuild, which isn't that difficult. Just messy. Big-time safety issue. You got lucky this time, it wasn't a left-turner. You could have got yourself splatted.
 
Crankthat said:
As soon as you noticed the drip from a vital part such as your front brakes you should have taken action to identify and correct.:eek:
Now that I am done scolding you for that:o
I would make sure that the problem is from your drip and not from some douche messing with it at the show.
If somebody was messing with it give the bike a thorough inspection!
Click to expand...

I hear ya. Lesson learned. I'm sure it had something to do with the rain cause they were rock solid up till that point.
 
Dogma said:
The front brakes are "gone"? Meaning no pressure at the lever, or just completely ineffective? If you can still build pressure, find the leak, fix it, and put on some fresh pads. It's probably long overdue for a caliper rebuild, which isn't that difficult. Just messy. Big-time safety issue. You got lucky this time, it wasn't a left-turner. You could have got yourself splatted.
Click to expand...

There was pressure, they just wouldn't grab. I only had a second but I tried pumping a few times just to make sure and to try to dry them enough so they would grab but it was to no avail. It was still pouring for the last 2 miles home so I wasn't really testing them but they seemed to regain a little grab by the time I got home so I am pretty sure it just that the rain washed a little of the brake fluid on the rotor. That wouldn't explain why the other front brake didn't grab though....

Actually I rebuilt the brakes earlier this year right before I got the bike back on the road. New pads, new pistons and seals in the calipers and new SS lines front and back and I disassembled and cleaned the master cylinders. Not sure why the one is leaking but I am going to pull it apart and investigate this week.
 
BluePlateSpecial said:
There was pressure, they just wouldn't grab. I only had a second but I tried pumping a few times just to make sure and to try to dry them enough so they would grab but it was to no avail. It was still pouring for the last 2 miles home so I wasn't really testing them but they seemed to regain a little grab by the time I got home so I am pretty sure it just that the rain washed a little of the brake fluid on the rotor. That wouldn't explain why the other front brake didn't grab though....

Actually I rebuilt the brakes earlier this year right before I got the bike back on the road. New pads, new pistons and seals in the calipers and new SS lines front and back and I disassembled and cleaned the master cylinders. Not sure why the one is leaking but I am going to pull it apart and investigate this week.
Click to expand...

Hmmm. Maybe a little contamination under a seal or crush washer (assuming the pistons and seal grooves were in good condition). Yeah, the other side should have grabbed. Have you tried them again with everything dry? Maybe the pads you put in don't like water. I'm not sure of all the compounds available for stock calipers.
 
I had an 83 1100e years ago. The front brakes totally sucked in the rain...Luckily I found this out after washing it and taking it for a quick spin to dry it off. If caught Iin the rain, I would periodically drag the brake to keep it dry. Hindsight says I should have experimented with new pads, as the brake system itself was in good working order. Glad you didnt dump it....
One of the first things I did when I got my 1150 was to ride in the rain to check the brakes in the wet...no problems...
 
Never had any problems with GS brakes in the rain. Something else is wrong.

I suppose contamination from an old brake fluid or fork oil spill that the rain washed into the brake pad is one possibility.

I've had issues after riding through tons of mud, but it seems you would have noticed that. I've also had issues when it's cold enough to freeze water in the brake calipers, but it seems you would have noticed that as well... :D

Are you using decent name brand brake pads? Some of the no-name Chinese cheapies infesting eBay seem OK when dry, but get scary when wet or hot.
 
Dj66 said:
These bikes have famously bad wet weather brakes stock.
Click to expand...

After several thousand miles of riding a GS in the rain I never noticed any special problem. Forum members with many times my experience and with extensive experience riding other makes and models haven't complained about any general problem.
 
Looks like some new pads are in order. Any suggestions on what brand/where to buy? Preferably something reasonably priced....
 
I've been in some hellaish down pours here, never had any problems with the brakes. One thing I do when they start getting wet, I apply some slight pressure on the brakes to more or less wipe them. Seems to work just fine. I've been using the EBC pads for years now.
 
Leaking brake fluid at any point at all should be an immediate cause of concern. That's no bueno
 
Don't know if your bike has plain or slotted/drilled brake rotors.
A lot of the two stroke guys switch to slotted GS rotors & modern aftermarket pads.
The slots/holes create a place for the water to go & the modern pads have modern brake materials.

If you have to deal with traffic & are willing to spring for the best setup, then new EBC rotors & pads are likely the best way to go.
 
jabcb said:
Don't know if your bike has plain or slotted/drilled brake rotors.
A lot of the two stroke guys switch to slotted GS rotors & modern aftermarket pads.
The slots/holes create a place for the water to go & the modern pads have modern brake materials.

If you have to deal with traffic & are willing to spring for the best setup, then new EBC rotors & pads are likely the best way to go.
Click to expand...

Yea, they are the stock drilled/slotted rotors.

I took it for a spin yesterday and the brakes are solid now that everything is dry. Guess I need to tear it apart and figure out where the leak is coming from and go from there.
 
If you want good brakes talk to Salty monk. His brake upgrade works very well indeed. Far better than anything that can be done with the stock calipers and discs, and inexpensive.
 
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