How To Change the Brake Pads for your Harley Davidson VRSC

A Harley Davidson VRSC makes use of
brake pads to help stop itself in an efficient and safe manner. The
brake pistons push up against the brake pads, creating friction which
helps to slow down the engine and the spinning of the wheels, thereby
bringing the bike to a halt. Without brake pads that function as they
should, the responsiveness of the brakes on the VRSC will be diminished
and the motorcycle will be more dangerous to the driver, any passengers
and also to the other people on the road around it. Fortunately,
changing your VRSC brake pads every 2000 to 3000 miles is a task that can be
easily done at home in a short period of time and for little money.
Follow the steps below to do so.

Step 1 — Gather Materials

You’ll need the following tools and materials to change the brake pads on your VRSC:

• New brake pads
• Cleaning spray
• Allen wrench
• Pliers
• Screwdriver

Step 2 — Prepare and Mount the VRSC

If you’ve recently ridden the motorcycle, allow it to cool for a few
hours before you mount it up. This will help to protect you from very
hot brake pads and other brake system components that may cause injury.
Once the engine is cool, mount the bike such that you can access both
sides of it easily.

Step 3 — Remove the Caliper Bolts

Use the Allen wrench to unscrew the caliper bolts so that they can be
removed. Take the bolts off and store them in a safe place so that you
can access them and reattach them later on in the procedure. If the
bolts on your VRSC are attached via a retaining clip set instead of by
bolts, turn the retaining clips until the ends of the clips jut out. Use
the pliers to remove the ends of the clips and set the clips aside as
well.

Step 4 — Remove and Clean the Calipers

Take the calipers out of the system by hand and clean them carefully
using your cleaning spray. If there are any signs of damage on the
bolts, such as cracks, wear and tear or other problems, it’s a good idea
to dispose of them properly and then to purchase new bolts to replace
them with.

Step 5 — Remove the Brake Pads and Clean the Pistons

Pull out the brake pads from either side of the motorcycle brake
system. Depress the brake pedal so that all of the air in the brake
pistons is evacuated. Once this is done, clean out the brake caliper
pistons and the spring set using the cleaning spray as well. Having done
this, push the brake pistons back into the calipers using the tip of
the screwdriver.

Step 6 — Change Out the Brake Pads

Install the new brake pads in the place of the old ones. Fit the
calipers back on top of the brake pads, then attach the calipers in
place using the brake caliper bolts or the retaining clips that you
removed earlier. Tighten the caliper bolts once again using the Allen
wrench.

Before you remove the bike from the mount and drive it once again,
test out the brake system by depressing the brake pedal to make sure
that it will go down as it should. Next, take the bike off of the mount
and test drive it slowly and carefully to be sure that the brakes will
work.

All of the different items that you’ll need for this procedure can be found at hardware and motorcycle repair stores.