My rear brakes are starting to squeak a bit. I did a search, and looks like you guys mostly recommend sanding the pads down a bit. Is there an easier way to access the brakes without having to move my slip-on? It's a pretty tight squeeze in there.

Should I also sand down the rotors a bit? Or is that overkill? I was thinking of just wiping it down with a wet rag or something to remove residual dust.

 

You should remove the pipe...it just makes getting to the caliper so much easier.

Personally I wouldnt worry about a squeak....it should go away with some more use.

 

If you ignore it, its gonna get worse. That squeak you hear is the wear down indicator. Telling you to replace your brake pads. How much is your life worth when your going down the road and you can't stop in time?

 

Hey Stephens, that's not necessarily the case. The wear down indicator is usually more of a "squeal" - sometimes you will hear a squeak from a burr of some sort on the pads. I would do as suggested and sand down the pads a bit, if it goes away then you are fine and it was probably just a little piece of of the pad or some other piece of metal or something that got in there. If it doesn't go away or if it gets louder / more consistent then it is time for new pads as Stephens suggests.

 

The wear indicator seems okay, as I took a look at it last weekend. I don't remember the exact depth between the pad and the indicator, but it definitely still has some life left. Unfortunately, I prob didn't sand the pads down enough, as after a few mins of riding, the squeak started coming back.

 

Hmmmmm...just brain storming the problem. Does the squeal continue throughout your entire riding or is it only when you apply braking? It could possibly be your calipers might be out of alignment and the brakes are rubbing on the rotors?