soft front brake

yamaha189
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yamaha189
Edited Date/Time 10/16/2012 9:47am
I have a 2004 yz 125 and I have to squeeze the front brake almost all the way to the grip for it to apply pressure to the rotor. I've tried bleeding and the pads are fine. What should I try next? Thanks in advance.
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TrailDigger 10/11/2012 7:51pm
10/11/2012 7:51pm
Adjust the lever and check it over.
jarret.stephen 10/12/2012 6:21am
10/12/2012 6:21am
try a cr style steel briaded brake line
Carlton_Fartman 10/12/2012 7:08am
10/12/2012 7:08am
It just suddenly happened to a bike you've had awhile? If the system has been sealed and it just started to happen I'd rebuild the master cylinder first. If there's any chance air got in the system recently it could just need bleeding. Did the fluid go down at all? I've had a line start leaking, it only takes a little tiny leak to make the brake stop working.
Panic_Rev
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Panic_Rev 10/12/2012 8:20am
10/12/2012 8:20am
are your fork seals blown? Or have they blown and been repaired since the last time you changed the pads? If any of your fork oil leaks onto your rotor or pads they are toast even if they look like they have a lot of life left. I have heard of people taking the pads off and trying to torch the oil out, but I would rather spend the few bucks for new pads.

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yamaha189
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yamaha189 10/12/2012 1:45pm
10/12/2012 1:45pm
Panic_Rev wrote:
are your fork seals blown? Or have they blown and been repaired since the last time you changed the pads? If any of your fork oil...
are your fork seals blown? Or have they blown and been repaired since the last time you changed the pads? If any of your fork oil leaks onto your rotor or pads they are toast even if they look like they have a lot of life left. I have heard of people taking the pads off and trying to torch the oil out, but I would rather spend the few bucks for new pads.
I have a steel braided brake line, but it slowly started to go down. It still works good once it finally gets pressure.


But my fork seals arent blown right now but they have been but i had them fixed. I'll try bleeding a couple more times to see if it gets any better.
Panic_Rev
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Panic_Rev 10/12/2012 1:57pm
10/12/2012 1:57pm
Panic_Rev wrote:
are your fork seals blown? Or have they blown and been repaired since the last time you changed the pads? If any of your fork oil...
are your fork seals blown? Or have they blown and been repaired since the last time you changed the pads? If any of your fork oil leaks onto your rotor or pads they are toast even if they look like they have a lot of life left. I have heard of people taking the pads off and trying to torch the oil out, but I would rather spend the few bucks for new pads.
yamaha189 wrote:
I have a steel braided brake line, but it slowly started to go down. It still works good once it finally gets pressure. But my fork...
I have a steel braided brake line, but it slowly started to go down. It still works good once it finally gets pressure.


But my fork seals arent blown right now but they have been but i had them fixed. I'll try bleeding a couple more times to see if it gets any better.
when you fixed your fork seals did you change your break pads?
Carlton_Fartman 10/12/2012 1:59pm
10/12/2012 1:59pm
What is slowly going down? You mean it was good for a while then this problem started?

Should be about $30 for a master cylinder rebuild kit, that's what id try first if bleeding doesn't do anything.
yamaha189
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yamaha189 10/12/2012 3:56pm
10/12/2012 3:56pm
Panic_Rev wrote:
when you fixed your fork seals did you change your break pads?
No I didn't.
yamaha189
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yamaha189 10/12/2012 3:59pm
10/12/2012 3:59pm
Carlton_Fartman wrote:
What is slowly going down? You mean it was good for a while then this problem started? Should be about $30 for a master cylinder rebuild...
What is slowly going down? You mean it was good for a while then this problem started?

Should be about $30 for a master cylinder rebuild kit, that's what id try first if bleeding doesn't do anything.
It was good at the beginning of the year and has slowly gotten softer over the summer, but I'll try bleeding again and if that doesn't work I'll try the rebuild kit. I've never rebuilt a master cylinder before, how complicated is it?
Panic_Rev
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Panic_Rev 10/12/2012 4:07pm
10/12/2012 4:07pm
Panic_Rev wrote:
when you fixed your fork seals did you change your break pads?
yamaha189 wrote:
No I didn't.
If any oil got on them you need to change them.
Carlton_Fartman 10/12/2012 6:34pm
10/12/2012 6:34pm
Carlton_Fartman wrote:
What is slowly going down? You mean it was good for a while then this problem started? Should be about $30 for a master cylinder rebuild...
What is slowly going down? You mean it was good for a while then this problem started?

Should be about $30 for a master cylinder rebuild kit, that's what id try first if bleeding doesn't do anything.
yamaha189 wrote:
It was good at the beginning of the year and has slowly gotten softer over the summer, but I'll try bleeding again and if that doesn't...
It was good at the beginning of the year and has slowly gotten softer over the summer, but I'll try bleeding again and if that doesn't work I'll try the rebuild kit. I've never rebuilt a master cylinder before, how complicated is it?
Real easy, then it has to bled, which can be a pain sometimes...
yamaha189
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yamaha189 10/12/2012 9:37pm
10/12/2012 9:37pm
Panic_Rev wrote:
If any oil got on them you need to change them.
I'll change them out during winter this year because i probably wont get to many more rides in this year anyway.
yamaha189
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yamaha189 10/12/2012 9:37pm
10/12/2012 9:37pm
Carlton_Fartman wrote:
Real easy, then it has to bled, which can be a pain sometimes...
Alright. Thanks for the help!
Justin314
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Justin314 10/13/2012 6:59am
10/13/2012 6:59am
Another thing you can try before spending some cash is to take a zip tie, apply pressure on the brake, and use the zip tie to hold the lever in. Let it sit for a couple hours, then remove the zip tie and squeeze the brake a few times. If it doesn't work, repeat for a few more hours. If it doesn't work after repeated attempts, a master cylinder rebuild kit would be the next step.
yamaha189
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yamaha189 10/14/2012 1:44pm
10/14/2012 1:44pm
Justin314 wrote:
Another thing you can try before spending some cash is to take a zip tie, apply pressure on the brake, and use the zip tie to...
Another thing you can try before spending some cash is to take a zip tie, apply pressure on the brake, and use the zip tie to hold the lever in. Let it sit for a couple hours, then remove the zip tie and squeeze the brake a few times. If it doesn't work, repeat for a few more hours. If it doesn't work after repeated attempts, a master cylinder rebuild kit would be the next step.
I'll try this also, but do you know why this would help?
nb11
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nb11 10/14/2012 5:02pm
10/14/2012 5:02pm
Justin314 wrote:
Another thing you can try before spending some cash is to take a zip tie, apply pressure on the brake, and use the zip tie to...
Another thing you can try before spending some cash is to take a zip tie, apply pressure on the brake, and use the zip tie to hold the lever in. Let it sit for a couple hours, then remove the zip tie and squeeze the brake a few times. If it doesn't work, repeat for a few more hours. If it doesn't work after repeated attempts, a master cylinder rebuild kit would be the next step.
yamaha189 wrote:
I'll try this also, but do you know why this would help?
Constant pressure forces air bubbles to the top. It's not hokey--I've had success with this method.

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