Adjust rear brakes

yes gary, my issue is that i tinkered with my rear wheel and now i cant align the axle lined up correctly and my caliper is rubbing against the disc. So how do I fix this?

Manual says put bike on center stand, remove cotter pin and loosen the big axle nut on the left. As soon as I do that the whole axle shifted. Is the nut supposed to be completely loose or just a little loose?

Then manual says to use the adjusting bolts/nuts on both sides to align the axle, just like in the diagram, and to keep both sides equally pushed in. Hmm, the diagram isn’t helping me, and tightening them both clockwise, the left adusting bolt makes the axle move forward, the right adjusting bolt makes the axle move backwards. Which means Im making the axle go clockwise. Whereas my problem is that the axle is rubbing on the caliper because it’s already too far right. I want the axle to go left/counterclockwise.

Ill keep messing around with it

gggGary said:
Bad wheel bearing? Pictures deceive but axle doesn't look centered in the wheel.
Click to expand...
 
Above each adjuster on the swingarm are alignment marks. | | | | | both sides should be at the same mark from the front (or between the same pair of marks).
 
..... but those axle adjusters will have no impact on your problem. Your caliper mounts on the axle. That's where the issue is. Either the carrier bracket is bent or the caliper isn't mounted into it correctly. The caliper looks cocked on the bracket in your pic.
 
You simply HAVE to pull the rear wheel and check over that rear brake. Among other things severely worn pads seem liley at this point. I've found a couple sets of pads that were worn into triangles (one pad worn on the front the other at the rear).
 
My caliper is off because my axle is probaly off. How do I get my axle centred correctly?

5twins said:
..... but those axle adjusters will have no impact on your problem. Your caliper mounts on the axle. That's where the issue is. Either the carrier bracket is bent or the caliper isn't mounted into it correctly. The caliper looks cocked on the bracket in your pic.
Click to expand...
 
blank slate said:
My caliper is off because my axle is probaly off. How do I get my axle centred correctly?
Click to expand...

Any manual will tell you how to adjust a chain. Adjust the chain and your axle is in the right place. After adjusting the chain and things are still not right, you must have bad bearings, missing parts or bent/damaged parts.

Scott
 
blank slate said:
My caliper is off because my axle is probably off. How do I get my axle centered correctly?
Click to expand...
.

No this can't happen because the axle isn't centered..........The wheel, rotor, caliper and axle, (when installed are all 1 unit)......and cant move independently of each other.............

.
 
blank slate said:
What if when I adjusted the rear pedal I screwed something in too tight and basically the caliper is locked onto the disc?
Click to expand...
It is possible to do that.
Just got a dirt bike, apparently the PO had been adjusting the rear brake with the MC plunger, pads were umm a bit thin.
 
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Your caliper may not be mounted correctly on the carrier bracket. It looks "tilted" towards the right in your pic. On the back side of the caliper, there's a special Phillips screw with a turned down tip. It's supposed to fit into a hole in the inner brake pad and is what holds the inner side of the caliper down onto the disc. To get that screw into the hole in the brake pad, you have to push down on the caliper as you install the screw.
 
Thanks 5twins.

My mechanic fixed the height of the rear rod that adjusts the pedal. He said the caliper bracket seems bent or the axle might be bent. He gave me a washer to insert on the right side between the disc and caliper bracket as a duct tape solution to get separation. He wonders if a washer was supposed to be there to begin with. He said I could also buy a new axle/bracket. So I have options... Right now it rides fine, no heat on caliper, no smoke, the disc is slightly touching the caliper as opposed to clamping it, but that’s because I (shut your eyes Marion) I didnt tighten the left axle nut anywhere close to 100ft/lbs. I figure the cotter pin is in and its fairly tight so it’ll be fine.
 
That cotter pin will not stop the axle from moving forwards or backwards in the frame, only a tight axle nut will do that. You could be risking the back wheel locking up while riding.

Scott
 
I'm still thinking the hat spacer is missing from inside the LH bearing. Agreed; this thing is a death trap, don't be stupid with your girlfriends life.
 
If the tophat spacer was missing, tightening the axle even a little bit would bind the bearings and the wheel wouldn't turn. I think it's a caliper mounting issue. I don't think that special Phillips screw is properly located and locked into the hole in the inner pad. If you want to fix things with BFH's, 12" Crescent wrenches and stacks of oddball washers, buy a fucking Harley, lol.

The sheet metal clip with all the tabs shown in the center of the pic below fits up into the caliper and presses down on the pads, spring-loading them a bit. That's why you have to press the caliper down onto it's mount when installing the special screw, to align it with the hole in the pad .....

8B4P2PY.jpg
 
Seriously, this is Russian roulette or just plain kill yourself or someone else.

Read this WHOLE THREAD, these people know what they're talking about. You should tell your "mechanic" to shove that washer up his ass.

Scott
 
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