How To Care For Your Disc Brakes | Road Bike Maintenance

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How To Care For Your Disc Brakes | Road Bike Maintenance

Рет қаралды 148,666

Күн бұрын

Disc brakes give super reliable braking performance, in all weathers. Come on rim brake die hards, that much is a fact… What is talked about less though is the maintenance required to keep them in tip top condition.
The good news is that it’s not difficult, these three simple tasks will get your discs back to as-new condition. Cleaning, basic caliper service, and bleeding.
Cleaning your pads and rotors is a reasonably straightforward job, but is a great way to get your disc brakes working well (and silently). You’ll need a dedicated disc brake cleaner, some lint free shop towel, nitrile gloves, and some isopropyl alcohol and some good medium grit sandpaper. Remove your pads and drop the wheels out so that the rotors are out of the caliper too.
SRAM recommend just cleaning parts with soapy water, and it’s easier now the pads are out to really get in there.
Take a look firstly to see if your pads have any life left in them. Replacing them saves you half a job so it’s not all bad if you need new ones. The rule of thumb is to replace them when you have about 1.5mm of pad left, similar to rim brake pads really. You could use them for longer but you risk causing damage to more expensive parts like rotors and pistons.
If you are keeping your old ones Place them on some shop cloth and give them a good spray with the cleaner, and wipe away any dirt. Then give both the pads and the rotors a good scrub with fine sandpaper until you can’t see any marks on them.
Also, whilst the pads are out give the inside of the caliper a spray with some isopropyl alcohol too and wipe it away with a clean cloth.
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Пікірлер: 149

@gcntech 6 жыл бұрын

What measures do you take to make sure your brakes are running tip-top?

@drummerzip 6 жыл бұрын

The main thing to get right with mechanical disc brakes is that the caliper is perfectly centered on the rotor so that both pads hit at exactly the same time. The easiest way to do this is to loosen the brake caliper bolts, then squeeze the brake levers and tighten the bolts while squeezing. This should hopefully center the caliper over the rotor. If not then it may be easiest to adjust them by sight making sure there is the same gap on each side of the pad. This all requires your brake cable to properly tensioned as well (I like my brake pads as close to the rotor as possible without rubbing). Hopefully that helps!

@RixterNow 6 жыл бұрын

GCN Tech thanks Jon. How about a couple maintenance videos? One each for bleeding Shimano and SRAM road disc brakes 😉

@benjohnson3839 6 жыл бұрын

I visit my bike mechanic for regular tune ups.

@eddiepliers1 6 жыл бұрын

++ Rixter Depending on the model of SRAM and Shimano, that could take forever. The majority of the steps are the same, but there are little nuances between brake product lines that you would have to watch out for, not to mention if you are using a straight up SRAM or Shimano road setup. Gravel bikes have the flexibility to use either road or mtb disk.

@RixterNow 6 жыл бұрын

Eddie Smith I prefer visiting the dentist over bleeding the brakes on my mountain and commuter bikes. It would be interesting to see how different or painful it is to deal with Shimano road brakes. The area to work with is pretty tiny and any fluid leakage is going to end up inside the brake hoods somewhere. I'm quite curious to see how Jon does it

@jonahconner1111 6 жыл бұрын

To service hydraulic disc brakes you only need to use 38 items in 64 easy steps.

@floodandy 6 жыл бұрын

Jonah Conner haha! Best comment!! :-)

@chi275 4 жыл бұрын

Jonah Conner crazy disc brakes it’s ok if fuck

@TriRussell1 6 жыл бұрын

I once over pumped trying to get a stuck piston loose and lost all my fluid. But on the upside, I now I have bleed kit and firsthand knowledge of how far is too far.

@stevenrholland 6 жыл бұрын

Tip 1. After a pad and rotor clean with sandpaper, it may be necessary to bed in the pads and disks again to prevent squeal and improve braking power. Tip 2. Buying DOT 5.1 fluid from an auto parts store is usually much cheaper than buying from a bike store.

@someguy9520 6 жыл бұрын

bedding them in(especially the rotors) is so important. when i sanded my rotors a bit to get rid of some chips the brakeing power was greatly reduced, but it got better after more braking sessions

@MrPunkassfuck 6 жыл бұрын

Same goes for mineral oil. Shimano charges 10 euro for a tiny bottle, like 20 ml. I got a liter for 20 euro which wasn't Shimano-branded. Works just as well. I had problems with bleeding the rear brake. What I had to do was lean the bike down so the caliper part was higher up than the cables and brake handle. Couldn't get air out otherwise. No problems with front brake tho. Another tip I have seen and used is if your brakepads are dirty, use dishwashing fluid on them and rub the brakepads against each other.

@someguy9520 6 жыл бұрын

No idea where you buy your shimano stuff, but the 50ml bottle costs 2-3€ in austria and the 1L is right about 15€. From shimano of course. So its not shimano that charges that ridicilous price, but rather your local bikeshop trying to screw noobs or make a lot of money. The dishwashing tip migth work but could end up ruining the pads afterwards. Use sth very unaggressive. Used some rather heavy duty shit on my MTB pads, only to have them crumble to pieces after the next 200km. It kind of desintegrated them. Yes, there was surely no oil or othe squeal generating residue, but the pad got technically destroyed

@jacqueschiron4035 6 жыл бұрын

Just what the doctor ordered! Thanks!

@JonCannings 6 жыл бұрын

Jacques Chiron let me know how it gles. Jon

@jacqueschiron4035 6 жыл бұрын

Jon Cannings, will do!

@dr_taka 6 жыл бұрын

Great video. That’s what my bike shop recommend me to do when I wash my bike: take pads out, clean rotor and brake pads with alcohol and sandpaper it if required. Push the piston back and clean with clean water and rug. Put the clean bike back and pump the brake handle so the pad will be in place. Bleeding fluid I leave the job with LBS

@matthewbriggs2805 6 жыл бұрын

I put WD40 on my disk brakes, then whenever I break, people are alerted by the SREEEEEEEEECH. Safety hack👍;)

@fritzdit7829 6 жыл бұрын

thanks for this.... I will do a deep clean as you did and hope to heavens it will be the end of the squeel :)

@gcn 6 жыл бұрын

Fritz Dittmann let us know how it goes

@garethhelliwell9736 6 жыл бұрын

Try organic pads,less likely to squeel. If you're using metalic pads these may be the reason behind the squeel.

@vladandreimuntean5661 6 жыл бұрын

Dip your brake pads in acetone/alchool , let them sit for a while , after that clean them off with some dishsoap + very warm water. also clean the disc the same way+ rinse it with plenty of water. After that put the brake pads on and gently ( at first then harder) apply the brakes and move the wheel, so that the braking pad material will be on the disc rotor, cuz accordingly to SRAM , that's where the braking happens. Tell me if you like this method.

@manuelquevedo6391 Жыл бұрын

My son loves his bike.

@rhysmowen 2 жыл бұрын

3:40 the shown SRAM DOT 5.1 fluid is not silicone based as mentioned, it is polyglycol ether. Silicone based DOT 5 is not typically used in bicycle brakes and is not compatible with DOT 4 or 5.1.

@vitsalava1251 6 жыл бұрын

What about mechanical discs? I mean cable operated. Could you possibly make it a part of a future maintenace video?

@koko-lores 6 жыл бұрын

Aren't cable operated ones hybrid ones, where the piston is still moved by brake fluid? Or are there completely cable operated ones as well?

@vitsalava1251 6 жыл бұрын

koko lores I have TRP Spyre brakes and they are fully mechanical.

@mediumrick7667 6 жыл бұрын

It's frustrating having recurring issues of brake rub, even after numerous readjustments. I hope this can be improved upon as disc brakes continue to evolve.

@johannklose9809 6 жыл бұрын

Medium Rick I'm afraid not, there is a certain amount of space the Pistons can move corresponding to the lever pull, if you made the gap wider you'd have more lever pull or a less powerful leverage. Just pay attention to the rotors when you lean your bike and they'll stay true and rub free

@millsshumps1968 6 жыл бұрын

Applying a thin surface coat of Rapide DP-60 Copper grease spray to both the back of the disc pads and the piston reduces Brake Squealing under heavy braking loads. Lightly spray the copper grease onto a cotton bud before applying the grease coated cotton bud to both back of disc pads and piston to prevent over application or excess. Obviously avoid getting any grease onto the disc pad braking surface, excess grease on the piston and disc rotor. Do it right and say bye bye to honking and squealing during heavy braking descents.

@oskarssativum 6 жыл бұрын

Can you make similar video about mechanical disc breaks?

@earthstick 6 жыл бұрын

They just don't work.

@Hintonbro. 6 жыл бұрын

You’d think GCN didn’t even know mechanical disc brakes existed.

@mikesavage8793 6 жыл бұрын

earthstick You could have fooled me, mine work so well I have to be gentle using them or the rear-end goes up in the air.

@someguy9520 6 жыл бұрын

every heard of the bb7 from avid? work beautifully with fresh cables and use the same pads as the avid juicy. even the very cheap bb5 works well, though not with that much brake power and higher risk of fade since the pads are tiny

@stevenrholland 6 жыл бұрын

Reducing squeal is done by properly bedding in the pads and rotors right after cleaning (or when installing in the first place) don’t rely on a few rides to bed them in, make a concerted effort and do it properly.

@stephenconnor1274 6 жыл бұрын

GCN Tech, Can you do a video on Mech Discs?

@benjohnson3839 6 жыл бұрын

Stephen Connor yes please!!

@dalewebb7566 7 ай бұрын

Sram dont use silicone based dot fluid (dot 5), they use dot 4 and dot 5.1, which cant be used with dot 5

@philhouck3560 5 жыл бұрын

The advantage of a disc brake for ROAD bikes is minimal. You will stop faster but just how valuable is that? Good riders keep alert and anticipate the need to stop and as Jonah Conner's comments illuminate: You trade a very small gain in performance for a lot of complexity. Those tools used in the video are not going to be cheap either. Disc brakes concentrate the force needed for stopping in a very small area and in sustained braking conditions can overheat and fail. Rim brakes don't have this problem and are much cheaper and simpler to maintain. In this year's Tour de France, most riders had switched back to rim brakes. Disc brakes for road bikes solves a problem that doesn't really exist.

@pedrozimon 6 жыл бұрын

Great Video !!!!

@dominickslush3593 6 жыл бұрын

Great video!

@Bearded.Wonder 6 жыл бұрын

Jon, maybe another video showing step by step how to bleed the brakes? This felt a bit more like an overview...

@swillia6rider 6 жыл бұрын

I still have rim brakes. Watched anyway.

@TheWaxChainFanClub 6 жыл бұрын

How did you have alcohol in the workshop without certain ex pros drinking it?

@JonCannings 6 жыл бұрын

he's banned from entering the workshop. a giant net drops down over him.

@tocareful 6 жыл бұрын

you guys should make a podcast

@MichaelMachado2 6 жыл бұрын

replace pads at 1.5mm? Does that include the backing plate? Doesn't that mean that over half of the pad is still left when you replace them?

@JConTwoWheels 6 жыл бұрын

Need to do one for Mechanical (cable) disc brakes too.

@gregorysmith9706 6 жыл бұрын

I know it probably depends on how much and where you ride, but what is a good guideline as to how often you should do this type of maintenance? Great video!

@Digi20 5 жыл бұрын

On SHIMANO basically never, unless you feel the levers becoming spongy or the lever pulling through without much happening, the mineral oil should be good for 5-10 years, or even more. SRAM on the other hand uses DOT fluid and recommends changing the oil every 1-2 years.

@SaKuLification 6 жыл бұрын

I personally can't recommend using alcohol near brake calipers. It will work many times, but will slowly wash away the grease on the piston sealings. Soapy water is much better or even Dot itself. Only speaking for Dot brakes here.

@someguy9520 6 жыл бұрын

uhm, wouldn't soapy water be bad for the grease as well, since it effectively is used to get rid of greasy fat-like substances? correct me if im wrong

@cup_and_cone 6 жыл бұрын

Up for debate. In a perfect world, the piston's lubrication comes from the DOT fluid inside the system, like real automotive calipers. Greasing the piston/piston seal is a band-aid.

@SaKuLification 6 жыл бұрын

you are right, but have you ever tried to clean a chain just with soapy water? doens't work that well or takes really really long.

@SaKuLification 6 жыл бұрын

true! But when I did a full service on my sram xo brakes a few years ago the pistons became stuck after a few weeks because i didn't use grease on the new seals. Did the service again with avid dot grease an they worked fine for 2 or more years.

@someguy9520 6 жыл бұрын

SaKuLification yes i have tried. Many times in combination with a clip on chaincleaner. Now in using a ultrasonic cleaner with soapy water. Works wonders

@hastie1738 6 жыл бұрын

Can you do a video on how to make your rims look brand new! Hate it when you get black lines all over the rims and can’t get it off

@barrymonaghan6593 6 жыл бұрын

I will stick with rim brakes. Much simpler to look after and with simple tools, and they stop my bike just fine.

@nielsbrochorst9985 6 жыл бұрын

Is that a blue adapter on the computer mount? I am looking for a way to put my Polar M450 on a Garmin computer mount.

@sylasc123 6 жыл бұрын

Mineral Oil? What about Mineral Water?! Am i Right Dan?

@JonCannings 6 жыл бұрын

shush, Dan is banned from the mineral oil... or water... Jon

@shopperssidekick 10 ай бұрын

just glancing at that video have me realize this isn't a job to do on my own :( My breaks are soooo loud :(

@PoulHansenDK 4 жыл бұрын

#askGCN please make a review of Motip cycling disc brake conditioner

@abakedpotato1486 4 жыл бұрын

Another of GCN say to not put wd on your disc brakes...

@ricardordg3443 6 жыл бұрын

Great vid as I'm new to the disc game. Can we do a follow up on bedding disc brakes on a road bike when new? Mtb riders say hit them hard, sram hydro organic pads say drag to a stop. Im unsure which method is best for my road bike.

@edkrassenstein5534 6 жыл бұрын

My brakes aren't squishy or sticky, but they are SQUEAKY! What would cause them to squeak? It doesn't even happen all the time, I notice it on the back wheel mostly under load

@johannklose9809 6 жыл бұрын

J.W. Stillwater this has nothing to do with the hydraulic brake system, but rather contamination on the rotors/ pads or your caliper isn't exactly aligned with the rotor. Just clean both properly and re center the caliper (the have a video on how to do that on gcn and gmb). If the noise doesn't go away, your pads might have been too contaminated (oil soaks into them) and you have to replace them. Note that you can't really get around noisy brakes when it's moist.

@mikesavage8793 6 жыл бұрын

The first thing I'd do is make sure the pads are clean between the pads and the pistons. That's one of the more common causes. It even happens on motorbike brakes.

@Digi20 6 жыл бұрын

Can i mix and match Shimano Road and MTB/Trekking Hydro Brakes? I have Ultegra Leavers and a Postmount Frame leftover, so i would go for some Deore Brake Saddles instead of the flatmount Ultegras. Possible or not?

@olioli7652 2 жыл бұрын

love it

@davidalexander9047 6 жыл бұрын

I've got an odd question, just going to post it on the most recent video. I've recently gotten into Zwift and decided to go with a dumb trainer for a while to make sure the investment in a more expensive one is worth it for me. I'm having a bit of a problem where I'm rubbing though the rubber bands that are holding the cadence sensor to the crank. I do use flats, haven't bought clipless yet. Anyone had this problem? If so, what did you do about it?

@davidalexander9047 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks a lot, I'll give these a try!

@anthonykent9387 6 жыл бұрын

If traveling by air and taking a bike with disk brakes, do I need to bleed the brake lines?

@cliveweir 6 жыл бұрын

Would have been useful to show the bleed process for sram. I think you guys have shown Shimano process in the past but not sram

@JonCannings 6 жыл бұрын

Clive Weir hi, I will show it in a video soon. Watch this space! Cheers Jon

@cliveweir 6 жыл бұрын

Jon Cannings thanks looking forward to it!

@TriRussell1 6 жыл бұрын

There is an old one back in the GCN archives that I used last time I bled my brakes. It took me about 20 minutes to find it though.

@osheathedj 5 жыл бұрын

This video is talking me out of hydro discs

@zhoutai182 6 жыл бұрын

What about mechanical disc brakes?

@rileyrides7813 5 жыл бұрын

You mention greasing the pistons with a light grease a couple of times and the video cuts away to a picture of the dot brake fluid. Is this correct, are you saying to use the dot fluid to grease the pistons? Or has the editing gone adrift.

@tubamonkey1 5 жыл бұрын

I second this question @gcnTech

@livibam 2 жыл бұрын

This is a full service

@THEdavehogue 6 жыл бұрын

I've had an issue with Sram Centerline rotors (the ones in the video look like the same ones) squeaking (not a contaminated pads howling noise, but a chirping/squeaking that is really high pitched). It happened on 2 different bikes with brand new rotors/pads. Any ideas why?

@davidturpin9135 6 жыл бұрын

Centerline rotors are a single piece of laser-cut steel. When they get hot they warp ever-so-slightly and then tend to squeal a bit. Shimano tried to correct this issue by adding all sorts of cooling vanes to their rotors.

@Incaensio 6 жыл бұрын

How to Care for Your Rim Brakes, next video pls.

@gcntech 6 жыл бұрын

did you like it? Cheers, Jon

@MichaelDArcy1 6 жыл бұрын

Sod that I’m sticking with rim brakes

@BicycleCrossroads 6 жыл бұрын

MichaelDArcy1 Amen to that.

@rossfripp4503 6 жыл бұрын

I've just gone from rim brakes to discs. You can keep your rim brakes ;) discs are just better, they just are!

@MichaelDArcy1 6 жыл бұрын

Ross Fripp yes you are right i have them on my winter bike just a lot of hassle for not much more. Just got a new bike with dura ace direct mount breaks and they are excellent.

@someguy9520 6 жыл бұрын

use both frequently. Discs on my XC mtb and rims on my road. in the winter when its below -5°C and you accidently get your rims wet, a coating of ice begins to form instantly, which almost led me to making a huge accident with 2 cars. literlly grabbed the brakes as hard as possible to break down the ice and was able to stop just in time. but in the summer i love them. wet and cold is always gonna be my disc equipped bike

@BicycleCrossroads 6 жыл бұрын

Add rim rakes for ice. Ice forms on rotors too. Pressure creates heat, heat melts ice. A lot like liquifying lipstick with pressure. Just tap your brakes occasionally as you ride.

@stephenlegg262 6 жыл бұрын

How many miles is it usually before this has to be done. Thanks.

@JonCannings 6 жыл бұрын

hi, it totally depends on how often you brake. thanks, Jon

@NickolasRed 6 жыл бұрын

was interested in whether or not fluids get frozen in winter especially in poor conditions as -10 C?

@johannklose9809 6 жыл бұрын

NickolasRed absolutely nothing to worry, the fluids work well beyond -30°C (dot is the same fluid used in car brakes)

@NickolasRed 6 жыл бұрын

thanks a lot!

@MaGGoT583 6 жыл бұрын

I worked as a courier for a few days at -20, no issues at all

@MaddieJrockxD 6 жыл бұрын

Dot 5.1 is glycerol based, not silicone. Dot 5 is though, but is despite the similar name, totally different!

@DraftyDuchess 6 жыл бұрын

So I just got my first road bike with mechanical disk brakes, and am confused as to why everyone says they stop so well; I don't care for them at all, my city bike with linear-pull v-brakes stops much better. Do my disk brakes need adjusting or are mechanical disks just that poor vs hydraulic disks?

@Digi20 5 жыл бұрын

There are indeed some poor mechanical discs brakes out there. But you should try to wear them in. Basically stop as hard as possible 5-10 times from 30-40kph for each brake.

@a122345 6 жыл бұрын

Disappointed that you led off with brake bleeding as one of the topics, then you didn’t actually show it. I understand that the manufacturers use different methods. Perhaps you could devote a video to disk brake bleeding?

@JonCannings 6 жыл бұрын

hi, don't worry. I intend to do this soon. Thanks, Jon

@stephenkimos8376 6 жыл бұрын

In Shimano's s-tec.shimano.com training video they directly say disc brakes provide about the same braking in dry conditions. The average consumer probably should stick to rim brakes on the road as 80 percent of the them would never be able to maintain and bleed brakes. In persistently wet conditions and in cyclocross and mountain biking there is no real choice. This could mean more service for our shops! I think they forgot to mention truing of the rotor and centering of the brake.

@chewern1 6 жыл бұрын

if you want to upgrade to more expensive carbon rims, then disc brakes will make more sense. Unless you are happy to discard the carbon rim wheels due to rim brake wear.

@DongNguyen-jm1gr 6 жыл бұрын

Stephen Kimos picen

@DongNguyen-jm1gr 6 жыл бұрын

chewern1 08en

@kovacvisuals 6 жыл бұрын

Do exist any special mounts for cycling computer for gravel/cyclocross/mtb riding

@JonCannings 6 жыл бұрын

Stefan Kovac not that I am aware. Jon

@kovacvisuals 6 жыл бұрын

Jon Cannings tnx for quick respond m8

@kovacvisuals 6 жыл бұрын

Bungle2010 yes I use that normal mount but I was wondering if there existst any mount that would be more tough and done for bumps and that sort of terrain...because even on the road when crashes happen I see many garmins on the floor...

@edwardduffy2503 6 жыл бұрын

put it on the stem then, for safety!!

@kovacvisuals 6 жыл бұрын

Edward Duffy true, but looks worse

@dgregoryherschell7300 6 жыл бұрын

I think I’ll stick to rim brakes

@antonXPS 6 жыл бұрын

A bit high level for the tech channel

@rinonhoxha4059 5 жыл бұрын

Wanna cut short all the BS? - Just use apple Vinegar. You don't have to remove any of the caliper parts. Spill it over the braking pads while mounted, press the brake and move the bike so the dirt would get cleansed by the disc. Then clean the disc with a pure cloth dipped in vinegar. Then repeat the process until the noise is gone. Note: Because the pads get wet from vinegar, they may produce a flute-like sound, yet in 500m ride they will dry from braking and no noise remains. Zero. Just like brand new untouched brake set.

@DC-dl6sm 4 жыл бұрын

Road Bike And it tastes nice 😆

@Madman5698 6 жыл бұрын

Mineral oil>dot fluid

@wissamalsudani 6 жыл бұрын

Tried WD40 and the braking became soft and inefficient. Ended up changing the pads. My local bike shop adviced to avoid all these chemicals. Any thoughts about that ?

@thijsvandenbroek5333 6 жыл бұрын

Wisam Abbas do not use regular wd40 but special ones for disc brakes

@tektechnician 6 жыл бұрын

Don't use "brake cleaner" from WD40 either, it's intended for car rotors which burn off the oils contained in it. That stuff contaminates bike brake pads. The stuff they use is bike brake cleaner which is isopropanol based.

@wissamalsudani 6 жыл бұрын

That was exactly what I was told by the bike mechanic. I think I will not use it for good.👍

@stephenkimos8376 6 жыл бұрын

I stick to isopropyl alcohol for most of the operational steps of the process. Just safer that way.

@chewern1 6 жыл бұрын

I use some soapy water to clean the pads after sanding down the pads a little if required, i.e. when the brakes are noisy. Same for the disc too.

@koko-lores 6 жыл бұрын

I have Shimano (mineral oil) brakes. When it gets pretty cold (starting from -10 deg C) my brakes, especially the rear brake, gets the opposite of spongy: the brake bites with very little lever pull. Strangely - to me - the brake still works fine. Any ideas what the cause could be, and is it problematic? #askgcntech #torqueback

@Incaensio 6 жыл бұрын

The levers are hideous. The fluid is very corrosive and ruins paint.