I've been going through a small checklist of parts to replace and I came across the reasoning for my hard rolling. It seems the front pads are rubbing on the rotor and making it hard for me to roll. I took both of them off and noticed the space between the pads is thinner then the rotor thickness. Now my question is, Are the cups(pistons?) that press against the one pad supposed to be flush with the caliper body or does it protrude out a little?

 

Sounds like it's time to invest in some caliper kits. [8D]

 

i would replace them if not sure because brakes are kinda a little bit important

 

Check your rotor thickness. If they are under the min thickness, then your caliper pistons are going out farther than needed. It would also be a good time to rebuild the caliper with new seals if you can find some for cheap. Otherwise, i would just clean the pistons if they are all rusted up. The fluid inside will be gooey too if the bike has been sitting outside for a while.

 

Interesting..I didn't even think of that. Yeah it was sitting for a while when the previous owner had it. I think I'll just Ebay a used good condition set of calipers and new rotors. Brakes are definitely nothing to be "rigging" or neglecting.

 

I'd actually just throw a new set of pads on there. If your pads are worn down they will make the caliper pistons extend too far which can cause them to hang up and not return properly. The rotor thickness isn't a bad thing to check, but I kind of doubt thats the issue.

 

Will do..That's probably what I'll get first but I still think it's time for new(er) lines and calipers then the ones I have. The bike looked like it was sitting long enough for the fluid to get all nasty and congealed. The calipers were also very very dirty with black grime.

 

Well, the easiest way to tell is to pump the pistons out completely and just see what they look like in there. If it turns out the pistons have rusty pock marks on them and the inside looks corroded, then you'll be replacing them anyway. But if not, then you should be able to get them to work just as easily as you would with a used set.

 

Okay..I'll check it out tonight. I bet they are rusted.