Lube on disc brake fix!!!!

snowden_88

OK, so like a complete noob idiot. I got spray lube on my front disc break.

Now its all squeaky and clunky. Whats the best way to clean it off?

Also, if I do have to replace the pads then does anyone know what pads fit Shimano BR-M445 hydraulics? I think its B01S but not sure.

Thanks

nicklouse

clean the rotor and replace the pads.

snowden_88

nicklouse wrote:

clean the rotor and replace the pads.

Gathered that

but Im not sure what pads I need and whats the best solution to use

ricardo_smooth

the pads you've already got.. sand the top surface off. Clean the rotor with iso alcohol or some kind of degreaser. at least with soap/water and a clean rag.

ravey1981

use clutch/brake cleaner spray on the rotor. ditch the pads, get new ones

cooldad

The pad 'chooser' on the Superstar website works on brake models, so makes it easy to choose.

snowden_88

Had a look cooldad

They dont seem to have the M445 model

saying that, no-one does. The Voodoos and some Carreras have these breaks so was hoping Halfords stocked them but they do Clarkes, and cant seem to find correct match

Phillw454

This might be terrible advice....

I went out for a ride one evening and had a really squeaky rear disc just after I had oiled all the parts, It was p*ssing with rain yet I put it down to oil on the disc.

A simple wash a few days later and was as good as new, with no special ingredients.

Worked for me at least.

cooldad

According to this they are B01S
http://techdocs.shimano.com/media/techd ... 700087.pdf

snowden_88

Its only the front disc that's squeakier than an episode of Glee.

Im guessing they are pretty easy to change right? No need for a bike mechanic?

cooldad

Which according to Shimano use the same pads as BR486 which are S2 on Superstar list. Might be worth checking first but chances are Wiggle or CRC might stock them under the Shimano code.

cooldad

Easy yes.

nozzac

I've cleaned lube off pads several times and the pads have worked perfectly afterwards.

I remove pads, rub them with meths and then sand them down a bit with medium glass paper. Then I get a little ceramic dish, put the pads in face up and pour meths over them until they are nearly covered and set fire to the meths. You can see the face of the pad dry out after a bit, at that point I use a screwdriver to turn the pad over to wet it again, and then back to face up, several times until all the meths has gone. The main aim is to repeatedly soak the surface with burning meths and get the whole pad to heat up to a significant temperature.

Once cool I sand with fine glass paper. I clean the rotors with de-greaseer followed by meths and refit the pads. After a bit of bedding in they work as new.

The lube I've cleaned off is GT45 which I've sprayed onto the rotors several times plus I put too much on the forks once which then ran down the forks over a few hours and soaked one of the pads.

snowden_88

I used the same lube.

Looks like I get to play with fire today then

Will it stop the god awful noise too? Sounds like the bent metal sound from Fallout 3

joshtp

meths is a bad idea... it contains oil's and contaminants... use Isopropyl alcohol 100% vol. It's pure alcohol and the best, and only stuff to use on brakes.

and DO NOT set fire to your pads... you could melt the glue holding the pad to the backing... clean the rotor with IPA and sand the pads before cleaning them with IPA.... then bed the brakes in again.

Or, Ideally get new pads.... SuperStar are good.

allen.coulson

NozzaC wrote:

.

face up and pour meths over them until they are nearly covered and set fire to the meths. You can see the face of the pad dry out after a bit, at that point I use a screwdriver to turn the pad over to wet it again, .

Can I do this to my children?

nozzac

joshtp wrote:

meths is a bad idea... it contains oil's and contaminants... use Isopropyl alcohol 100% vol. It's pure alcohol and the best, and only stuff to use on brakes.

and DO NOT set fire to your pads... you could melt the glue holding the pad to the backing... clean the rotor with IPA and sand the pads before cleaning them with IPA.... then bed the brakes in again.

We're not dealing with microprocessors or space optics here. Brake pads get covered with water from roads and forests containing all manner of substances and work fine. What may or may not be in meths is just not an issue. It works just fine. In fact it often does contain tiny amounts of petroleum oils like naptha which contribute towards its function as a non-polar solvent. You can do the same trick with petrol which is a thin oil. All that matters is that you are using a non-polar solvent (both polar and non-polar in the case of alcohol) with a light enough weight to dissolve the heavier oils.

I've done this plenty of times on both motorbikes and mountain bikes and it has often worked well. Not once has the pad come apart. Pads can get a lot hotter than the temperature they get to sitting in liquid meths by just braking and they don't fall apart. It's not just some common or garden glue, They are bonded with high temps in mind.

If you can get the same result by just wiping with alcohol then do that. If you can't then you're going to be throwing them away anyway so have nothing to lose. I'm not claiming it works on all pads for all oil contaminations but it has worked enough times for me to recommend trying it.

It works a lot better on sintered pads where the oil doesn't soak in as much vs organic pads where it can soak in to a point where it cannot be easily removed.

snowden_88

I tried setting fire to them in the meth. They are definitely a lot better but still a bit squeaky. Im going to try the Isopropyl tomorrow.

I probably just need to bed the brake in right? Also, my brake lever isnt as squidgy as it was before. How do I sort this?

morleyman200

you can also stick the pads in the oven at about 100, this then evaporates the oils out of the pad, has worked every time with me, and just a fine sand down with fine paper, and jobs a goodun

beware it does smell sometimes, so dont do it when the wifes cooking the roast chicken

nozzac

snowden_88 wrote:

I tried setting fire to them in the meth. They are definitely a lot better but still a bit squeaky. Im going to try the Isopropyl tomorrow.

I probably just need to bed the brake in right? Also, my brake lever isnt as squidgy as it was before. How do I sort this?

I find I need to give them a really good burning. I'll do the soak/burn cycle a few times and sand them. They should look like new pads.

You definitely need to be sanding them too and cleaning the rotor immaculately. Isopropyl might well work even better dissolving the particular contaminant involved. You can only try.

I don't think 100C oven is hot enough to boil off many common oils likely to contaminate a pad. Even a 250C over won't be enough for many.

Other methods I've seem work involve blow-torching the pads for a bit and putting them in a dishwasher.

Andy B

I'd rather buy new pads than spend all that time f***ing about in the vain hope that you can rescue the contaminated pads

cooldad

+1 roasted potato

nozzac

Andy B wrote:

I'd rather buy new pads than spend all that time f***ing about in the vain hope that you can rescue the contaminated pads

That's nice if you have the money to spend but it takes about 10 mins and isn't a vain hope much of the time.

I'm riding previously contaminated pads right now and they work perfectly and have months left on them. Why would I want to spend the longer than that shopping for new pads and spend money I don't need to?

cooldad

Roasting, setting on fire and sanding is the simple solution when a new set cost around a fiver posted?
OK.

nozzac

cooldad wrote:

Roasting, setting on fire and sanding is the simple solution when a new set cost around a fiver posted?
OK.

I didn't say it was "the simple solution" just a possible solution.

If you prefer to do that then do that. I like to see if they are savable first personally.

I'm not selling the idea of cleaning them just putting it out there.

cooldad

Fortunately I've never needed to do either. Replace them when worn out. Just keep lube and cr4p away from brakes.

70s_kid

Cooldad, I agree the model numbers look like Superstar S2 are the correct ones.

However, it refers to them as being semi-metallic on the website, on the rotors it says resin pads only. Are all resin pads semi-metallic?

cooldad

They are the same thing. I use sintered on my Shimano rotors with no problems. Just means the discs may wear a bit quicker, so will only last 5 years instead of 6 or something. But the pads last a lot longer.
They won't cause any actual damage.

snowden_88

What about in the mechanism that holds the brake pads (dont know its proper name)?

How do I get the oil out of them? Do I just pour Isopropyl straight over it?

supersonic

Not all meths is the same -some is purer than others. Some is really oily, and I would not put it anywhere near my disc pads.

snowden_88

Iv just ordered new pads.

So what about the mechanism then? should a pour some alcahol into it then wash down with water?