PSA: Brake Check!

[Norman]

So I was planning on a saddle sore this morning, and doing a hundred mile shakedown yesterday because of recent modifications (I realized my custom pegs were pressing on the brake enough to keep the brake light on at odd moments).

About half a mile from my destination, I hit the rear brake, heard a thunk, felt a kind of hard "kick" in the pedal, and then... no pressure.
I park, look at it, nothing's leaking, nothing looked toooo weird, aside from the brake line looked really tight against the swingarm.

I decide to turn around, ride home and deal with it, hoping to save my vacation.

When I start up the ABS light comes on.
Slightly later, I realize that I no longer have a spedometer. This is not a problem because they are behind me.

I get home, and start looking at it with an eye to the ABS sensor, and realize I cannot conveniently reach the ABS sensor mounting nut because it is behind the pipe.
"This is an odd location", I say
Then I realize the brake is no longer attached to the torque arm. Apparently the bolt/nut attaching it just went away.
It is not loose. Oh, no. It has wrapped about 180' around the wheel and wedged itself against the swingarm, shoving the ABS sensor plate ahead of it (and in fact breaking off its mounting fins), and snapping the ABS sensor electrical connection.... right at the sensor, where I can't solder it.
So I'm out $300 worth of hastily ebayed parts, and a perfectly good vacation plan.

The only good thing is once I got the wheel disassembled and everything unwedged, the brake appears undamaged and pumps up fine.

But eeesh. PSA, go give your brakes a hard once-over.

 

[EricV]

If that’s the FJR, please check very carefully the assembly order of the caliper mount, washer and swing arm. It shouldn’t be possible to rotate if they are in the correct order and the axle nut is torqued correctly, (torqued before the pinch bolt, but you knew that.)

I’ve seen this happen twice. Once from the axle pinch bolt being tightened before the axle nut. And once when the ABS sensor ring cover was not correctly oriented. I’ve seen a near miss when the axle nut got forgotten, but was noticed at the end of the driveway. Rider wanted to put the bike down from the lift before torquing the nut and got distracted.

 

[Norman]

If that’s the FJR, please check very carefully the assembly order of the caliper mount, washer and swing arm. It shouldn’t be possible to rotate if they are in the correct order and the axle nut is torqued correctly, (torqued before the pinch bolt, but you knew that.)

I’ve seen this happen twice. Once from the axle pinch bolt being tightened before the axle nut. And once when the ABS sensor ring cover was not correctly oriented. I’ve seen a near miss when the axle nut got forgotten, but was noticed at the end of the driveway. Rider wanted to put the bike down from the lift before torquing the nut and got distracted.

Appreciate the heads up. I'll pay close attention.

I think it's entirely possible that the ring cover wasn't correctly oriented, since I could rotate the caliper when I just backed off the axle, and had to fully remove the axle before I could move the ring cover/sensor.

One of the ears which I assume holds the two together disappeared, not sure if that predates the incident or not.

 

[EricV]

No way to know for sure now, so you’re doing good to deal with it and verify things.

I’ve seen the ear snap off when it did a rotation at speed and slammed into the ear. That one was not oriented in with the locator in between the tabs/ears, allowing it to spin on hard braking.

 

[yon]

There's a tab on the rear brake caliper that slots between the two ears on the abs cover. When everything is loose, you can wiggle the cover and feel it bump up against each ear. This is the check you want to do before tightening everything down. This bump is also on the front fork and does that same with the front abs cover. Definitely replace that abs cover. As Eric said, make sure to follow the tightening pattern for all the bolts, it's listed in the service manual.

 

[H60PLT]

Greetings, Norman, and all:

Great thread, and always a timely topic. To say I'm fussy about my drive belt tension and alignment is an understatement. Though I love the Master Technician who services my steed at the Brothers Davidson shop, I find a tug of the axle nut covers results in my asking for them to be reinstalled about one in five times. True, they're decorative, but if one were to pop off at highway speed, it would likely go through a windshield or cause bodily injury to a fellow rider. That, and I'd be out the 30 bucks for a replacement.
About 50% of the time I wind up re-adjusting either the tension or the alignment of the drive belt post-service (e.g., post tire replacement). Not that the Technician failed to abide the tech manual, but I try very hard to get the (service) belt deflection right at 9/16" (not more, and really not any less), AND the alignment right in the middle of the pulleys.
While nothing to do with the brakes themselves cited in this thread, the responsibility for the correct placement of things is (IMHO) my responsibility as the owner and rider: If I thought a post-maintenance re-adjustment was in order, I've got to screw up the courage to face the Technician and service writer to request the (re-)adjustment. If I have any reluctance about some downstream howling, chafing, wocka-wocka sound, then I may very well ask my wife if I can take my dinner in the garage and make the adjustment myself before the oh-dark-thirty SS or BB departure...
The downside to all of that self-help and rider adjustment is that I may have sacrificed a warranty claim for the labor and parts to have made it right (again).

Just a thought...or two...

Have a great 250th!

Mark