How To Clean Your Disc Brakes | Mountain Bike Maintenance
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- Опубликовано: 3 авг 2024
- Squeaky disc brakes are hated far and wide in every corner of the mountain bike community. There can be many reasons for a squeaky brake but the two most common causes are oil or some other contaminant making it's way onto the pads and rotors and uneven 'bedding in' of brakes pads causing vibrations in the braking system. No matter which is the cause, your brakes are squealing and we want to stop that!
Follow the instructions in the video and your brakes will be screech free and squeaky clean in no time!
You don't need tonnes of tools to carry out this job, just a few basics and some cleaning solutions! Here's how to clean your disc brakes!
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You may have heard of some pretty funky ways of cleaning disc rotors and pads. From baking them in an oven, to covering them with alcohol and burning them over a flame. Whilst we acknowledge that these methods exist, we cannot recommend you try them for obvious safety reasons. Stick with this way...It's the original and the best!
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Give us a thumbs up if you found this video useful!
Doddy!! I want to meet you!!😍😂
Very useful guys thanks
There are more ecological ways to clean discs than spraying unknown chemical cocktails in aerosol cans.
Global Mountain Bike Network where was the video on Sunday I was looking forward to the vintage vs modern bike comparison 😟
Global Mountain Bike Network ,it seems like my back wheel axle is a bit wobbly. And my back disc brake is sounds weird from this what do I do?
I work with a bloke who bought himself a 29er and then sprayed the brakes with WD40 because they squealed so much - they stopped squealing, but didn't really work as brakes either.
Gotta clean it off🙂
Methylated spirits and hand sanitizer burn off the oils making the brakes grip
Can I use wd 40 on the pads, let it completely dry and put them back together, I got some rust going on..
@@pontikipsito46 nope thats a terrible idea. WD40 doesnt evaporate, so even after its dry there will be residue that will make your brakes work terribly.
My dad did this when I said my brakes were squealing, and I washed my bike today and the squeal is back but the brake felt so good!
I popped my discs into the dishwasher with some Finish quantum, which is a cracking degreaser. Discs were brand new at the end of the cycle though the wife was mighty pissed off.
Not a bad idea
@@LouisKnowlesUKWeather I think the question is -- Is a pissed off wife more annoying than squealing brakes? At least you can do something to reduce the noise of brake squeal. :))
Peter L lolol - they sound the same the ole banshee
@@PL-fh8cz dying!!! lol
-and I'm the wife!
Did this actually work because I’m kind of curious now
No coincidence that a how to quiet brakes video has a bike with SRAM brakes..... SRAM Brakes - The soundtrack of your MTB life.
could be avids. the soundtrack of silence leading to your hospital trip.
My shimanos squeak too lol
Lol my Shimano brakes can make a ton of noise too!
I did something stupid
I have sanded my pads to much and now i have no pads left
When using sandpaper, the grit is pretty important to specify.
Felt like i was watching a kung-fu film with all that off-time sanding sound lol
Doddy, can I send my bike to you for a full service? 😂
That's actually a good idea.
I suffered a lot from low power and sqeaky brakes (Zee) After some investigation and tryouts my reliable method is put detergent (used for dishes) on pad, rub them against each other and after that cleaning under warm water. Then hot air gun for 5-10 minutes. CLean disc rotor with Isopropyl alcohol and bed-in the pads again. Enjoy the fresh powerful brakes!
PS: my pads were usualy contaminated by mist from silicon oil, WD40 and diesel smoke when carrying my bike on back of my car. Now I am smarter..... and no need to clean pads anymore. just cleaning disc rotors before unmounting the bike from car after the trip.
I learn something new every time I watch doddy's vids. Great advice as usual.
I usually put some sort of brake cleaner on the rotor and pads then use a blow torch on the pads to burn off any oil. Usually works really well
Marcus Hesketh and of course, setting something on fire is pretty fun.
it worked for me once when i set the garage on fire then it wouldnt work again
MJM Productions I also had this problem
Nooooooooo bad bad bad
this will undoubtedly warp the discs!!
When me or my mates crash by going over a burm we call it “a Doddy”
Thanks for producing this, it’s a good quality video and well-structured.
How to stop brakes from squeeling. Step 1 remove Avid brakes. Step 2 throw Avid brakes in trash Step 3 intall Deore XT brakes
Step 4, replace the XT or XTRs with Avid Elixir because the XTRs and XT still squeel. (I've had both and the avids were much better.)
Magura 1893 😘😘
step 4 throw away brakes you dont need em ... send it
My bike has XT brakes and the front disc brake has squealed horribly from Day 1. The bike shop where I purchased the bike has failed to correct the problem. Thinking about buying a bike with cantilever brakes at this point.
@@davidkeighley7590 First try cleaning the disc with Isopropyl alcohol, and replace the pads (Likely contaminated from assembly, i.e grease got onto the disc and glazed the pad material)
Would be interesting to see a video doing a braking test on the before/after or a new set of brakes vs old but cleaned.
I have a 2 year old set of SLX brakes and they work as the first day, the question is, why would they not?
Next video idea:
How to get rid of that dog sh*t on your frame, tyres and under the seat.
We need this.
bata solujic wash your damn bike
all purpose cleaner or muc off spray on and leave for a minute or two then rinse off with water somewhere between warm and hot. if needed have some thin metal flat pieces to help pick off any stubborn poop. it does help once bike is thoroughly clean use a car wax/sealant on the frame (only aluminium and steel NOT carbon fibre)
Robert Parkes Thanks for the much needed information!
Robert Parkes is car wax safe for bikes though?
bata solujic yes we need this
*EXACTLY WHAT I NEEDED NOW*
*THANKS MAN*
Thanks for the pro tip. This helped me today! ✌️🙏 Enjoying all your videos!
Thank you so much for this video. I nearly went out to buy new pads, but after I did as shown, the brakes feel like new and no squeaking 👍🏻🇩🇰
What grade of sand paper did you use?
When I clean my casette and chain with degreaser, a ton flies right on the rear disc. I took a piece of cardboard and cut a narrow slice out so I can slide it in between the disc and rim.
Thanks guys!!! This is just what i needed!
"Alternative methods" are standard operating procedure for me in general.
Thank you so much for making this video! It solved my squeaky break problem and led me through step by step how to fix it and I was able to do it perfectly. I’m normally not a handyman so I really appreciate this. Great video!
What grade of sand paper did you use?
SUPERB VIDEO AND TUTORIAL. this guy is awesome!
Great video, had some Emery cloth and brake cleaner in the garage, my squealing front brake is no more, although I did add a tiny amount of copper grease to the backs as I would on the motor! cheers!
The only good actual video about this information
Just did this. Works a treat. Although the first thing I did was soak them in brake cleaner (peatys) and set them on fire for a couple of minutes. Once all the oil is gone then scrub them to restore the surface. Also scrub the rotors to scuff them up.
No more squeaking and super power.
Thank you for your videos I'm no where near a bike shop capable of serving a shopping trolley so I'm starting to learn myself.
I had used a disk brake cleaning spray from wilko. The first time i used, it was perfect. Unfortunately the 2nd time the spray went rogue and my brakes weren't working anymore but if i sprayed some water on the brake pads they worked. As soon as the water dried back to sq 1. Followed this process and the brakes are back & works superb.
thanks dodd you made my pads like new.Cheers from Greece
I used a stove top to burn the oils out of mine. Worked like a charm
Thanks you guys so much, it helped a lot!
Thank you soo much! It made my breaks silent!
Nice vid again Doddy, very informative. I use a drop of fairy liquid on the pads and give them a good rub together, brings them up like new!
The upside of squealing brakes is that it lets hikers know that they need to consider not having an entitled mindset regarding the shared use nature of the trails. Oh, and pick up your tissues, you littering fools!
Jickmady Kulkarnisteakbacon I usually stab them as I pass
seriously. its like they want me to hit them. the path goes both ways and they have zero awareness.
I had contaminated discs once. I took my bike to the shop and the mechanic said I would need new rotars and pads. I didn't want to spend the money as I was quite new to biking at the time. So I went home, did some research and tried to alcohol method. Didn't hear a single squeak after that. Surprisingly effective, though I do suspect there is a downside to doing this, though I don't know what.
The best way to clean the brake pads, is put them into boile water. All of the particules and oil will stay on the surface. In the first time remove the water and after the pads. You can do the same with the disc. I accidentally put lubricant on my discs and pads and cleaned them like that and it's free.....
Thanks for this video.
Thank you so fricken much!!! I’ve been looking this for two days and got a bit woried about my bike.
Loved the video!
I think it would be beneficial to clarify to viewers when using WD-40 products when the products are specialized, and not the standard WD-40. I could see this causing massive confusion and some damage if someone does not know better
They especially should be telling viewers that they’re sponsored by WD40 too. They wouldn’t be recommending it otherwise
Lets make this way harder than it needs to be. LMAO! Just remove the pads. Heat the rotor with a torch carefully. You will see a light fog apear on the rotor surface. This will disappear as contaminants burn off. This can be very faint so pay attention. Takes barley any heat. Set the pads on a no flammable surface. Like the garage floor. Just heat them up until they stop smoking. Remember, the pads are designed to dissipate heat. It will not harm them. Lightly hit them on some 400 grit paper if the are not flat. Install and bed them in. This can bring back pads that have been soaked in mineral oil from a leaking brake line or piston. * Doddy (GMBN) does not want to tell you this due to liability. Dont burn your house down. Heat is a tool we use everyday, use it! Your welcome.
100% true.
I have a diddy little butane torch lighter. If I really go to town with it I can probably do the same thing right?
I heated the pads a little bit but was scared I'd melt them.
@@fossil98 that will work he said you dont need much heat
My brakes became less effective and very noisy, wailing like a banshee every time I applied them, it was completely doing my head in and actually spoiling the enjoyment of riding my bike. I cleaned the rotors with a rag and isopropyl alcohol, removed the pads and (carefully, on a patio slab outside) heated them with a gas torch until they started smoking, kept adding a little heat until the smoking stopped, allowed them to cool and rinsed with water, rubbing the pads against each other under a tap. Refitted the pads and within just a few lever pulls the brakes were transformed to like new, quiet and very strong. I'm not sure how they got contaminated but this heating trick has worked wonders to revive my brakes and eliminate the horrendous noise they were making.
What happens if the garage floor is made of rubber? Will it catch light?
Been using only rubbing alcohol for years... works great 👍
Thanks allot ! paint thinner cleanned disk and pads ,torched the pads , slight buffing on the disk . .like new ! :) i accidendly drip oil on the disk and made so much awful noise
Thank-you very much. Fixed my brake spealing
Thank you this video helped a lot
Thank you, my bike feels brand new now!
What grit sandpaper would you use.
I use the finest that i have (900 for matal)
@@jzgibsneanzeije5530 I have *metal* pads, will it still work or does sandpaper only work on *matal* ?
@@smallhatshatethetruth7933 I'm sure the glazing is just gunk it's not like you're braking at 150mph more like 15
thank you so much!!
this video helped a lot!!!!
Sometimes when your bike is squealing, your braking pads are just worn out.
Oh yeah and another one: if your break pads are symmetrical, the left and right pad can be interchanged.
So if you interchange the left with right one accidentally, it might start squealing as well because of the wear patterns formed previously.
I use a little camping stove to remove all oils and fluid from contaminated pads. Place them on tinfoil, put it on the flame and watch for them to start smoking, once all the contaminated stuff is gone they will stop smoking. You don't need to blast them with crazy heat at all. Just get them hot. I have NEVER used organic pads, only the metallic ones.
For the rotors, use sandpaper that plumbers use to scuff up pipes. Its aggressive sandpaper meant for metal. Use it to remove all the glaze off the rotors.
I ride whistler bike park and the north shore, this method has worked all my life.
This is a useful video GMBN! Is it a good idea to clean the disc and pads with alcohol every now and then to remove dirt and grime left even after a normal bike wash? Here's a video idea: All the stuff you need to know but nobody tells you before you buy a bike. Like bedding-in new brake pads, how often you should have your shock and fork service, and just how bloody expensive it is if you can't do it yourself. If I followed the manufacturers recommended service intervals for my FOX float I would spend more money every year servicing my bike than I do with my car!
Copper slip behind the pads works a treat, my dad taught me that one. It's surprisingly hard to get the grease near the actual pad material, I would recommend it. Just be careful and apply a thin layer.
Just a dab too. Don't paint it on there if you're going to do it!
Great Stuff! Thanks!
Awesome maintenance videos. Ive always built and mostly maintained my bikes, but the brakes is one area ive always been really nervous to clean thoroughly.. will be giving my rear brake thats squealing the full treatment, cheers.
Who's your Doddy?! LoL
Excellent video as always
Thank you so much for this vid
Yup, I remember doing this with my girlfriend (she's a mechanical engineer). Her front brake got contaminated, so we start this process of salvaging the brake. Buuuuut didn't use any industrial degreaser, just kitchen degreaser and soap, then sand, then again soap, rinse, repeat. In the meanwhile she was polishing the rotor, went a little overboard, ended with an outstanding mirror finish...she got carried away haha. Was a funny afternoon, her brake lasted another six months, then was time to replace the pads.
This is meant positively, been there done that. Good explanation... for prevention also, which always works best!
Tip: dont fool around with those chemical stuff to much/often/long... sometimes rotors just wear out, after few years of intensive use..
Replacing my rotors, combined with new diskpads made my bike feel so fresh, i regretted not doing it earlier...
A few years? If your rotors live for a couple of years with "intensive" use, you're not really using them intensively.
Brake disc rotors usually have their minimum thickness engraved/printed on them. Of course you could ride them until they fall apart, but for safety reasons you should stick to those specifications.
Acetone and sand paper is what I recently used. It worked.
Great how to! I find it easier to simply leave the disc rotor on the wheel for cleaning. Just pinch the disk with a paper towel at full rpm.
Careful of your fingers!
The burning method really works well in my opinion and its quite fun aswell
Love your vids
Incredibly throughout great video
Looks good have not used it yet
A fast and easy way to de-contaminate the pads is to take them out of the caliper and torch them to burn off contaminants. To un-squeal the rotor, use squeal-out and rubbing alcohol.
Please remember too - WD 40 was not designed to be a lubricant, although it does lubricate for a short while. Its primary purpose is as a water displacer ... hence the name WD. The number 40 was the formula they stuck with.
its better at attracting grime than it is lubricating anything.
@@TheFreshPeddler only thing dub dee attracts is the ladies.
Shut up fake info
WD-40 has two meanings one of them is true, "We Did 40" try's till it was right. lol Water Displacement 40 lol
Doddy is using Brake Cleaner made by WD 40 is this video. I can be confusing, as the can looks very similar, but a much different product.
Very useful!!
I read somewhere that you should heat the pads up in a blue flame to force contaminants out. I've used the gas hob previously and you can see the oil xcome out of the pads quite clearly. Just left to cool and they worked spot on 😎
Nice! We can't fully recommend that to our viewers, since a lot of pads are bonded to the back-plate in different ways, and intense heat can de-laminate them, causing the braking material to separate from the plate. It's not that it doesn't 'work' it's that you've got to be super careful doing it
I know this is an old post, but I have done this, and it cracked the brake pad before it could bleed the oil out.
Thanks guys really usefull.
Good video I'll be doing this
Have you ever heard of putting brake disc, and pads in a oven, to remove contamintation? I had someone recommend it to me, but wasn't to sure about it.
Thanks. It solve my problem!
Glad it helped you Roberto!
Thank you sir nice idea
Thanks Doddy, another helpful video. keep it up!
i can vouche for the copper slip, common used in carworkshops.
also brakes can make a squilling noise if brakes are cold and also when the pad material is to hard.
I have small kids, so the best thing I reckon is to put your squealing brake pads in front of an iPad or the telly to calm them down. Works every time!
2nd3rd1st I'm dead.
Used this today on a used bike I bought that was making noise . worked like a charm (I used rubbing alcohol ) thanks GMBN!
PERFECT TIMING mine are pretty much done
instead of sandpaper I use drywall sanding screens. it has holes that allow the crap you want off your pads to fall through. Seems to work much better than sandpaper
That hair is so smooooooth today Doddy! :)
Can you guys do a video on speed wobble causes/solutions?
If you use sandpaper, ensure there is no residue or else the pads will likely glaze over when bedding in. I'm going to try steel wool as an abrasive, next time.
That's it! He reminds me of Ken Block
Legend thanks a lot 😎😎😎
blow torch works wonders on sintered pads, thinners on the rotor, wonder wipes too on my work bike
Thanks now can get rid of that noise
Hey doddy
You should try using drywall sandpaper, its like a cheesegrater and any sanded material falls through the little holes
Yew!
i actually do the rubbing alcohol and fire method for pads and they do remove alot of the residue.
Thanks
Try this, take out the pads and rub them together under the hot tap using VIM. Repeat this until the Vim stays white and then dry them with a paper towel. Clean the disc with household cleaning alcohol applied with a J Cloth and dry them with a microfiber cloth. The light abrasive in the Vim creates micro scratches and de-glazes the pads that disrupts any harmonic resonance, in other words, stops them squealing (in principal) like a violin string.
If u dont like copper slip then use a thin insulation sheet between pads and piston cups
If you live near the coast, salt in the air tends to settle on the rotors, creating a residue contaminant that affects the braking power, creates a lot of noise and eats away at the rotor.
If it happens out on the trail I just pop off the pads, find a rough stone and sand the glaze layer off the pads and normally perfect then. No more squeal and much better braking.
i work at a bike shop and we allways burn the discpads. our mecanics has repaird bikes for over 70 years combined and they do it every single time.
Mikkel Lehmann Yep. All of the stuff in the video and torch the pads when they're dry to burn off any deep contaminants.
How bout rotors, are they safe to burn?
Henry C wouldn’t recommend it due to possibly warping the rotor beyond repair, just isopropyl alcohol and some 600 grit sand paper and you will be good
If brakes start getting noisy or loose power I soak pad in isopropal alcohol then cook them on BBQ gas flame until they stop smoking. really very effective at removing contamination. clean the rotor as doddy suggests and bed in!
A piece of masking tape on the backside of the pad works just like a shim.... stops squealing for me.... been good for months
Ah, a thinking man.
i use my jetwash and it works a treat
In a really old GMBN video you recomended a blow torch!?! Daddy you confudle me
Can you guys please do a video on the top 10 fs bikes under $2500?
To avoid brake rotors contamination while you cleaning your cassette I found very interesting and very simple,handy solution: Brake Shield from Dirt Ninja. Amazing product.
Thanks... after looking them up i have the idea of making my own out of old cereal boxes.