Front brakes are mushy, what should I try?

[BikerJoe]

chuck c » Yesterday, 7:06 pm[/url]":1ixihkqy]
You're just repeating and not reading my questions.

Even this doesn't help. It doesn't agree with what you're sort-of telling me.
https://goldwingdocs.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=68
Go to step 21.

21. Insert a 0.7mm feeler in between the caliper mount and the rotor at several spots on both sides of the rotor, on both the left and right sides of the motorcycle. If there is binding, loosen the axle holder nuts and adjust the fork leg in or out as required, then snug the axle holder nuts again and re-check.

"adjust the fork leg in or out" is the part that doesn't make sense. There is no adjustment! on the right side the ridge on the axle is up against the fork so it can't go any closer. Now please 'splain to me how I'm supposed to get the bracket closer to the disk when it's already as far as it can go.

 

[BikerJoe]

I just did my 81 Gl 1100I Bro it worked exactly like tha book says . May be your setup is different been changed or some thing?
Sorry I couldn't help. I'm all about helping anyone get'n these Ole Guys back on tha road.

 

[chuck c]

joedrum » Sat Oct 08, 2016 8:04 pm[/url]":r19l44mo]
gee this is something ....the fork do move in and out this way ......you can adjust like joe says and try to do brakes see if it helps.... if it dose ..you can always put spacers on axle to make up the gap your talking about .....

Nobody is reading my questions. The axle will not allow any more "in" to get the disks and brackets close enough. Out of travel. .050 short of the goal on each side. They don't need to go out, they need to go in. They can't. So here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to get shims or washers to space the brackets further in. OR I could take the spacers on the axle to work and trim them by the amount I need and forget shims.

The overall point is if they are this far out of spec it probably explains why the :sensored: things don't work. Maybe I missed something when I had it apart. If there were washers under the brackets I might not have noticed them fall out when I dismantled them. I'll dig in the removed hardware box and see if there are washers the right size.

 

[joedrum]

hmmm ok you are buried and still not to spec ...weii i bet maybe were talking rotors now ...they should be solid rotors on a 80-81...seems some rotor have shim like washer deal ...seems some were actually like paper ....i cant remember how the 80-81 were .....i also seriously doubt this is the problem of the mushy brakes .....i have done many wheel swaps and rotor switching ....to get things as i want on my bike ....my bike has 1000 forks with 1200 wheel and 82 rotors and 1000 brakes .....the 28/1000th gap is not absolute deal...it just most ideal setting .....the rotors are a sliding mount deal that has much more range than 28/1000 number seems to say ....the piston will come rest where the rotor is ..and theres plenty of fluid in the system to center the rotor and provide great brakes .....if your calipers are free to travel as they should you should get great brakes ....this is why when i bleed brakes i do it backwards because this way works the piston in its full stoke and bleeds the air to the resivore instead of bleeder as it clears the return hole good with high pressure .....

 

[chuck c]

I've tried every bleeding method that has been suggested here and a few I found elsewhere. None have worked. I've done brake jobs before. When the gentleman tells me to check a spec I didn't know existed and tells me it caused the him the same problem, and find it's out, I'm not going any further with bleeding until it is.

 

[chuck c]

I spaced the bracket in and got some brakes. Enough to take it for a ride to see how the manifold works. Next I'll put the fairing back on so I have lights and take it to the pros to get the brakes working. Now I can ride it that far. Video of it running shortly in the "what did you do today" thread.

 

[BikerJoe]

joedrum » Yesterday, 12:02 pm[/url]":3rnheti2]
hmmm ok you are buried and still not to spec ...weii i bet maybe were talking rotors now ...they should be solid rotors on a 80-81...seems some rotor have shim like washer deal ...seems some were actually like paper ....i cant remember how the 80-81 were .....i also seriously doubt this is the problem of the mushy brakes .....i have done many wheel swaps and rotor switching ....to get things as i want on my bike ....my bike has 1000 forks with 1200 wheel and 82 rotors and 1000 brakes .....the 28/1000th gap is not absolute deal...it just most ideal setting .....the rotors are a sliding mount deal that has much more range than 28/1000 number seems to say ....the piston will come rest where the rotor is ..and theres plenty of fluid in the system to center the rotor and provide great brakes .....if your calipers are free to travel as they should you should get great brakes ....this is why when i bleed brakes i do it backwards because this way works the piston in its full stoke and bleeds the air to the resivore instead of bleeder as it clears the return hole good with high pressure .....

Ditto all that' Bro .Up to a point I thought the same. My conclusion is when the forks are spread to far the pistons are over extended to tha point they suck air. In my case normal bleeding would bring em up temporary then they would re fade. Researching different sources I found others who experienced tha same crap as me. I noticed it was always on tha 81s. According to Honda microfiche
two size systems were used in 81. Im guessing one for tha standards another for tha big boys. I think some of us got a mix of both either factory or as replacements? Im guessing when tha fenders and stablizers are in tact it kinda holds original spec or close enuff. Once us yayhoos strip ever thing off pop goes tha :sensored: WEASEL :BigGrin:

 

[BikerJoe]

chuck c » Yesterday, 6:28 pm[/url]":dc19alj3]
I spaced the bracket in and got some brakes. Enough to take it for a ride to see how the manifold works. Next I'll put the fairing back on so I have lights and take it to the pros to get the brakes working. Now I can ride it that far. Video of it running shortly in the "what did you do today" thread.

:clapping: :music: :good: :heat:

 

[chuck c]

Over the decades someone might have swapped the ms or calipers making a mismatched set, too. I still have the brace on and as I said the forks are in as far as possible and they are still much too wide. Yesterday I pulled the axle off the parts bike to compare thinking maybe I had a wrong part but they are identical.

Scrounging through the removed/leftover hardware bin I found a 10mm washer that matches the one used on the bracket screws. It is possible there were 2 of them being used as spacers to get the right side further in and I didn't notice it when taking it apart.

 

[BikerJoe]

You bet, Its like Antique Archaeology working on these old relics some times, I think thats why I love it :BigGrin: