This is for my '06 HD Heritage Softail (FLSTi). Recently, I took off my front caliper and checked the pads, removed the pads, cleaned the caliper with brake cleaner, pumped the caliper pistons out a bit and cleaned the exposed piston areas with alcohol, pushed the pistons back in, lubed the anti-rattle spring with anti-seize, lubed the pad pins with anti-seize, reinstalled the old pads, and then reinstalled the caliper onto the front fork. I did NOT change the brake fluid as this was fairly new. I did not even open either of the banjo bolts so the pressurized portion of the brake fluid system should not have changed. This sounds like way more work than it really was.

After the above cleaning and lubing, my front brake lever engages the brakes at the very extreme outer end of the movement. What I mean is that I only have to pull the brake lever about 1/2" in from its rest position to fully engage the pads on the rotor. I can't pull this lever more than this about 1/2". Prior to the above cleaning, the brake engagement occurred with the lever pulled further in. Other than the location in the lever travel where the brakes engage, the braking action seems unchanged.

This engagement at the very outer bit of brake lever movement is a bit worrisome to me. I can't squeeze as hard at this point since I am mostly just using the smaller muscles contracting the outer 1-2 finger joints. I would prefer the brake engagement to occur with the leverl a little bit closer to the grip so that stronger muscles were compressing the lever.

Does anyone have any ideas as to what might have happened to change the location of the brake engagement? Does anyone have any ideas on how to change the lever position at which brake engagement occurs? Note that these are not adjustable levers. Thanks.

G'day,

Vinish

 

Maybe the brake dust built up on the brake pistons as keeping them from sliding in and out of the bores all the way. Now that the pistons are clean the brake sounds like it is operating as it should.