Front floating brake rotor "clunking tolerances"?
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Tourer
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 304
Likes: 1
From: Woodburn, OR. USA
Front floating brake rotor "clunking tolerances"?
I have googled the snot out of this issue, and have found everything from, "it's normal" all the way to, "dude get that changed out ASAFP!"
Is it normal for the front floating rotor to have a bit of "radial play" from the "isolating rivets" and hub? With the bike suspended on my HF lift I noticed that the rotor slightly "clunks" when I apply the front brake and put "rotational pressure" back and forth by hand on the wheel. I could see where the rotor was gripped tight by the pads/caliper, and the "isolating rivets" and hub had a bit of "radial play" making the "clunking".
I have always noticed it for a short while when I first take the bike out for a ride "cold", but then don't notice it after everything is "warm". I suspect the rotor gets warmed up from friction against the pads and expands a bit taking up any slack in the assembly, hence the "loose tolerances". The front brake works great (knock on wood) there is no sign of excessive wear on the rotor and its not warped, etc. but then again I'm not a brake rotor expert. Is this within normal tolerances for a floating rotor? The service manual only addresses rotor thickness and lateral runout, but doesn't mention this situation as far as I can tell.
PS:
This could defnately be mistaken by some for the dreaded "front end clunk", but its not... I upgraded to the new heavy-duty washer and inspected/adjusted the column assembly, and its tuned nicely.
Thanks for any input!
Is it normal for the front floating rotor to have a bit of "radial play" from the "isolating rivets" and hub? With the bike suspended on my HF lift I noticed that the rotor slightly "clunks" when I apply the front brake and put "rotational pressure" back and forth by hand on the wheel. I could see where the rotor was gripped tight by the pads/caliper, and the "isolating rivets" and hub had a bit of "radial play" making the "clunking".
I have always noticed it for a short while when I first take the bike out for a ride "cold", but then don't notice it after everything is "warm". I suspect the rotor gets warmed up from friction against the pads and expands a bit taking up any slack in the assembly, hence the "loose tolerances". The front brake works great (knock on wood) there is no sign of excessive wear on the rotor and its not warped, etc. but then again I'm not a brake rotor expert. Is this within normal tolerances for a floating rotor? The service manual only addresses rotor thickness and lateral runout, but doesn't mention this situation as far as I can tell.
PS:
This could defnately be mistaken by some for the dreaded "front end clunk", but its not... I upgraded to the new heavy-duty washer and inspected/adjusted the column assembly, and its tuned nicely.
Thanks for any input!
Thread Starter
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Tourer
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 304
Likes: 1
From: Woodburn, OR. USA
Right on Bruddahs, I appreciate the replies! I surmised as much, but wanted some input on the "freeplay" amount since I haven't any practical experience with floating rotors.
Appreciate you taking the time to reply!
Appreciate you taking the time to reply!
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 19,983
Likes: 6,120
From: Florida
3 of my bikes have had floaters, including my current Fatty, and all three would clunk ONLY the first time I applied the brakes going forward after backing out of my garage. Then they wouldn't clunk again going forward until the next time I braked while rolling backwards. And your right--it goes away after you ride a little. Seems like it only happens after backing out of my garage cold.
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