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Squealing Disc Brakes


Greybeard

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I have Shimano Hydraulic brakes that are giving me the squeal treatment.

The pads are still in good condition and the Icetek rotors are not scarred or showing any wear. ( The bike has not worked too hard) I went through the process of cleaning everything with alchohol and I also lightly sanded the pads and the rotor surfaces. The rotors don't appear to be "warped" and I check the equal clearance when remounting the wheel.

Is there anything I might have missed? One thing, the bike hung in a garage for a few years and I did give it a good clean before using.

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Squealing brake pad is annoying , but its not the surface of the pad that squeaks . The contact area between the piston and pad is the problem . You should never sand pads or rotors . 

 

How do I get my brakes to stop squeaking?
Clean the area on the piston and caliper where the pad backing plate touches. Apply the anti-squeal adhesive, reinstall the pads and button up. These anaerobic products will stay gummy until you apply the brakes and squeeze out the oxygen. Then they stick like, well, glue
 

 

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Does this only happen when you use the brake?

If it happens without you using the brake it can also be your bearings in your hub(s) that needs some grease.

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i had to install new pads after K2c and even after cleaning everything with brake cleaner and making sure not to touch anything they still had a squeal. there was oil on the gravel road in the forest so with the rain i'm assuming some got onto the disks.

 

 so i took the brand new pads off along with the disk....sprayed with brake cleaner and set them on fire lol. the pads you can just spray someon and set alight. the disks i try to just spray the contact patch as the alu bit can warp if you have a floating rotor.

 

it burns off any and every bit of residual junk that might still be on there. on the disks  it shows as blue spots or smudges. just wipe off with a clean rag.

 

then....you need to be sure to break them in again properly afterwards otherwise they will just glaze over and squeal again. in the street from about 20kph...give the front brake a hard pull for a few seconds....but dont ever stop. turn around. repeat about 10 times. you'll feel the braking power increase with every pull. do the same for the rear. 

 

mine are 100% now.

Edited by morneS555
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Squealing brake pad is annoying , but its not the surface of the pad that squeaks . The contact area between the piston and pad is the problem . You should never sand pads or rotors . 

 

 

Squealling happens when the disks resonate. You can sand both pad and disk it is just how you do it. Right grit abrasive and correct method.

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Setting the brake pads alight is the worst thing you can do. You destroy the brake material binder. You may fix the squeal but the pads won’t last and the rotor will also be damaged.

Clean the pads with a mix of isopropyl alcohol and water and the rotor too. Grease the piston seals and you should be good to go.

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it burns off in 2-3 seconds...it doesn't even get hot enough to burn your fingers to the touch afterward.

pretty sure they get hotter during operation. they have been golden. i'll do it again if i have to lol

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You can bake them in the oven after making dinner one evening as well  :thumbup:

 

 

it burns off in 2-3 seconds...it doesn't even get hot enough to burn your fingers to the touch afterward.

pretty sure they get hotter during operation. they have been golden. i'll do it again if i have to lol

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It doesn’t burn off inn2-3 seconds , you’re just burning of the surface contamination. The brake material is porous so that oil would have penetrated deep into the pad. Heating in an oven doesn’t help either. Boiling point of mineral oil is one limit to the effectiveness of this practice but so is the fact that the oil is chemically adhering to the brake material.

 

But do what you want to your pads. No one is stopping you. It’s just not good practice and doesn’t solve the problem just treats the symptom

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Sounds to me like someone is trying to motivate for a new bike.

 

Just buy the new bike as it's always easier to ask for forgiveness after the purchase than trying to get consent before buying.

 

PS The nagging/squeaking sounds will disappear for a couple days as soon as you walk through the door with the new machine.

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Sounds to me like someone is trying to motivate for a new bike.

 

Just buy the new bike as it's always easier to ask for forgiveness after the purchase than trying to get consent before buying.

 

PS The nagging/squeaking sounds will disappear for a couple days as soon as you walk through the door with the new machine.

 

In the interests of safety, the OP knows what the right things to do is.

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