— Service Assistance —
Tech section with articles on all topics of motorcycle and ATV service and repair.
Bad Gas
By Mark Shively
Gasoline goes bad with time and in as little as 3-4 weeks. This effect is known as varnishing. Jets and passageways within carbs become obstructed when varnishing occurs.
Liquid gasoline changes chemically into a gel like substance. Advanced stages of [...]
Disc brake:
Air in the brake line
Pad or disk worn
Brake fluid leak
Disc warped
Contaminated pad
Brake fluid deteriorated
Primary or secondary cup damaged
Master cylinder scratched inside
Drum brake:
Brake maladjusted
Brake linings or drum worn
Overheated
Water in brake drum
Brake cam, camshaft worn
Oil on brake linings
Why brakes stick or drag
Before and after cleaning images
Before and after cleaning images
By Mark Shively
This is very common and often causes brakes to over-heat, fade, and even fail.
What happens is with time brake fluid changes chemically into a solid gel or in severe cases a crystal powder. The gel or powder expands against seals and seals are pressed against caliper pistons and prevent pistons from returning completely [...]
By Mark Shively
Vacuum bleeders sometimes are more troublesome than efficient. Other times they work well. The old school way to bleed is to allow the master cylinder to purge the system of air. This may be slow at times, but effective.
To begin, flush the existing brake/clutch fluid from the reservoir. Pump it through the [...]
By Mark Shively
Bleeding the system:
Use high quality DOT 4 brake fluid (or preferred type) from a sealed container. Remove the old fluid from the master cylinder reservoir. Use a cooking type squeeze bulb baster to remove the bulk of the fluid from the reservoir. Use a clean paper towel to remove any remaining fluid. [...]
By Mark Shively
Over time, non-synthetic or mineral brake fluids change chemically into a gel-like solid that obstructs and affects brake system passageways, grooves, and components.
If left untreated, the gel-like solid eventually changes chemically into a crystal-like substance. Once brake fluid reaches these latter stages, etching of the caliper’s and master/slave cylinder’s machined surfaces occurs.
The [...]
Coming soon to Repair Manual Club; a new tech section with articles on all topics of motorcycle and ATV service and repair.
Repair Manual Club welcomes techs who would be interested in contributing their expertise to the new section. Repair Manual Club also seeks tech tips or other related information from members. If interested, email [...]
