Spongy Juicy 5`s

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Spongy Juicy 5`s
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flag robinta
Posted: Nov 9, 2008 at 12:48 Quote
As a quick recap to previous posts, after a year of riding on Hayes Stroker Rydes I went back to my Juicies as I was a bit sick of the on/off action of the Hayes.

I went from 1 extreme to the other :- the juicies (only the rear) wer biting virtually with the lever near to the bar and seemed to lack power from what I remembered. I tried playing with resetting caliper, pistons etc and eventually bit the bullet, got a bleed kit and bled the brake. THis seemed to make a slight improvement but now it was hard to lock up the brake so I suspected contaminated pads. I bought some new pads and after bedding them in they seemed ok - but again in normal (non-downhill) use I`ve got to get the lever to within an inch/inch & a 1/2 before they fully `bite`.

Last night I rebled the rear for the 3rd time and seemed to pull a lot of air out of the system which after bleeding so recently I wasnt really expecting. Took on a short ride and sure enough pulling the rear brake to a skid at the same close to the bars point.

The front brake, which has never been bled and has older pads in, still bites a good 3" from the bar.

The reach adjust on both brakes is identical

I`ve left the brake lever cable tied to the bar overnight to see if this makes any difference bgut am ready to go back to the Strokers and bin the Avids.

It could be my bleed procedure but I have followed the instructions to the letter using the recommended kit, could I be doing something to influence where the bite-point is inadvertantly ?
flag jonbikes
Posted: Nov 9, 2008 at 15:44 Quote
Sounds like a bad hose. Avid seems to have a problem with the hoses that come stock on the juicies, and a lot of them spring a leek that you can not see. The brake still stops somewhat, but gives you problems similar to what you have described. it would also explain why you are getting air in a system that you just recently bled.

I don't understand what you mean by "I tied the brake lever cable to the bar".
flag brucie1
O+
Posted: Nov 9, 2008 at 15:55 Quote
Welcome to Juicyland, hard to get a good bleed but once you do they are great. Try taking the whole brake off the bike and lay it out on a bench. Make sure that you don't pull too hard on the syringes as you will pull air past the brake caliber pistons. On many of the Juicys I have done you can get a black burst of fluid into the syringes, the brake always works better after that. Not sure if it is burnt brake fluid blocking a port or what, but I also had it happen on a brand new Ultimate. Also make sure your reach screw isn't all the way out, they mention it in the bleed instructions.
flag comacruz
Posted: Nov 9, 2008 at 15:59 Quote
jonbikes wrote:
Sounds like a bad hose. Avid seems to have a problem with the hoses that come stock on the juicies, and a lot of them spring a leek that you can not see. The brake still stops somewhat, but gives you problems similar to what you have described. it would also explain why you are getting air in a system that you just recently bled.

I don't understand what you mean by "I tied the brake lever cable to the bar".

i think he meant tied the brake lever to the bar
flag jonbikes
Posted: Nov 9, 2008 at 16:18 Quote
brucie1 wrote:
Make sure that you don't pull too hard on the syringes as you will pull air past the brake caliber pistons. On many of the Juicys I have done you can get a black burst of fluid into the syringes, the brake always works better after that. Not sure if it is burnt brake fluid blocking a port or what, but I also had it happen on a brand new Ultimate.

If you are getting air leaking past the seals between each piston and its bore, you have more problems than a bad bleed. As for the black fluid, DOT fluid will break down over time, turning black. Just because you got a brand new Ultimate, it could have been sitting around on a shelf somewhere for quite a while.
flag typecaRl
Posted: Nov 10, 2008 at 14:30 Quote
Simple answer. Get yourself some shimanos if you are on a budget. Or if money is no object then some hopes will never let you down. Both are easy to bleed and change pads. And both have really nice feel to their levers and good control.
flag jonbikes
Posted: Nov 10, 2008 at 15:09 Quote
That does little to nothing to help is current problem. That is what I would call the rich kid escape, something that most of us don't have a luxury of.
flag typecaRl
Posted: Nov 10, 2008 at 15:13 Quote
Well shimanos are reasonably priced. Depends what ones you go for really. But personally I just hate avids for all the reasons above and more. Just voicing my opinion.
flag ironhorse66
Posted: Nov 10, 2008 at 15:17 Quote
i bled my avids once and they were fantastic. trim ur hose at your lever and put in a new fitting, then re bleed on a bench. worked amazing on my j 5's and they havent changed since i did them in spring.
flag brucie1
O+
Posted: Nov 10, 2008 at 17:57 Quote
jonbikes wrote:
If you are getting air leaking past the seals between each piston and its bore, you have more problems than a bad bleed. As for the black fluid, DOT fluid will break down over time, turning black. Just because you got a brand new Ultimate, it could have been sitting around on a shelf somewhere for quite a while.

It says that in the Avid instructions not to pull to hard on the back pressure. I think I have actually done it on a bleed, all seems good if not great and then there is air in the system again. Not sure on the black fluid as each time it happened it seemed to follow a sudden release. I do know that after it happened, the brake worked excellent. Avids can be a bitch to bleed but once done they are great.
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