[TickTock]

I have a new set of avids on my bike. The front is running flawlessly. I noticed today that the back outer pad (the one that moves) is worn almost to the clip. Now this could just be normal wear but there are two things wrong:
1. The brakes are only two weeks old, and have only been in rain/mud on one 5 mile ride.
2. the wear is totally uneven. Its almost as if the piston is pushing in the front end of the pad first. one end of the pad is worn all the way down, the back end is not nearly as worn.

The lever feel is smooth so its not a warped rotor. There is no drag on the rotor either. Braking power is perfect. This simply cant be normal wear.

What could cause this kind of "shoe-in" type wear on the moving pad? A bent spring clip? A faulty caliper?

I re-installed from scratch and the problem still exists. I know they were set up correctly because I set them up twice exactly the same as the front and the rear is the only one with a problem.

Anyone have any diea on what I could do to figure out the cause of this? Ill call avid on monday but if its an easy fix ill just do it myself.

 

[phlegm]

Very strange. Very, very strange... I noticed the newer pads do wear quite a bit faster, but even in muck/mud they shouldn't go that fast unless you're chairlifting up for 15+ runs per day, every day.

Def. time to give Avid a ring.

 

[FlipSide]

My rear Avid brake does the same thing and it truly annoys me. For some reason, my front brake is fine.

I don't know why the wera is uneven. My bike mechanics took it apart and cleaned everything, which seemed to help a bit...but I noticed yesterday theat the wear is still uneven. It may be due to a misaligned caliper. I don't know...the alignment seemed fine to me. I realigned it yesterday night...so we'll see if this helps or not.

I'm becoming very unhappy with my brakes. The power they have is amazing but the constant adjustment they need is driving me nuts!!! I adjust them at the top of the DH run...but when I get to the bottom, I have no power anymore since the lever hits the handlebar when I grip it. Before the next run, I have to give 3-4 clicks on each pads to bring them closer to the discs. If I have money next year, I'll probably go hydraulic.

 

[golgiaparatus]

Originally posted by FlipSide
My rear Avid brake does the same thing and it truly annoys me. For some reason, my front brake is fine.

I don't know why the wera is uneven. My bike mechanics took it apart and cleaned everything, which seemed to help a bit...but I noticed yesterday theat the wear is still uneven. It may be due to a misaligned caliper. I don't know...the alignment seemed fine to me. I realigned it yesterday night...so we'll see if this helps or not.

I'm becoming very unhappy with my brakes. The power they have is amazing but the constant adjustment they need is driving me nuts!!! I adjust them at the top of the DH run...but when I get to the bottom, I have no power anymore since the lever hits the handlebar when I grip it. Before the next run, I have to give 3-4 clicks on each pads to bring them closer to the discs. If I have money next year, I'll probably go hydraulic.

YES!!! YES, YES.

I agree with you Avid mechanicals are a pain in my friggin neck. Every day you gotta adjust them so you get the right lever feel, or no rub, or whatever.

Shey stop like mad but the adjustmeny is PISSING ME OFF!!!!

Thanks, needed to vent that frustration, I feel better now

 

[SKYWAYBUZZ]

I think its the new pads Avid has out with the metal clips on them. Must be very fragile. I noticed that I was dialing them in constantly when I put the new style pads in my old style rear caliper. Bummer!

 

[spincrazy]

I hear ya. The constant adjustment to my rear caliper is getting f-ing annoying as all hell. I cleaned the pistons and put in new pads yesterday. I hope this problem goes away soon or the brakes are going to. The front is great.

 

[the BIG cheese]

Originally posted by golgiaparatus


YES!!! YES, YES.

I agree with you Avid mechanicals are a pain in my friggin neck. Every day you gotta adjust them so you get the right lever feel, or no rub, or whatever.

Shey stop like mad but the adjustmeny is PISSING ME OFF!!!!

Thanks, needed to vent that frustration, I feel better now

i know how you feel, with my hayes hmx-1's for about 3 months i was daily aligning the caliper so they didnt rub, pissed me off

 

[MtnBikerChk]

IAB is having the same problems with his.


Which pads did you use for replacements - I think I'm gonna start with that.

 

[spincrazy]

Originally posted by spincrazy
I hear ya. The constant adjustment to my rear caliper is getting f-ing annoying as all hell. I cleaned the pistons and put in new pads yesterday. I hope this problem goes away soon or the brakes are going to. The front is great.

Update. Everything was thoroughly dialed in and working flawlessly on yesterdays ride.....then I smashed the rotor. Arrrrg. Always something with this damn brake.

Just a rant.

To those who are having trouble with uneven pad wear and constant adjustment, make sure your calipers are tight and that the locktite is working so they aren't coming loose due to vibration. Clean the pistons- don't worry if you accidently unscrew them all the way as they can be screwed back in. Make certain that your caliper is aligned correctly - don't settle for good enough. Make sure your rotor has been attached to the hub correctly: tighten the rotor bolts opposite each other.