[yoitsemo]

Hey all,

So we've been having quite a bit of rain in the Southeast US lately and as I'm in between cars at the moment my SCR is getting thoroughly water tested.

After the most recent ride that put me through a section of flooded road up to the sole of my boot, my rear brake lever has become very resistant to the force applied to it for braking. There's no awkward noises, the brake pads do engage/disengage, and the front brakes and lever feel the same as they did on day one.

As this is my first bike I was interested on this forum's thoughts as to what I should check out on my own and potentially fix if possible. I've seen the most likely cause could be the brake cable, but maybe someone here has already had the same issue and knows the deal.

I'm approaching 10,000 miles and planning to take it in to my shop and get a tune up, but I may move that date up if the brake issue is something that should be handled by a professional.

 

[OpenRoad]

Not too familiar with brake lines and the last time I heard of this happening to someone was because there was air in their brake lines so they had to bleed the rear brakes.

 

[SCRBen]

Hey all,

So we've been having quite a bit of rain in the Southeast US lately and as I'm in between cars at the moment my SCR is getting thoroughly water tested.

After the most recent ride that put me through a section of flooded road up to the sole of my boot, my rear brake lever has become very resistant to the force applied to it for braking. There's no awkward noises, the brake pads do engage/disengage, and the front brakes and lever feel the same as they did on day one.

As this is my first bike I was interested on this forum's thoughts as to what I should check out on my own and potentially fix if possible. I've seen the most likely cause could be the brake cable, but maybe someone here has already had the same issue and knows the deal.

I'm approaching 10,000 miles and planning to take it in to my shop and get a tune up, but I may move that date up if the brake issue is something that should be handled by a professional.

I don’t see why running through a heavy spell of rain would suddenly cause there to be air the line - they’re pretty water-tight (to keep the brake fluid IN!). Air in the system usually creates sponginess too - sounds like you have the opposite. And, if you take a close look, I doubt it’s a cable issue......! :grin2: I would have thought the rear brake pivot is more likely to have just bound up a little, especially with repeated soakings. Have you tried lubricating that area? Some GT85 (WD40 at a pinch) is a water dispersant (hence the WD40 name) so would not only lubricate that area, but also drive out any errant moisture too. After that, I’d be considering looking at the rear brake piston, to see if it is not disengaging fully and binding due to repeated soakings, especially as they hang low on the SCR (more vulnerable).
Ben

 

[flatrack]

I don’t see why running through a heavy spell of rain would suddenly cause there to be air the line - they’re pretty water-tight (to keep the brake fluid IN!). Air in the system usually creates sponginess too - sounds like you have the opposite. And, if you take a close look, I doubt it’s a cable issue......! :grin2: I would have thought the rear brake pivot is more likely to have just bound up a little, especially with repeated soakings. Have you tried lubricating that area? Some GT85 (WD40 at a pinch) is a water dispersant (hence the WD40 name) so would not only lubricate that area, but also drive out any errant moisture too. After that, I’d be considering looking at the rear brake piston, to see if it is not disengaging fully and binding due to repeated soakings, especially as they hang low on the SCR (more vulnerable).
Ben

Good advice. Exactly what I was going to say, except said more eloquently... and gentler I suppose regarding the "cable" or lack thereof.

 

[jobirobi]

this is my first bike

Wow! I started off on a 250cc for my first bike, and people constantly give me funny looks when I say I went to 950 for my second one. Obviously you know what you're doing after 10k miles.

 

[harleyy_rider22]

I was gonna comment on the 10K miles too...
how are the tires like? are they still in a good shape??

and how is the bike in general? any significant changes? (other than that brake lever issue)

 

[flatrack]

I was gonna comment on the 10K miles too...

Yeah, that's a few! Must be nice!

 

[yoitsemo]

I don’t see why running through a heavy spell of rain would suddenly cause there to be air the line - they’re pretty water-tight (to keep the brake fluid IN!). Air in the system usually creates sponginess too - sounds like you have the opposite. And, if you take a close look, I doubt it’s a cable issue......! :grin2: I would have thought the rear brake pivot is more likely to have just bound up a little, especially with repeated soakings. Have you tried lubricating that area? Some GT85 (WD40 at a pinch) is a water dispersant (hence the WD40 name) so would not only lubricate that area, but also drive out any errant moisture too. After that, I’d be considering looking at the rear brake piston, to see if it is not disengaging fully and binding due to repeated soakings, especially as they hang low on the SCR (more vulnerable).
Ben

Thanks, Ben. I'll definitely give the rear piston a look. I've been weary of WD40 because in recent years I've learned that it's a quick fix, but not a permanent one since it can also disperse oil/grease which might be necessary for smooth operation but I do recognize I could be completely wrong/ignorant about different set ups though.

I am happy to say though that after some repeated braking yesterday on my way home from work, the lever did begin to feel more natural, or at least the way I'm use to it, and this morning I didn't have any issues. Still definitely going to take a look at the things you mentioned, though.

 

[yoitsemo]

Wow! I started off on a 250cc for my first bike, and people constantly give me funny looks when I say I went to 950 for my second one. Obviously you know what you're doing after 10k miles.

I definitely considered some smaller bikes like the new Honda Rebels, but ultimately decided on the SCR950 because like a lot of other riders here, the bang for buck was just too good to resist. Still have a lot to learn and experience, but I can say that after the engine break in I was feeling extremely more confident than that first 40min ride home from the dealership.

I was gonna comment on the 10K miles too...
how are the tires like? are they still in a good shape??

and how is the bike in general? any significant changes? (other than that brake lever issue)

Have had to air them up a couple times, but other than that the tires look good with lots of tread. Don't know if it makes that much of a difference, but in FL for the last 15 years the state has been repaving roads left and right so I do a lot of smooth county and state road riding. At 10k when I have the shop check it out I'll probably look at changing them then since I don't have the means of doing the job myself.

Performance wise the bike feels very much the same as it did when I started riding, except now the seat is more broken in. Probably need to change the air filter, but I've done two oil/filter changes about ~4,000 miles apart. Lots of humidity in FL so there are some chrome areas (spokes, mirror arms) at the base that are developing a small bit of rust coloring that I need to look into cleaning properly.

Yeah, that's a few! Must be nice!

Overall it's been great, but there are those low points caused mostly by weather and traffic. Moving into summer and not too excited for the +90°F temps too much, but fortunately most of my riding is highway with minimal city driving.

 

[[email protected]]

Hey all,

So we've been having quite a bit of rain in the Southeast US lately and as I'm in between cars at the moment my SCR is getting thoroughly water tested.

After the most recent ride that put me through a section of flooded road up to the sole of my boot, my rear brake lever has become very resistant to the force applied to it for braking. There's no awkward noises, the brake pads do engage/disengage, and the front brakes and lever feel the same as they did on day one.

As this is my first bike I was interested on this forum's thoughts as to what I should check out on my own and potentially fix if possible. I've seen the most likely cause could be the brake cable, but maybe someone here has already had the same issue and knows the deal.

I'm approaching 10,000 miles and planning to take it in to my shop and get a tune up, but I may move that date up if the brake issue is something that should be handled by a professional.

I had a similar problem with my 2006 Yamaha FJR. I purchased it in December of 2006 and due to a very mild winter, I put on 3,000 miles in the 1st 2 months. All of a sudden my brake pedal wouldn't return and upon further inspection, it turned out that salt dust gummed up the pivot point between the pedal and the shaft. Took it apart, cleaned it up and lubed it with some dry spray lube. 24,000 miles later and it never happened again. Good luck! jevers