spainy Posted November 17, 2008 Share Posted November 17, 2008 Hi all bit of a strange one, my front brake disk is constantly covered in oil, and consequently has very spongy braking. When I bought the bike it appeared to be coming from the forks which the vendor agreed to fix, which he did. However the disk is still full of oil. Took it for a service on Saturday and the mechanic had the brakes off but couldn´t seem to see where the oil was coming from as there were no visible leaks coming from the attached pipes which feed to the calipers or anywhere else for that matter. He cleaned up the disk but by the time I had gone 100 metres to my house it was full of oil again. Has anyone suffered from this problem or does anyone have any ideas? Thanks for any help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator mervin Posted November 17, 2008 Moderator Share Posted November 17, 2008 Right first things first be bloody careful if you are still riding it, is this oil affecting the brake performance if so then leave the bike in the shed, oil would render the brake totally ineffective.I think to be honest it is not oil it is brake fluid and the seals in the caliper are shot (mind out for Greenpeace if you are shooting seals i must add), if you know what you are doing replacing the caliper seals are not beyond diy replacement but if it is your first time i recommend finding someone that knows what they are doing to help, preferably not the mechanic that serviced the bike as it should be obvious that the seals are leaking, and he needs his knuckles rapped for not spotting it adn letting you ride away with a potentially dngerous vehicle Merv Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spainy Posted November 17, 2008 Author Share Posted November 17, 2008 Right first things first be bloody careful if you are still riding it, is this oil affecting the brake performance if so then leave the bike in the shed, oil would render the brake totally ineffective.I think to be honest it is not oil it is brake fluid and the seals in the caliper are shot (mind out for Greenpeace if you are shooting seals i must add), if you know what you are doing replacing the caliper seals are not beyond diy replacement but if it is your first time i recommend finding someone that knows what they are doing to help, preferably not the mechanic that serviced the bike as it should be obvious that the seals are leaking, and he needs his knuckles rapped for not spotting it adn letting you ride away with a potentially dngerous vehicle Merv Thanks Mervin, I have been riding the bike for about 2 months with the same problem, just to shock you. The brakes are spongy but do work to a degree however not as much as I would like obviously, I have to rely on using the rear brake as well and very careful driving. He had the caliper off and there didn´t appear to be any oil anywhere as he showed me it too and it appeared dry so where are these seals? And would they only leak everytime the brake is used? It is a very strange thing that the mechanic can´t see this I agree but if it only leaks when the brake is used would it be difficult to see? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gas up - Let's Go! Posted November 17, 2008 Share Posted November 17, 2008 Just a wild shot in the dark, but are the brake lines OK ? you don't have a small hole in them squirting fluid out under presure ?? It might explain why it's so difficult to spot?? Possibley the banjo bolts, or the copper washers ?? If the brakes are working (albeit badly), then I'd err away from Oil and stick with brake fluid - if it is, and you get it on your painwork you'll be replacing that too, best paint stripper on the market is brake fluid. Get someone to work the brakes and have a look at the front to see if you can spot a leak - but for gods sake wear some eye protection Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator drewpy Posted November 17, 2008 Moderator Share Posted November 17, 2008 I agree, get new caliper seals and renew the brake lines (HEL are good as well as cheap) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spainy Posted November 18, 2008 Author Share Posted November 18, 2008 Thanks for that guys, I was wondering the same since there was no oil leaking whilst the brakes arent being actioned but as soon as I use them I´m back to square one again. What a pain in the butt. I´ll try find out and update you all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator YamaHead Posted November 19, 2008 Moderator Share Posted November 19, 2008 You put a caliper rebuild kit in there & you'll be surprised @ the difference in feel! .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spainy Posted November 24, 2008 Author Share Posted November 24, 2008 Well it's a bloody mystery. Went down to the mechanics again and stayed there with him whilst he took the caliper off, undid it and we both looked all over and we just cannot see where the oil is coming from. It is completely dry inside the caliper and there doesn't appear to be any coming from the seals either. How do you fix something that you can't see?????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Cynic Posted November 24, 2008 Moderator Share Posted November 24, 2008 What does the 'oil' feel like, brake fluid has a thin watery feel to it, wheras the fork oil will feel like, well oil. If its not coming from the brakes then it must be coming from the forks. If it happens within 100 yards it must be visible, give the front of the bike a good degrease. Make sure its bone dry then go into the house and pinch the talc from the bathroom and cover the front of the bike with it. Now ride down the road with your bike smelling loverrrly. Apply the brakes, get off and look for the damp spot (missus). Its not very scientific but can't see why it shouldnt work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonYorksYAM Posted November 24, 2008 Share Posted November 24, 2008 Long shot but could it be oil/grease coming from hub axle? Possible that the oil seals failed and stuff coming out when wheels spinning. Maybe someone at some point put oil in the hub during assembly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve m Posted November 24, 2008 Share Posted November 24, 2008 As both of the above,,,,,,,,,,also,,,,,,,, Re check the fork seal,, prise out the dust seal and have a look underneath, if it`s wet then thats where the oil is comming from. PS,,,,,,are you sure the guy you got the bike from actually renewed the seal ???? or did he just wipe the oil off and stuff a bit of rag between the oil seal and the dust seal ?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve m Posted November 24, 2008 Share Posted November 24, 2008 Just a thought,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, You did replace the disc pads ????????? didn`t you ??? Cos they would be well saturated with oil......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve m Posted November 24, 2008 Share Posted November 24, 2008 If all this fails,,, then you could have found a new source of oil and may be you could be the saviour of the world Just be carefull Mr G Brown doesn`t tax you on it !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spainy Posted November 26, 2008 Author Share Posted November 26, 2008 Ha ha, I liked that last comment lol. I should have mentioned that we cleaned up the caliper as best we could so that I could see whereabouts the leak is coming from. Now this is hard to explain, but I'll try and tell you where the oil is accumulating. If you look at the fork and follow it down to the caliper (yellow colour), well undereath the caliper there is a piece of metal which comes off the the fork underneath the caliper which is the same colour as the fork. The oil/fluid is accumulating right at the end of this piece of metal in small drops, and going straight onto the disc and being obviously ground in by the brake. Does this make sense - do you know what I am talking about? If I had a picture it would be easier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Airhead Posted November 26, 2008 Moderator Share Posted November 26, 2008 Dont say your fork seals are shot, with oil running down to the caliper! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spainy Posted November 26, 2008 Author Share Posted November 26, 2008 Dont say your fork seals are shot, with oil running down to the caliper! Well it,s not running down the fork, the drops literally are appearing on the end of that metal without any telltale trail to say where they are coming from. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Airhead Posted November 26, 2008 Moderator Share Posted November 26, 2008 If I had a picture it would be easier. For pictures Open a photobucket accountUpload your pics therewith each pic you will see four fieldsCopy the IMG fieldPaste into the forum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fosdyke Posted November 26, 2008 Share Posted November 26, 2008 This may or may not help you....... As per previous posts 2 possibilities: 1. Fork Oil 2. Brake fluid For the initiated - they smell slightly different, brake fluid has a very distinctive smell. For the unititiated - check your brake fluid reservoir - has it gone down at all? - Sure sign of a leak. And don't, repeat, don't re-use brake pads that have been impregnated with oil, they WILL let you down when you most need them! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skidz Posted November 27, 2008 Share Posted November 27, 2008 Just a thought On the forks there is usually a small bolt or screw that allows the fork oil to be drained out of the forks. Maybe this is leaking and causing the oil to drip onto the calipher. Ryan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spainy Posted December 1, 2008 Author Share Posted December 1, 2008 Don't think its the fork as there would be oil dripping down the fork otherwise. The mechanic is gonna order me a new caliper, or at least find out the prices for one. On top of this some barsteward has taken the speedo cable from my bike, it was detached from the wheel the other day and when I screwed it back on it still didnt work, turns out someone has nicked the cable from inside! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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