pete east Posted June 22, 2006 Share Posted June 22, 2006 Having checked the car on a brake force dyno I find the offside front brake is not doing much work, I suspect a sticky piston/s is the problem, whilst I have a strategy for freeing them, I wondered if anyone out there has got a surefire strategey for dealing with this problem. What I am concerned with is that the pistons may shoot all the way out with a bang, and give me a problem with getting them re located if I just prod the brakes with the pads removed. As allways any comments even funny ones!would be welcome. regards Pete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CageyH Posted June 22, 2006 Share Posted June 22, 2006 They are probably sticking as they don't want to be seen under a pair of clams Are you sure it is sticking and the piston seal has not gone? Best bet would be to apply your strategy, but limit the available travel the piston has by replacing the disc with material of a suitable thickness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete east Posted June 22, 2006 Author Share Posted June 22, 2006 Cagey - thanks for the reply (well I did ask for funny ones 😬) I was wondering what I could use as a stop pad to allow the pistions to move but not come all the way out, I guess a suitable thickness of timber would do the trick. Regards - Pete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CageyH Posted June 22, 2006 Share Posted June 22, 2006 Timber should be fine. Might be worth checking for any brake fluid leaks when you take the pads out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative Crudders Posted June 22, 2006 Area Representative Share Posted June 22, 2006 Pete, you may be lucky but chances are it's sticking because your brake fuild has absorbed moisture and corroded one or both of the caliper bores. I've replaced mine with some used ones, albeit much newer, from oldbutnotslow (ta mate ) and it seems at least one of the originals was sticking. [clutching at straws] Hey, maybe that's why I went off ?! [/clutching at straws]. It's more likely that the corrosion has occurred in storage mind you. You should be able to source some good replacements form someone who's upgraded to big brakes or alternatively exchange units are available for around the £60 mark from Triumph specialists. I'd offer you my old ones but if anything I suspect they're worse than what you have! Best of luck. Crudders Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super_Rich_Bernie Posted June 22, 2006 Share Posted June 22, 2006 I freed off calipers in a couple of Lancias which were notorious for sticking calipers. This assumes they are not leaking.... - Take one pad out and put in a section of timber the thickness of a brake pad backing - Carefully remove the dust seals - pump the pedal to push the cylinder out - clean exposed cyliner with a spary on brake cleaner and kitchen roll - if it comes out all rusty, rtaher than just gummed up strip and rebuild caliper.... - use clean brake fluid to lubricate cylinder - lever back in, being careful to keep it square to the bore - I used a clamp to pull them back in - replace dust seal - repeat for other pistons Worked on several occasions for me. If brake fluid is old then suggest changing that too. In the case of the Lancias (Fulvia rear brakes) they just seemed to get dirty and gummed up. One of the specialists used to go through this routine every service. Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allen Posted June 22, 2006 Share Posted June 22, 2006 Jonathan is correct, you need to extend the pistons to get at the place they are sticking - but not all the way out at this would be 🙆🏻. You can clean them up using a long strip of clean cloth soaked in meths, get it around the inside of the piston and pull it back and forward, this will clean the bit at the back you cannot see Then work the piston in and out a number of times (wood still in place so they don't pop out) - way well solve the problem. allen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete east Posted June 23, 2006 Author Share Posted June 23, 2006 Thank you all for your replies, I will have a go at at cleaning the pistons, and will of course be changing the fluid, I must confess I dont use the brakes on the Seven that hard (I often feel if I have had to stand on the brakes to negotiate a corner I have probably approached the corner wrongly and with a Sevens aerodynamics most of the time one only has to come off the loud pedal to record a 3 g stop 😬) Therefore for `normal' pull ups the brakes seemed to work ok. It was only when I had the chance to put the car on a brake force dyno I discovered that they were not ok. Hope this will sort it out. Thanks again - Pete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Biddle Posted June 23, 2006 Share Posted June 23, 2006 Pete, I have a set of standard front calipers that I took off the car years ago. Very low mileage and been sitting on the floor of my office ever since. Constant air con means low humidity so should be fine, in fact I just pushed one of the pistions back by hand. I'll send them to you if you need them. (No charge) Come to think of it I'll send the discs too. This stuff is making the place look untidy and I have a suddenn urge to get rid of it. Mike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CageyH Posted June 23, 2006 Share Posted June 23, 2006 Surely this is a good excuse to fit the James Whiting supplied four pot Calipers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete east Posted June 23, 2006 Author Share Posted June 23, 2006 Mike - Thanks for your generous offer which I would like to accept. If you could let me know how I can pay for said items+delivery costs etc. or I could probably pick them up (if you are not in Dubai! 😬) Thanks again to you and all who who took the time to reply to my posting. Best Regards - Pete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete east Posted June 23, 2006 Author Share Posted June 23, 2006 P.s Cagey - I dont think I drive fast enough to justify some nice 4 pot callipers................... Could be something to do with the wings??? 😬 Regards - Pete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted June 23, 2006 Share Posted June 23, 2006 Hang onto the old ones and see if you can get a repair kit for them from Rimmers or a Tri specialist. Then you can have a spare set or retiurn Mike's favour to another BCer for an NTL. BTW, free calipers sounds like a definite NTL donation winner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephen grant Posted June 23, 2006 Share Posted June 23, 2006 Repair kits here stephen Edited by - stephen grant on 23 Jun 2006 15:25:26 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crumpynut Posted June 23, 2006 Share Posted June 23, 2006 I have spent years dealing with sticky calipers and whilst every now and again I would strip and clean them nothing much changed. This year I gave in spoke to Red Line who pointed me to some great brake guys up north to whom I sent old calipers and three days later minus 80 quid got shiny new looking ones back. I still can't believe the difference it made, spend the money save the grief it's worth it and you can stand the car on it's nose!! www.classicbrakes.co.uk, worth a look even just to see some of the stuff the make as one offs! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Biddle Posted June 24, 2006 Share Posted June 24, 2006 Pete, I'll need your address and a phone No for the courier, please blatmail me before 10 AM UK time Sunday 25th and I'll get it done right away, otherwise yuo will have to wait a week because off to Thailand and Burma tomoorow evening. Mike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Midnight Posted June 25, 2006 Share Posted June 25, 2006 Hi Mike, Pete's on a weeks leave now and his home computer's internet link isn't working at the moment, I'll pass your message to him and He'll no doubt make contact when your back from your travels. Thanks, Des Fom Blue xflow 7 on the U.S tour Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myles Posted June 25, 2006 Share Posted June 25, 2006 Crumpynut - I get the following error trying to access classicbrakes.. You don't have permission to access /~classicbrakes.co.uk/public_html/ on this server. Project Scope-Creep is live... Alcester Racing 7's Equipe - 🙆🏻™ Alcester-Racing-Sevens.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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