Utter noob brake question

[Celera]

Apologies that this is almost certainly a total bonehead question, but how do you tell when your brake pads need changing? I can't imagine it's a case of taking it all apart, just to check, but equally I don't want to leave it til there's damage to the disks.

Any info appreciated - and obviously I invite you to point and laugh at my retardation about my bike's retardation.

[yen_powell]

[stinkwheel]

Many, but not all, have a wear groove in the pad material.

If there was one and it's now gone, time for new ones.

A torch and a dentists mirror are useful for checking brake pads.

Remember to check both sides, they don't always wear evenly.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[delsol]

One of the basics of bike maintenance you might want to become familiar with, not at all difficult.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmEwKvioHoY

[Celera]

Cheers guys. I think looking is within my technical repertoire.

[techathy]

One thing which can be overlooked if inspecting pads on the bike is a lip build up on the disc or pad. This prevents a good, flat contact with the disc & dramatically reduced the available braking power.

Pads with an extreme lip I junk even if they have a lot of life left in them as it's almost impossible to rectify without damaging the friction surface. You'll also need to look at resolving the alignment issue with the disc. A disc with a lip I'll measure with micrometer & if it's close to the minimum width replace else I'll (get someone else to) machine the lip off.

[Copycat73]

[Fizzer Thou]

It is one of those easy to recognise worn pads inspection jobs.

But not for some I was at a certain BMW bike dealer near Tunbridge Wells the other year and someone had traded in their Triumph ST and so the bike was out at the front together with other second hand machines.As I stood talking bikes to a friend I was looking at said ST,so much so that the sales guy thought that I might be interested.he came out with all of the usual patter,"regularly serviced","just been MoT'd","looked over by the top bike mechanic that works at the place".

None of which impressed me as I had noticed that the rear brake pads were right down to the metal,which I could see quite easily from a few feet away from the bike.When I pointed this out to said sales guy,I said that it would put me off ever buying a bike from them if their top mechanic had missed such an easy to check component
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Just talk bikes.What else is there?

Always have a 'Plan B'

[techathy]

[Copycat73]

[techathy]

[Copycat73]