Turbo Brake Squeal

[MarcD]

Brake squeal is really bad on my Specialized Turbo. Anyone else encounter this? I guess I could switch to organic pads, but pretty sure I will wear those much faster with the weight and speed of this bike.

 

[OldGuy]

I found that it diminished on mine after a couple of hundred miles.

 

[Brambor]

Mine was never really bad except the tiny whining of the brake which happens on my regular bike as well.

 

[Brian(J)]

I had that problem and it was so bad the bike was not rideable. I cleaned the rotors with a strong solvent and it no longer squeals at all.
Someone told me later that oil from just touching the rotor will cause the issue but I don't know. Please report if this works for you.

 

[MarcD]

I'll just blame the cat.

Seriously though, I'll try the solvent idea on the rotors. I have about 180 miles on it so they should be more than bedded in.

 

[Admin]

I had that problem and it was so bad the bike was not rideable. I cleaned the rotors with a strong solvent and it no longer squeals at all.

Thanks for the tip Brian, do you have any advice about which kind of solvent to get or how to apply it? I've got an ebike with hydraulic disc brakes right now and could imagine squealing at some point... I've never tried the solvent thing before and don't want to wreck my bike

 

[Ravi Kempaiah]

Thanks for the tip Brian, do you have any advice about which kind of solvent to get or how to apply it? I've got an ebike with hydraulic disc brakes right now and could imagine squealing at some point... I've never tried the solvent thing before and don't want to wreck my bike

What bike did you get Court?

 

[Brian(J)]

Thanks for the tip Brian, do you have any advice about which kind of solvent to get or how to apply it? I've got an ebike with hydraulic disc brakes right now and could imagine squealing at some point... I've never tried the solvent thing before and don't want to wreck my bike

I'm not such an expert on solvents. I used a high tech non-toxic cleaner/oil/grease remover (M-Pro 7 gun cleaner) but I expect rubbing alcohol or paint thinner would work, next up would be Acetone and if all else failed Laquer thinner, but that stuff is a bit extreme. I just rubbed hard with a rag dampened with the M-Pro 7 and left no residue so the pads wouldn't be affected, I didn't clean or touch the pads.

One tip about my brakes, the stock brakes on the Dash wear more on the outboard than the inboard pad so I took them out and flipped them at 300 miles. I have AVID BB7's coming, $60 on Amazon, said to be the best mechanical brakes available and unlike the stock brakes (Shimano M375) easy to adjust. As noted elsewhere those brakes have no outboard pad adjustment beyond moving the entire caliper around, and the rear inboard pad adjustment ends up facing the motor with no way to get to it.

Also, you list in your review of the E3 Dash that the brakes are hydraulic which they are not.

 

[MarcD]

Brian - Avid BB7s are the best mechanical I have seen/used. I have them on my Salsa touring bike and the fact that they have inboard and outboard adjustment of pads seals the deal. I'm not a huge fan of the spring clip retainer they use (as opposed to magnetic in a Magura) but it gets the job done. I don't know that I would ever use hydros on anything but my e-bike (but I am not into hard core downhill or anything).

As for my squeal, I simply wiped down the rotor with isopropyl alcohol and that did the trick. Since that worked I am guessing that you don't need a super strong solvent: as long as it stays off the pads and is completely dry before you engage the calipers should work.

 

[Admin]

Also, you list in your review of the E3 Dash that the brakes are hydraulic which they are not.

Thanks Brian, I've checked the review and made sure everything is up to date. Worth noting that the front rotor is 180mm and the rear is 160.

@Ravi Kempaiah I'm riding the Haibike FS 27.5 and have outfitted it with some lights and a Topeak beam rack. Using it more for commuting around the city but have also taken it up on some trails while visiting family in Colorado... You know how I love the full suspension ebikes

 

[IssaquahChad]

Just FWIW, my new 2014 had lots of rear brake squeal. I've had bikes this noisy before, but not new ones! I think it is slowly going away...but I still don't even have 100 miles on the thing, so I'm not sure.

It's not a huge deal to me though. I still love the bike.