Token moan on replacing brake pads

[chrisc]

Today I decided that id had one too many nasty experiences with the fast road pads that were on the front of my 84 - im inside the m25 now, and these pads take far far far too long to warm up. My moan is about the stinking wedges that fit between the calipers and their cradle. Im still struggling to get the second one back in on the first side!!!

Naturally, its going to go in, but i felt like moaning about it anyway.

[Wallace]

Try getting them re-plated if they're seriously rusty. Never tried it myself - but if they're smoother, they should bind less. And not rust themselves solid either !

[chrisc]

No need - the sweet taste of victory is mine :D . The universal law of brakes was applied - about 2 hours for the first side :evil: , maybe 5 minutes for the second. After the calipers decimated various wedges I finally found a pair of sturdy screwdrivers that made it look easy.

[Hamish]

Chris,
You're not alone :!: The wedges are a pain in the backside :evil:
I never got mine re-plated and although it might be the ideal solution I cheated :twisted:
I simply ground back the wedges to nice shiny metal each time I 'did' the brakes then applied either copaslip or some rather nice aluminium/silvery type 'stuff' that did the same job. Worked a treat, but time consuming - as most simple things on Betas have a habit to be :wink:
I'ts also worth cleaning up the carriers once in a while... makes an appreciable difference.
I tried several brands of brake pads, but in the end settled for Mintex standards as I felt these gave the best compromise between 'quick road' and 'daily use' - mind you, in my case it was a bit of both if the truth is told 8)

[chrisc]

That grinding back technique sounds definately like cheating - not to say i didnt consider it! Im amazed at the difference these new pads have made - the ability to stop in the mornings is a huge advantage :) I am concerned about brake fade, but I wont find out about such things till the next time im on a decent run to aberystwyth or somewhere.
The pad material on the old pads looks almost entirely metallic.

Wondering if they might have been on the track side of fast road. But then again, Ive only seen a handful of 'uprated' brake pads.