Brake fade

[bobsr3]

Has anyone out there experienced brake fade ? Yesterday i was riding what is now call Back of The Dragon in Virginia (Hwy. 16 ) from Marion to Tazewell and about halfway across the mountains I pushed the rear brake pedal and it went to the stop and no brakes ? I was riding fairly hard but not near as hard as I rode my Goldwing or my Suzuki C109R across the mountain. I assume I boiled the brake fluid but the pads were not smelling like the brakes were extremly hot and once they cooled off they seemed to come back but a little spongy. I thought maybe they had air in the line or maybe contaminated with moisture. Just wondered if anyone else has experienced this type of problem. I am going to change the fluid now and see if this corrects the problem.

 

[joey fletcher]

Hello Bob

I have not had any brake fade ridding the dragon with the Rocket. I ride the dragon quite a bit to.

However I did loose the rear brakes running the dragon due to rubbing a hole in the rear brake line. Right now I need to change out the brake line again it is getting close to failing due to grinding on the pavement.

Check the brake line to see if it has dragged the pavement.

 

[HansO]

how old was the brake fluid, it is on of the most over looked servicing parts of a bike It should be changed regularly espescially if you have extreme temp Hi and Low climate conditions

 

[albertaduke]

Has anyone out there experienced brake fade ? Yesterday i was riding what is now call Back of The Dragon in Virginia (Hwy. 16 ) from Marion to Tazewell and about halfway across the mountains I pushed the rear brake pedal and it went to the stop and no brakes ? I was riding fairly hard but not near as hard as I rode my Goldwing or my Suzuki C109R across the mountain. I assume I boiled the brake fluid but the pads were not smelling like the brakes were extremly hot and once they cooled off they seemed to come back but a little spongy. I thought maybe they had air in the line or maybe contaminated with moisture. Just wondered if anyone else has experienced this type of problem. I am going to change the fluid now and see if this corrects the problem.

the best solution is to not use your rear brake at all and rely on the front that is the one to keep with fresh fluid and free of air and moisture .
watch the video on front brake usage on this forum ,from experienced riders showing why the front brake generate 90 % of useful braking ..in case you think the rear is more useful

 

[Gothlander]

Make sure to use the best fluid to suit the system and always use a fresh bottle.

Brake fluid will absorb moisture from the air so don't use an old bottle.

Did I mention to use a fresh bottle?

 

[CanberraR3]

So Pete, if I had an old bottle of brake fluid in the garage, would it be OK to use it in the Rocket? I read somewhere to only use fresh fluid but can't recall where I read it.

 

[bigdoug]

I had my rear brake fade on me riding down a mountain. I changed the fluid and moderated my braking slightly and its been fine since.

 

[atomsplitter]

Has anyone out there experienced brake fade ? Yesterday i was riding what is now call Back of The Dragon in Virginia (Hwy. 16 ) from Marion to Tazewell and about halfway across the mountains I pushed the rear brake pedal and it went to the stop and no brakes ? I was riding fairly hard but not near as hard as I rode my Goldwing or my Suzuki C109R across the mountain. I assume I boiled the brake fluid but the pads were not smelling like the brakes were extremly hot and once they cooled off they seemed to come back but a little spongy. I thought maybe they had air in the line or maybe contaminated with moisture. Just wondered if anyone else has experienced this type of problem. I am going to change the fluid now and see if this corrects the problem.

If you 'boiled' the fluid, you released any water in the fluid. Best to change it out to avoid corrosion setting in and mucking the brakes (you'll know it when you have to use a rubber mallet to release the brakes).

 

[motolink]

the best solution is to not use your rear brake at all and rely on the front that is the one to keep with fresh fluid and free of air and moisture .
watch the video on front brake usage on this forum ,from experienced riders showing why the front brake generate 90 % of useful braking ..in case you think the rear is more useful

Where can I find the video out have mentioned?

 

[albertaduke]

Where can I find the video out have mentioned?

hi!
I feel so strongly about the misuse of brakes on bikes ( my pet peeve) That I am going to look it up and send it to you I do this simply because I do not want to hear about horror story from rear brakes locking up rear end snaking and possibly crash like the guy on the dragon who did everything wrong (another video seen on this forum)
do not bash me in the head I just try to help others who have this misconception about how to operate brakes on a bike it could be a life saver