petshark Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 (edited) I just went out to go for a drive and had to return immediately. It felt like something was holding the bike back. I had just installed a rear hugger so naturally I thought this was dragging. Turns out it is the front wheel and the only thing I have done here since my last drive is hose down dirt and apply brake cleaner. With the calipers on it was hard to spin the wheel. The brakes seem to be dragging. I first checked the master cylinder to see if the fluid level was okay and it was. I took off the calipers and the wheel spins freely for a long time but it makes these weird sounds. Could this be the bearings? I have no idea if I am now seeing two different problems at the same time. The wheel spins free so I don’t know if this can still hold the bike back (perhaps under weight)? The brakes are more likely to be the issue but.. I also lack the experience to be sure that the brake pads dragging on the rotor is normal or there is something wrong here: Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Edited February 4, 2021 by petshark spelling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member knyte Posted February 4, 2021 Supporting Member Share Posted February 4, 2021 I hope that's not bearing noise in vid #1. That does seem like excessive drag in vid #2. 2015 FJ-09 / FJR touring bags / oil plug mod / Evotech rad guard / SW Motech bash plate / VStream touring windshield / Seat Concepts: Sport Touring / Vcyclenut ABS rings (speedo correction) / Cosmo RAM mount Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kilo3 Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 Yep one of your front bearings is on the way out. Luckily super easy and cheap to fix. You can drive on it but it will eventually start growling at you. Example on my car with a really bad bearing: I would push back your brake calipers, install, hit your brakes and try this again. That's dragging a lot. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NormR Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 Sounds like a bearing issue but seems strange it would go on 2019 bike. How much mileage do you have on the bike? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member knyte Posted February 4, 2021 Supporting Member Share Posted February 4, 2021 They must be sealed bearings? Maybe some brake cleaner seeped past the seals? 2015 FJ-09 / FJR touring bags / oil plug mod / Evotech rad guard / SW Motech bash plate / VStream touring windshield / Seat Concepts: Sport Touring / Vcyclenut ABS rings (speedo correction) / Cosmo RAM mount Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petshark Posted February 4, 2021 Author Share Posted February 4, 2021 22 minutes ago, kilo3 said: I would push back your brake calipers, install, hit your brakes and try this again. That's dragging a lot. I am now certain what I'm feeling is the dragging of the brakes. I removed the calipers again and it's almost worse now. I can move all pistons so none are stuck. I pushed them back and reinstalled (first hand-tight then torqued down while applying the brake) I have cleaned the calipers, changed the pads and bled the brake fluid only 2 weeks ago. I did a few rides since then and everything worked fine until today. The brakes still work great. I went around the block and did lots of short stops to see if that would help but it's still the same. I can hear the brakes dragging while riding. Checked the rotors after and one was not hotter than the other so both are doing the same thing. It feels to me like the pressure in the brake fluid is not completely released. Like trail braking. The lever feels exactly the same though, it returns to the zero position as before. When I followed the brake lines to see if they were unobstructed and felt them passing the horn, I thought I found it. It had slipped my mind that I modified the bracket for my (automotive) Bosch horn that was too low after lowering the front 12 mm and hadn't used the bike since. I thought that the horn or bracket might have pushed against the line causing the fluid to stay under pressure, but the lines were not in contact with the horn so that theory was a dead end... Another theory: could this be ABS related? After bleeding the brakes (and having someone run the MC dry - see Bad brakes thread) I bled them again correct but was worried that there might be air in the ABS pump still so I did some controlled skids on loose surfaces to have the ABS pump get new fluid. Could that be holding pressure on the brakes in some way? The only other clue I have is that almost all the rides I did were wet and I did hose the wheels down each time. So they saw a lot of water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petshark Posted February 4, 2021 Author Share Posted February 4, 2021 17 minutes ago, NormR said: Sounds like a bearing issue but seems strange it would go on 2019 bike. How much mileage do you have on the bike? only 8000 km / 5000 miles 9 minutes ago, knyte said: They must be sealed bearings? Maybe some brake cleaner seeped past the seals? I spray it on a cloth and wipe the rotors with that so it's unlikely 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteinpa Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 (edited) Stock or after market front brake lever? Start with replacing both wheel bearings then check again. They sound bad. should hear nothing at all. Make sure you mount axle correctly afterwards. Not sure why they went bad so quick. 2nd edit: both problems might be related. Noise might be spacer in between bearings, that means axle not installed right which causes wheel to be off set causing brake drag. Remove front wheel, stick finger in and check both bearings. should spin with slight drag, no gravely feeling. Do you have a manual? Install wheel per the manual, adding don't tighten pinch bolt till you've bounced the front forks a few times to align them. Edited February 4, 2021 by peteinpa 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Your_Boy_Yuriy Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 (edited) Definitely looks like the wheel bearing from video 2 (if the brakes were off). As for sound in video 1, it really doesn't sound like a bad wheel bearing. Sounds worse then that. However, what you're describing has something to do with the wheel bearing. Personally I would take off the front wheel and inspect each bearing. You don't have remove bearing, just spin it with you hands. If the bearings are fine, then make sure each caliper piston slide in and out with ease (you'll still need good amount of force to push in the pistons). It doesn't really sound like you have air in your brake system though. I would open the bleed valve on the caliper and just pump fluid straight out(3 pump). Then properly bleed the brakes. If this doesn't help then I don't know... could be the master cylinder, brake lines, or calipers. However, I highly doubt that because your bike is so new. Good Luck & enjoy troubleshooting. Yuriy Koval Edited February 4, 2021 by Your_Boy_Yuriy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBB Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 I wonder if a seal in the master cylinder has been damaged, when it was bled dry, so it is not releasing pressure when the brake lever returns. Red 2015 Tracer, UK spec (well, it was until I started messing with it...) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member betoney Posted February 4, 2021 Supporting Member Share Posted February 4, 2021 3 hours ago, petshark said: With the calipers on it was hard to spin the wheel. The brakes seem to be dragging. I first checked the master cylinder to see if the fluid level was okay and it was. I took off the calipers and the wheel spins freely for a long time but it makes this weird sounds. Could this be the bearings? If the calipers are off and it is making an odd noise, the only thing it can be is the wheel bearings. As for the brakes dragging, try removing one caliper at a time and see if the dragging is caused by the left, right or both calipers. 2 ***2015 Candy Red FJ-09*** Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petshark Posted February 4, 2021 Author Share Posted February 4, 2021 1 hour ago, peteinpa said: Stock or after market front brake lever? Aftermarket. They have been on there for 500 miles without issue and the brand has a good reputation (heard about it here). I think the lever would feel different if something was wrong at that end. 1 hour ago, peteinpa said: Remove front wheel, stick finger in and check both bearings. should spin with slight drag, no gravely feeling. Do you have a manual? Install wheel per the manual, adding don't tighten pinch bolt till you've bounced the front forks a few times to align them. I have the shop manual and do as you suggest. Thanks. 1 hour ago, Your_Boy_Yuriy said: If the bearings are fine, then make sure each caliper piston slide in and out with ease (you'll still need good amount of force to push in the pistons). It doesn't really sound like you have air in your brake system though. I would open the bleed valve on the caliper and just pump fluid straight out(3 pump). Then properly bleed the brakes. I did all this and it didn't work so the bearings seem to be the most suspect 1 hour ago, BBB said: I wonder if a seal in the master cylinder has been damaged, when it was bled dry, so it is not releasing pressure when the brake lever returns. .This would make sense. Is that a possibility? 1 hour ago, betoney said: As for the brakes dragging, try removing one caliper at a time and see if the dragging is caused by the left, right or both calipers. I tried this and both are the same. Thank you everyone for your help and suggestions! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteinpa Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 OK been looking at various years of FJ-09 and the front ABS sensor mounts in at least 2 different ways. I haven't even got to the Tracer years. On my 2015 FJ I have a combo wheel spacer/bracket for ABS sensor $90😵 BTW 2019 GT has a spacer on each side (identical, can't mix them up) and the ABS sensor mounts in a hole in the fork at the bottom. Why do they have to keep making changes? Anyway... Let us know what you find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Your_Boy_Yuriy Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 So, it still sounds like you're unsure if the problem is with the wheel bearing or braking system. Try this to isolate the issue. Remove the front brakes and go for a ride. You just need to find a way to secure the calipers when riding. Because removing the entire front brake system is a lot of work. Just use the rear brake and ride only in a safe place. BTW I don't recommend it. This is what I would do if I couldn't figure it out. lol Yuriy Koval Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manxkiwi Posted February 5, 2021 Share Posted February 5, 2021 If it is brake related; have you topped up the fluid in the reservoir recently? You need a bit of an air gap in the reservoir. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now