Warped rotors pulse the lever/pedal significantly enough to feel the feedback in the lever/pedal, in my experiences.

 

What would warp a rotor? Not sure I could have done anything to cause that but I dont know that much about it. Would like to hear some examples of what would cause a rotor to warp so I could step back and think. Keep in mind the bikes only got 400 (fairly cushy) miles on it.

 

Last night my partner had the rear ABS go out on his bike 08 FLHTPI and his brake went to normal operation, meaning is would lock if too much pressure was applied. The one thing that I thought was odd was that the ABS light did not come on. He didn't test the front to see is it would lock.

 

I spent alot of years as a brake and front end mech. on autos, must admit not on bikes but principals are the same. First thos rotors and calipers are so small and the retract of the calipers wouldn't go far enough in to alow the pedal to go to the floor and if the rotor was warped you would feel the pulsation in the pedal when applied. Second the fastest way to tell if it is the Master is bad as long as there is fluid in it pump it up hard then let a tiny bit of pressure up and if the master is bad the pedal will sink to the floor as the fluid bypasses.

 

Very heavy use causing the rotor to over heat could cause them to warp.

Basically when the rotors are made the molecules are forced to tow the line and fit the shape they are forced into. If the metal gets hot enough it relaxes and allows the lolecules to move where they want to be, thus causing the rotor to warp. You are going to have to get it pretty hot though.

Second if you have had the tyre changed and laid the wheel on its side on the rotor, unless careful you could warp the rotor by simply bending it.

 

Have an 08 with ABS... The ABS had a short and the warning ABS light let me know that the ABS system was not working. The local HD fixed without any problems. Brakes worked fine even without the ABS being active... On a positive note the ABS really comes in handy on wet pavement

 

Sounds to me like you are potentially a victim of the "stealership". With only 400 miles on the bike...you would have had to ride the brake constantly (and deliberately) to have a chance of warping it. What the other guy said about a tire (which you shouldn't have done with only 400 miles on it) is possible...but very unlikely unless it either laid on the rotor for a long time, or an elephant stepped on it. If they were trying to get you to pay for this "repair" it was probably a rip off attempt.
-clutch-

 

My bet is master cylinder is bad, a warped rotor you would feel the pulse in the pedal.I don't like ABS on cars let alone bikes but this can only be two things,a leak or a bad master cylinder.

 

If the wheel spacing is incorrect it could cause the rotor to heat up due to brake drag.and cause it to warp. Also if it has experienced a sharp blow from the side it can warp. If the rotor warps due to brake drag it will turn gold or blue if it has really been heated up.

 

Any mechanical part can fail and doesn't mean all bikes will fail. Cop bikes have had abs since 05, it's not new. We need to stop speculating and wait to hear what the answer is. Glad I have no abs and throttle cables, Mike