Rear Caliper Rebuild

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L

Les

Member
Joined
Jun 26, 2011
Messages
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Location
Ontario
Hi All: just joined up! I have an 82 Interstate, I,ve owned it for about 20 yrs now. Just recently I had my rear brake pedal go hard and the brakes pretty well locked up tight. After sitting over night the brake pedal was normal, after testing it again the same thing happened after a short ride. I,m going to rebuild the caliper and clean it up good. I was wondering how the piston,s should slide into their holes? Should they go in easy, or have a lot of resistance? When i took the caliper off, I used the pedal to get the piston out, one came easy and the other was a fight. The 2nd piston was hard to get out or push back. Is this normal for pistons to be this tight? Thanks Les.
 
I recently rebuilt all three of my calipers. If you keep the first piston from coming all the way out when you pump the brakes, it forces both pistons almost all the way out. That makes it easier to pull both pistons.

As to your problem, I would say it won't hurt to rebuild your calipers but I bet the cause of your problem is in the master cylinder. The return hole is probably blocked.
 
seals do get stiff with age, but another thing is that over time crud builds up in which the seal sits. Like everyone else, if I had it apart, I would redo the whole system. The biggest PITA is getting the circlip out for the master cylinder.

ALWAYS use denature alcohol to clean the areas where brake fluid is used. Not mineral spirits etc. When you put the pistons back in you can coat them with a bit of either brake fluid, or denatured alcohol to help them slide. The advantage of the alcohol is it will not ruin your paint.

I recently did a set for a 79 "work in progress". While I had it apart, I also powder coated all the parts so it looked good.
 
I use the break pads (to hold the first piston to pop out in place so that i get the pressure in the second one to pop out.. just pop out which ever piston wants to come out... the break pad stops it just before it is all the way out then the second one can be popped out....CAUTION do not hold or get your fingers near the caliper where the pistons come out..If you use air (in the fluid input) with the bleeder in and closed they pop out with a lot of force the pad also keeps them kinda in place... the pistons should be able to slide back in fairly tight with new seals but a C clamp will do the job nicely
 
I have wrapped them with a shop rag as well. They do come out with great alacrity. The last time I did a rear on an 1000, I had trouble with the main side. I finally put the seal between the two sides hole back, held it with a clamp, and then blew air into the line opening and "POP"
 
Don't shy away from it Les. I just did mine in my driveway. It only took my about an hour. I don't have much room to work around the bike. When I do get something apart I have to walk all the way back to the shed to work on it and when I am working on it it is in my hand because I don't have a bench. So as you can tell it can't be terribly difficult. I used the Honda O-rings they were $25 for the rear caliper.
 
Thanks again! Got the caliper apart and MC off, just ordered K&L kits from Bike Bandit. I,m in Canada, not sure how long it will take to get them. I took the resivor line off the MC and noticed the brake fluid looked black, couldn,t even see the 2 small holes in the MC, I clipped a piece of wire from a brush and tried to find the return port pin hole (that sure is small) I,m going to rebuild the MC, but was just wondering if the Mc piston has to be out to clean the return port? The wire didn,t go in to far! Take care! Les
 
HI: got my MC off and apart, looks like the return port is totally plugged. I can see the 2 holes ok, they are clean now. I,ve been using a tiny pin on the return port, but can,t break through. It,s hard to believe that pin head hole can screw up the brakes so bad! Did any of you,s have problems cleaning that pin hole? It feels like solid metal. Any easy way or trick to it? Les
 
It will poke through.

Try using a long drywall screw or some screw with a point on it and keep digging out the crap.
If you have any kind of pick that comes to a point even better.
Short of drilling it the casting can't really be harmed by probing into the hole and scraping the dried stuff out.
 
Hi all: got my mastercylinder kit & caliper seals installed by me! (problem solved) Brakes are applying & releasing properly. Was out most of the day on it. Working Great! I believe the problem was the plugged pin hole in the return port, like most of you,s said. The problem I had with that was, I was trying to clear it with a wire that was to thick. When I found a thinner piece it pushed through OK. Thanks again for all your help!!! Les PS. I replaced my exhaust this spring with aftermarket exhaust made by Motad! They are bolt on easy, and don,t require any rejetting, sound is nice, like original. Happy with them. They are made in England. You have a dealer in the U.S.A. (Annitori Distributing) Good to deal with. I paid about $597.00 Canadian. Just to let you,s know! Have a great weekend! Les. TY
 

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