sticking hydraulic brakes

parko202

Having some issues with my Formula RX hydraulic brakes. Both levers (front and back) are sticking once applied. I had a bit of an issue over christmas with the front and brought it to cycle superstore but both are now having the same problem.

I was going to bleed the brakes but am not sure about whether a universal kit would fit so haven't bought one yet.

Could this just be a loose connection where air is getting in or could it be an actual issue with the levers?

parko202

bump..

kona

Bleed them and go from there. What condition are they in? been in a crash? bent? anything like that? Also Get the bleed kit formula reccomend.

parko202

kona wrote: »

Bleed them and go from there. What condition are they in? been in a crash? bent? anything like that? Also Get the bleed kit formula reccomend.

no crashes and have had fairly light use. Will get the bleed kit today. Cheers

fenris

You may have also lost a good bit of fluid, a bit of air would make things spongy but pumping the leaver would normally restore some function temporarily (minute or two)

There is not a lot of fluid in bicycle brakes so even a small amount of fluid loss can have a very big impact on performance and function.

Setting up hydraulic brakes straight out of the box is a much easier proposition than sorting out problems with brakes that have been out in the wild for a while, you may be better off bringing the bike to a more MTB specific shop to get the brakes sorted, you need to have done a good few to get good at it!

C3PO

When you say the "lever" is sticking what do mean? Is it that the pads are not retracting when you let the levers go?

I would suggest James in OC Tuning if you want a guy who will definately be able to fix them!

parko202

RPL1 wrote: »

When you say the "lever" is sticking what do mean? Is it that the pads are not retracting when you let the levers go?

I would suggest James in OC Tuning if you want a guy who will definately be able to fix them!

When I apply the brakes the levers stay applied and when you push them back out they go back to the original position. The pads don't retract until you push the lever back out.

Might be a good idea to bring it in, find out what the problem was and then will know how to deal with it if it happens again.

cheers

fenris

Both brakes having the same problem at the same time sounds like either a faulty batch (master cylinder springs?, bent pistons?) or a problem with the setup i.e. the same mistake made with both brakes when they were last asembled.

Holyboy

It just sounds like the lever blade pivots need a bit of a clean and lube to me!

boomdocker

when I saw this thread title I thought to myself 'bet that's a set of formula brakes..'

I had this problem before with a set of formula oro's

Against the advice of a knowledgeable bike mechanic, i persevered, bought some new internals (it's a problem with the push-rod in the master cylinder i'll bet) and never got them working properly.

The wise bike mechanic said to me that the formula brakes are great, but when they start giving trouble, f*** them in the bin. Boy was he right.

So my advice to you is ' f*** them in the bin. And buy a set of these instead, cheap as chips and fit'n'forget

http://cgi.ebay.com/New-Shimano-Deore-BL-M595-BR-M595-Disc-Brakes-F-R-/190529759559?_trksid=p4340.m263&_trkparms=algo%3DSIC%26its%3DI%252BC%26itu%3DUCI%252BIA%252BUA%252BFICS%252BUFI%26otn%3D10%26pmod%3D190518594279%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D207902884420814043

parko202

Cheers for the help, will bring it down to OC tomorrow and see what they reckon.

It would be a shame to have to bin them as the bike is pretty new and they have been great up to now.

kona

Have to agree with the shimano call, of all the brakes ive fitted and set up, Shimano are the best.

I have LX on my Commuter and they really are fit and forget. Think Ive bled them twice in years, havnt even changed the pads yet.

parko202

what would an equivalent or slightly better system from Shimano be?

kona

parko202 wrote: »

what would an equivalent or slightly better system from Shimano be?

Deore or Deore LX

boomdocker

parko202 wrote: »

what would an equivalent or slightly better system from Shimano be?

those ones i linked to are Deore.

next up is SLX, which have replaced Deore LX.

I have both on different bikes, yeah the SLX have a marginally better feel, but for value those Deore ones are great.

as for equivalent to your RX - depends on whether you are talking equivalent price point or supposed performance

having been through formula, avid, shimano and hayes brakes over the years, the shimano brakes win hands down. They just work!

parko202

boomdocker wrote: »

those ones i linked to are Deore.

next up is SLX, which have replaced Deore LX.

I have both on different bikes, yeah the SLX have a marginally better feel, but for value those Deore ones are great.

as for equivalent to your RX - depends on whether you are talking equivalent price point or supposed performance

having been through formula, avid, shimano and hayes brakes over the years, the shimano brakes win hands down. They just work!

cheers, Ill see what the story is tomorrow.

Would I be able to use the rotors on the bike at the moment (not sure of size) with the deore brakes?

donkey balls

Hi, Sorry for barging in on the converation:o I,m also having problems with the hydraulics on my bike the break pads are rubbing of the rim(wheel is not buckled),These are whats on the bike (Avid Juicy 5 Hydraulic Twin Piston Brakes 185mm and 160mm rotors) this is also my first time having a bike with disc brakes never mind hydraulic ones.
I noticed people were saying about getting a bleed kit where can you buy one and is it easy to do it if not is there any place on the north side that could fix the problem.

boomdocker

parko202 wrote: »

Would I be able to use the rotors on the bike at the moment (not sure of size) with the deore brakes?

yes, as long as you use the adaptors (the bit that attaches the brake caliper to your frame/fork) from your existing brakes

Lemag

donkey balls wrote: »

Hi, Sorry for barging in on the converation:o I,m also having problems with the hydraulics on my bike the break pads are rubbing of the rim(wheel is not buckled),These are whats on the bike (Avid Juicy 5 Hydraulic Twin Piston Brakes 185mm and 160mm rotors) this is also my first time having a bike with disc brakes never mind hydraulic ones.
I noticed people were saying about getting a bleed kit where can you buy one and is it easy to do it if not is there any place on the north side that could fix the problem.

Disc brakes i.e. the pads are rubbing the rotors (not rims)? If so it's probably very easy to fix. Follow this youtube video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdZSdfBMBFQ

(I can't actually see this video in work but going by the description I think that it should sort you out)

boomdocker

donkey balls wrote: »

Hi, Sorry for barging in on the converation:o I,m also having problems with the hydraulics on my bike the break pads are rubbing of the rim(wheel is not buckled),These are whats on the bike (Avid Juicy 5 Hydraulic Twin Piston Brakes 185mm and 160mm rotors) this is also my first time having a bike with disc brakes never mind hydraulic ones.
I noticed people were saying about getting a bleed kit where can you buy one and is it easy to do it if not is there any place on the north side that could fix the problem.

they just need the rotors centred.

all here my friend, from 5:00. he's even adjusting your juicy 5's

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAUTCZ3gIyU&feature=related

donkey balls

Thanks for the help guys will try and give it a go I meant to say discs not rims:o:o know I find out there called rotors:o just as well I never asked in shop god knows the looks I would get.

guglez

Where I can buy spare parts for Formula disk brakes (like Diaphragm Kit)? They are available online but the delivery costs 3x than the parts itself.