Fettling ruined my bike....

[Blade]

**Lessons learned from an RSV rear caliper where the fecking bleed nipple was on the bottom of the caliper.

Italian logic for you mate

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They do know how to make stuff look good though

[Rossgo]

prob right there Nutz!!

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[Rossgo]

Blade, defo know how to make it look good!

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[Rossgo]

Brake piston and seal set turned up. Can't be that hard to replace all this...Is it?! I've got a Haynes and i have looked at it, doesn't look that difficult

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[Cav]

Red Rubber Grease
Lint-free cloths
(and possibly a toothbrush)

Be careful which direction you put the seals in as they aren't/shouldn't be square in cross-sectional shape. I think you're supposed to have the lip of the seal furthest away from the pad face of the piston so that when the fluid compresses the seal it increases the sealing force of the seal on the piston. If you have it the otherway there's an increased chance in fluid leaking past the seal and seeping out of the caliper.

[Rossgo]

Red Rubber Grease
Lint-free cloths
(and possibly a toothbrush)

Be careful which direction you put the seals in as they aren't/shouldn't be square in cross-sectional shape. I think you're supposed to have the lip of the seal furthest away from the pad face of the piston so that when the fluid compresses the seal it increases the sealing force of the seal on the piston. If you have it the otherway there's an increased chance in fluid leaking past the seal and seeping out of the caliper.

Red rubber grease. The Haynes manual states a silicone grease (are these the same- forgive the idiot question!)

Also thankyou for that information

I have got the manual however i didn't read it fully to see which way it goes. There's 2 different seals one smaller than the other so guess that acts as a fluid stopper. I'm hoping I'll get it done pretty quickly eg inside the day...I know not quick at all a garage prob does it inside an hour

The seals I have are both flat so lools lile they are be orintated anyway but in a particular order eg small seal first then big next or maybe opposite way around

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[Rossgo]

Also big hands to Formers in Bristol they have sent me a fair few parts in the past and always next day delivery and always genuine parts

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[Cav]

You'll be surprised, I think mine took me about 1hr 30 simply because there's not a lot to do and I cable tied the end of my brake hose to the handle bars to keep fluid in the lines.

The smaller seal is a dust seal usually, the bigger one is the fluid lip seal which goes furthest into the caliper. It really is self-explanatory once you start taking them apart though

Just pay attention to the shape of the bigger lip seal and make sure you get a definitive answer from the interwebs or the manual !!

No idea about the grease, I just used the red stuff because that's what was recommended by OEM

[Rossgo]

You'll be surprised, I think mine took me about 1hr 30 simply because there's not a lot to do and I cable tied the end of my brake hose to the handle bars to keep fluid in the lines.

The smaller seal is a dust seal usually, the bigger one is the fluid lip seal which goes furthest into the caliper. It really is self-explanatory once you start taking them apart though

Just pay attention to the shape of the bigger lip seal and make sure you get a definitive answer from the interwebs or the manual !!

No idea about the grease, I just used the red stuff because that's what was recommended by OEM

You must save a million pound with your knowledge Cav - for a young man these skills are invaluable.

Thankyou for your advice. Yes i quoted your post at the beginning of this thread about keeping the lines filled with fluid. This maybe done by myself also means I dont have to run it dry.

One last wuestion, I haven't got a piston removal tool.....so....can I pull out the pistons by hand? Or are they pretty stuck in there?

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[Rossgo]

Question about coolant. If I get a chance I may drain the coolant tomorrow and refill.

But question is

What coolant should I be using?!
I know next to nothing about it!

It's for a sporty street bike. Don't think its ever had a coolant change and that now means it's 6 years old.

I would be buying from halfords most probably.

Does any do??

I do know it has to be aluminium safe for the rad


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[Kwacky]

Motul do a range of coolants.

Your local Halfords should have a selection.

[D6Nutz]

When I had the RSV I asked Griff at aprillia performance to do a coolant change for me. He said not to bother as coolant is such a harsh chemical the bike will easily fail before the coolant breaks down

The bike was at least 10 years old then and had never had the coolant changed..

[Cav]

One last question, I haven't got a piston removal tool.....so....can I pull out the pistons by hand? Or are they pretty stuck in there?

I popped the pistons out most of the way while the caliper was connected to the hose so that I could pull them out by hand once removed. If they're still really tough then you can carefully use a rag and plumbers pliers to wiggle and twist them out

You're right, with everything done in the garden I will ultimately save in excess of £10k, with the bike and car work I do for myself and the fiancé I've probably saved a couple of thousand over the years

Question about coolant.

Does any do??

No.

Check your manual. You have two main types (from memory they're silicon (pink) or glycol (green) based). The two cannot be mixed.

There are numerous YouTube videos showing how this is done and I did mine for the first time (9 year old coolant + 30,000 miles) recently. It's very easy once you have your fairings off. Use de-ionised water to flush the system through as best possible too.

I bought Putoline Ice Cooler but they have a range of very good quality coolants

[Blade]

Find out what is the approved coolant in the manual and just put that in will be the easiest option Rossgo.

You shouldn't mix OAT and IAT which are types of coolant and some are not friendly if your bike has internal magnesium parts.

But as I say dont over complicate it just go with manufacturers recommendation and you can't go wrong.

[Cav]

When I had the RSV I asked Griff at aprillia performance to do a coolant change for me. He said not to bother as coolant is such a harsh chemical the bike will easily fail before the coolant breaks down

The bike was at least 10 years old then and had never had the coolant changed..

Does this just apply to Aprilias?!

[Rossgo]

Popped to Triumph. A little over £5 a litre. Thought that will do!! The service guy doesn't seem to think there would be an issue with this stuff

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[Blade]

I can't honestly say Rossgo as I dont know whats in there currently.

What you have bought is a Organic Additive Technology (OAT) Coolant which is fine if you already have a OAT type coolant in your engine..

If you currently have a Inorganic Additive Technology (IAT) Coolant in your engine and the IAT and OAT coolants mix a chemical reaction takes place and sludge can be formed.

Your Options

1. Find out what type of coolant is in there. If its 6 years old I assume its the original manufacturers coolant type. if this is OAT then just do a normal coolant change.

2. If you don't know whats in there and cannot find out then do a flush of the system with water to chase as much of the old "Unknown" Coolant from the system before filling up with the Triumph OAT you have purchased.

Note: That Triumph stuff is premixed so DONT dilute with water as 50:50 as it is already done.

TIP: Don't trust Service guys, some are good and have good technical knowledge, others are shop keepers and just sell you stuff and say "Yeah be reet that mate, sold loads" which doesn't mean its right, nor does it mean they give a flying fook

[Rossgo]

Motul do a range of coolants.

Your local Halfords should have a selection.

Cheers Kwacky I was there to be honest but didn't really know what I was looking at so decided against their coolants

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[Rossgo]

When I had the RSV I asked Griff at aprillia performance to do a coolant change for me. He said not to bother as coolant is such a harsh chemical the bike will easily fail before the coolant breaks down

The bike was at least 10 years old then and had never had the coolant changed..

I read a fair few posts on Google where people said exactly that. People went years without changing it. Seems strange how the coolant has a life expectancy of 2 years (service intervals) and yet even when I asked the garage to do mine they said its fine no need to do it! I want to do it anyway to be honest. I want a refresh

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[Rossgo]

One last question, I haven't got a piston removal tool.....so....can I pull out the pistons by hand? Or are they pretty stuck in there?

I popped the pistons out most of the way while the caliper was connected to the hose so that I could pull them out by hand once removed. If they're still really tough then you can carefully use a rag and plumbers pliers to wiggle and twist them out

You're right, with everything done in the garden I will ultimately save in excess of £10k, with the bike and car work I do for myself and the fiancé I've probably saved a couple of thousand over the years

Question about coolant.

Does any do??

No.

Check your manual. You have two main types (from memory they're silicon (pink) or glycol (green) based). The two cannot be mixed.

There are numerous YouTube videos showing how this is done and I did mine for the first time (9 year old coolant + 30,000 miles) recently. It's very easy once you have your fairings off. Use de-ionised water to flush the system through as best possible too.

I bought Putoline Ice Cooler but they have a range of very good quality coolants

Heard loud and clear. I'll have a rag and pliers at the ready if needed.

Cheers for the info for the flush and coolant. If I had realised I was going to do this, this week then I'd of done more research and selected something I wanted for the bike. But this is a last minute thing!

Think the coolant isn't too bad...it's taking off the fairing that's the hard bit lol

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