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I had both front and rear pads replaced when my tires needed replacement. (Roughly 22K) My front rotors warped almost instantly. Dealer replaced rotors and they warped again. Dealer then replaced them with floating rotors at no charge. Fronts have been good now for over 15K. I will definitely add the floating rear when the tires need replacement. Honestly I do not know what caused the rotors to warp and at this point I don't care. Bottom line is the bike stops better and looks better.
Last edited by 2013_FLHTK; Jan 24, 2020 at 09:06 AM.
If I understand it correctly - you had worn pads and no issues - had new pads installed and now a warped rotor?
Sounds more like the shop bent the rotor - not hard to do.
I thought about this part, troubleshot it to the technician. But I don't have a proof to point finger at him.
When I took my bike to the same shop who replaced my rear brake pads, I complained about the bike being jerky when applying rear brake. When I went to pick up the bike the following week, they already replaced the disc without telling me first. Their technician found the disc is warped during his inspection. They never gave me an option to have it check out at a different shop. They went ahead and replaced it without my approval.
Anyway, its done deal. My bike is ok now. no more jerky when using rear brake.
If I understand it correctly - you had worn pads and no issues - had new pads installed and now a warped rotor?
Sounds more like the shop bent the rotor - not hard to do.
Or the tech did not properly clean and lube the pistons, slides or pins in the caliper. Also could have had the inboard pad in a bind on the anti rattle clip, might not have had the pads seated correctly in the keepers. Lots of things could have caused it.
I've seen a few posts saying rotors can get "warped" by a mechanic, but I've never understood how that occurs. Smokey offers an explanation but Smitty appears to disagree. Frankly, I don't see how it can happen unless the thing doesn't sit properly on the hub. Of course use will take out oem rotors in a parking lot. I use EBC.
I was professional wrench for a lot of years and all it really takes is a goon with a screwdriver prying the pads apart to get the caliper off (can also torque the caliper inboard or outboard enough to warp a good rotor).
I have repaired a lot of rotors with a mallet and a dial indicator. It is also common practice to mount the rotor up on a lathe or grinder and beat it into tolerance.. Have had to do this with brand new rotors that were not stored correctly or may have been dropped in shipping.. A PITA but can be done
I like floaters myself.. tend to center better in the caliper and tend to drag less.. Only issues with them I have had is when they get "too" floater and can rattle or make funky noises.. Rotors are pretty cheap (compared to $200 a pair pads for the race bike, love the EBC stuff myself)
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