binding brakes

[bozza]

both my front brakes are binding how do i fix em

[shish]

remove the calipers, clean out the slider pins and regrease them with lithium complex grease (aka 'lthium soap grease'). Check the piston is not seized by pushing it back inside the caliper.... then reinstall. If it's seized then buy a pair of recon calipers and install them.

[BenF]

Its very probably the lower sliding pin - the one with the rubber bush on the end of it. The bore corrodes and binds on teh rubber holding the pin tight.

To fix, clean the bore out, use some specific brake caliper pin grease - NOT Lithium (melts/leaks away) or Copperslip (dries hard)

Speal to Brakes International and they'll do you some proper grease for about £10 for a tube - steep, but its the only stuff that works.

[shish]

thanks for pointing that out ben, bozza... as a simple guide to greases there are 4 main greases, thankfully they all have a distinctive colour:

Lithium Complex Grease (brake grease): Bright red/pink
Molybdenum Disulphide (Lithium Moly): dark grey
Lithium Base Grease (chassis/general grease): light brown
Copper Anti-seize Grease (copperslip): copper colour

[CUERVO]

Hi all I've just been driving for about 1 hour and when I stop I can smell burning from my front left wheel I think the brake is binding!!! The wheel+ brake is verry hot to touch!
Can any 1 tell me how to

remove the calipers, clean out the slider pins and regrease them with lithium complex grease (aka 'lthium soap grease'). Check the piston is not seized by pushing it back inside the caliper.... then reinstall.

thanks

[MegatronUK]

I got a tub of Lithium-Molybdenum grease (dark grey) from halfords a while ago for about 15 quid... own brand... but it was good stuff. It's labelled as for use in bearings and high temp applications... I just used it on my mountain bike suspension forks

[shish]

moly is good, in fact i use it for my cardan joints on the hilux, but will melt under brake temps

[dai21t]

My front caliper seized last week, both sliding pins were ok, the bottom piston had seized. Used a G clamp to hold the top piston in and took ages pressing the brake pedal until the bottom one finally popped out. Removed both pistons, cleaned them up and re-fitted them, working great now.