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Brake Problem XL883

T

TXBandit

New Member
OK, first post here, so hi everybody!

Here's my situation, I have an Iron 883 and i decided to do some mods to it. I got some V&H straight shots from a friend and decided to remove the interconnect bracket from the bike. Removed the sprocket cover, then the screws that held it to the engine case. In this process I had to disconnect the rear brake rod from the bell crank. I reinstalled all the screws and parts to spec using the service manual.

So now my front and rear brakes are stuck in the compressed position. I bled both lines, removed the front brake caliper, pads and pushed the pistons back into their bores and reinstalled to spec. But when I try to bring back pressure in the line by squeezing the brake lever the pistons will not retract to their open positions. We did some research and the problem may be bc of dirt in the line but since we bled them I don't think this could be the whole reason. Can someone help me with this? Any help is much appreciated.

Thanks

Carl
 
Welcome to the forum Carl, nothing you done to mount the new exhaust would affect the front brake since they are independent systems. The brake pads always seem to have a little contact with the rotor, the pistons don't retract fully like when you push them in by hand, does the bike roll and have you jacked the front wheel off the ground and tried spinning it? just sounds like everything you done installing the pipes was right.
 
There should be no interaction, but then you said that you removed the rear brake rod. What year is the bike that you have, maybe when you removed the rod, the adjustment end of the heim joint turned so the rear brake is engaged slightly (will not affect front brake as HD does not have "linked braking"). Perhaps some dirt on the pistons got pushed into the bores when you were undoing it causing the "sticking" or binding.

Are you able to lift the rear of the bike so you can see how much brake drag there is? Brake pads will make only a slight swishing sound when contacting rotor. If it chatters or "moans" the pistons are binding and you may have to do caliper service as shown in the Self Help section...BUT this all depends on how old your bike is and if it is under warranty.
 
Thanks guys,

I do realize that the front brake system is completely independent from the exhaust and rear brake, but I found it strange that this problem occured only after I did the modification, with both brake lines. I do try to back the bike out of the garage in neutral, however there is resistance on both wheels, as the pads are pressed against both rotors. The bike is a 2009 model and I bought it within a year so I should still be under warranty.

I have attempted to flush the lines again and manually push back the pistons into their chambers, pumping the brake lever repeatedly will work the pistons slowly up to the pads and with no retraction. Is the spring bracket supposed to push the pads apart afterwards or do the pads fall back with the pistons on their own?

Thanks again
 
All HD disc brakes are single action, meaning that there is no "active" retraction of the pads/pistons away from the rotors/or into their bores respectively. They rely on the slight runout of the disc to "nudge" them back...hence the normal "swish" sound when they are working properly. Sounds like you may have an alignment problem (so that the disc is not perpendicular with the pads/caliper, or dirt somehow got in between the piston and bore of the caliper, binding the works. If under warranty my HD dealer has a free tow service to get your bike in for service. But do get the problem fixed proto...no good ride should be allowed to get cold.
 
Carl I would take full advantage of the warranty, that's what it's there for and most all dealers will pick the bike up at no charge, I stupid question, I'm sure you used dot 4 brake fluid, but if different brake fluids were mixed that could cause a problem like you are having. good luck and let us know what they find.
 
Well the dealership picked up the bike today from my home and from the call I gave them this morning they said it could be warrantied even after I explained what I did on the bike. Now they say they can't warranty it b/c I did some work on it myself. I knew that would happen. So they are looking at it and tey will give me a call tomorrow before they start any repairs.
 
The only way they can deny it under the factory warranty is if you caused the problem by something you done while working on it, there is nothing in the warranty manual that says a owner can not work on their own bike.
 
OK so the dealership said it wasn't the brakes at all. What the problem was when I took the interconnect bracket off and put the sprocket cover back on it was closer to the belt since there was less distance when the bracket was on. Thus rubbing against the belt and somehow pushing the brakes shut? It dosen't make sense to me either but I'm glad I didn't mess anything up too bad. When I did the mod in the first place I did realize about the spacer thing and used an extra washer in the bolts, but I guess it wasn't thick enough or maybe I missed something else entirely. Not warrantied, it cost $145, for pick up and service. I just happy to have my bike back and learn a little something. Thanks for your help guys!
 
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