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The only problem is the brake clean will attack the orings in the pistons and you will have some serious issues.
The book has a procedure for bleeding the brakes as I had the same problem after I powder coated my calipers. In this order pump up the brakes and bleed the right side first, then do the left side. Contrary to doing the farthest caliper first, it works.
You may want to do it a couple times on each side though. Works tits.
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07 Roadglide
103 kit. 510 cams 108hp/113tq With Kuryakin Crushers
VANCE AND HINES BLACK MONSTER OVALS now 96HP/105TQ with tons of low end torque. Very happy with the results, even with less power output.
This is great advice, working at my dealership I have learned that this is common enough and that is why you will hear it is normal quite frequently, but this is the coerrect fix assuming the master cylinder does not need a diaphragm rebuild and the pistons in the caliper have not been scored. And much easier to accomplish forehand to the other possible circumstances, also MAKE SURE to have bled your brakes well if you have worked on them.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Stel67
There is actually a very easy fix for this soft brake lever. I have a 01 Road King, the lever was very soft from day one. The dealer told me normal. Well I know that it is not normal but what are you gonna do. Any way the issue here is that the pistons in the calipers are sticky and are getting sucked back into the caliper. All you need to do to correct this is to clean up the pistons in the caliper. Start with the Clutch side take it off and hang it up with some string if you do not have a helper. Then work the lever until the pads are touching together, it will take several times for this to happen and you may have to keep at it for a bit until they actually touch together. I work then lever until it gets firm and the pads are fully touching. Then take some brake clean and a tooth brush and clean off the build up on the pistons. make sure you get them good. Now the fun part is getting the pistons back into the calipers. I use a big screw driver and pry them apart and then just kinda work them back in. Bolt them back up then repeat with the other side. You will, be amazed at the difference in lever feel. It is like a new bike. This will not permanently fix the issue but you should get a few months before you have to do it again.[/align][/align][/align][/align][/align]
and started bleeding on the lever side to get the air out. worked great, was soft the first time or two, but when all the air was out it was nice and firm.
This sounds similar to what I'm experiening, but it is not always soft. I have an '09 RG with ABS (and DOT 4). When I first apply the front brake, it is soft and pulls back about half way. If I release and pull the lever again, it gets firmer and less travel. Do it again and it only moves slightly before engaging. If I wait say 5 seconds, it repeats (soft, firmer, firm).
I bought the bike in Jan and they delivered it in Feb. Couldn't ride it until late March though (snow/ice/etc). Back then the lever did go almost all the way in, then got firmer with each pull. Took it to the dealer mechanic who first said it was normal but then experienced it. They did a "caliber service". When I picked up the bike the service writer didn't know what was involved but said they did take off the caliber and cleaned things up. The lever is firmer but the first pull is still softer then subsequent pulls.
I'm not sure is this is what you guys are describing here because it seems you always have a soft lever feel. Mine gets firmer. If not the same issue, any ideas/suggestions?
Thanks,
Rich
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'09 Road Glide Vivid Black
'08 FJR1300A Black
'03 Valkyrie Black
'78 KZ1000 Green (Restoring)
This might not be relevant, but from advice of an AMA Superbike mechanic friend of mine, never back force bleed your brakes. It will ruin your master cylinder. Tomorrow I will talk about brake fluid and why they are not all equal. I'm not talking about Dot X. I'm talking about water absorbtion and boiling point.
Whats up guys, I'm having a similar problem i just purchased an 03 fatboy and Ive bled the rear brakes like 5 times and they seem fine at first but after a while in traffic they always go out on me, they go all the way down and leave me with no rear brakes, the funny part is after a while they would stop working so i figured it was that the DOT 5 was heating up causing it to thin out, but this last time when i had a buddy of mine help me bleed them the problem seems to be that the pedal is not coming up as fast as it should be..... so my question is what do you guys think that could be the problem
