ABS caliper maintainence

[ultrasound]

I have a late 06 GSA that is so far standing up to winter well (FS365 is my tipple of choice).
What experiences do people have of cleaning and regreasing pads and pins on the ABS model?
will i create some sort of crazy fault code or do i have to send it back to germany to get the pins greased?

 

[Dave Cr]

If you are careful (and slow) when you push the pistons back into the caliper when you have finished cleaning them. you should have no problems.
Before you start any dismantling work, give everything a squirt of brake cleaner to remove any debris and to make the rest of your work cleaner too.
Use an old toothbrush and some brake cleaner on the caliper bracket and put a smear of copper compound over the back of the pads before you replace them. Some owners recommend using brake fluid to clean the pistons. If you want a complete explanation of the whole job from start to finish, do a search on this forum. Having said all this, the GS brakes do not seem to need as much attention as those on other bikes I have owned.

 

[Timolgra]

I have a late 06 GSA that is so far standing up to winter well (FS365 is my tipple of choice).
What experiences do people have of cleaning and regreasing pads and pins on the ABS model?
will i create some sort of crazy fault code or do i have to send it back to germany to get the pins greased?

Take care after greasing them pads

 

[Dave Cr]

P.S. Oh yes! I forgot to tell you that if you use F635 on your brakes it will make your bike much faster - especially at 'give way' junctions and sharp bends etc.

 

[ultrasound]

Just spoke to on of my collegues in the hospital and yes my sides do appear to have split .

I will of course be copasliping the back of the pads and have managed to keep the brakes FS365 free.


cheers dave i will give it a go. The calipers seem to be holding up well, better than the ones on my ZZR which are now one large mass of off white metal.

 

[mpdouglas]

Get yourself some Mintex Ceratec - a non metallic anti squeal grease. The issue with Copper Grease is you are asking for electrolytic action with the alloy of the calipers. I have been using Ceratec on my K1200R since new and the calipers are literally like brand new inside after 3 years of daily riding in all weathers. Given that the K12R uses Tokico calipers which corroded like there was no tomorrow on my R1150R, that is some going. There are eBay sellers of Ceratec - £2.50 a tube.

 

[Pukmeister]

Be VERY careful when pressing the pistons back in. Whilst servicing a mates bike a few years ago, we pushed hard on one stubborn piston which when it finally moved then hydaulically forced the opposite piston out of the caliper body. The resulting air entering the system cannot be bled by conventional means at the caliper which meant a recovery trip to the dealers (SPC) for a brake system fluid flush and refill at £70. Bleeding the ABS has to be done at the ABS pump (tank off job) and can be awkward/messy.

 

[Zigo]

Rear brake blues

A weak spot is the floating caliper of the rear brake. Remove your brake pads and check if they are worn unevenly. If the piston side pad are much more worn than the other, it might be a sign of a stuck caliper. With the pads removed, check if you can move the caliper sideways left/right. It should move easily, if not, separate the caliper from the mounting bracket. There are two guide pins, the front one is usually the one getting stuck. It's fixed to the caliper and sliding in and out of a hole in the aluminium mounting bracket. The combination of a steel pin, aluminium hole and water/dust penetrating the small protecting rubber boot will cause severe corrosion. Remove rust/corrosion, clean the caliper, lubricate the pins with grease or better, antiseize paste. I usually lubricate the protective boot inside with syntetic grease or silicone grease.