Are my rear brakes bad?

[YZGUY]

I'm wondering if my rear brakes are bad...

I bought a used 96 blaster and replaced the brake pads (the rotor was in decent shape). Anyway, the rear brakes really aren't that effective and I have to rely almost completely on the front brakes to stop. Even when I push as hard as I can on the rear brake pedal it never grabs hard enough to lock the rear wheels unless I'm on really loose gravel or dirt.

Is that normal behavior for a blaster or should the back brakes grab a lot harder? What's your experience?

I know the caliper if functioning and adjusted properly so the only thing I could do is get a new rotor (even though the one I have does not look bad) and maybe some different brand of new brake pads. If I end up having to go that route so yo guys have nay recommendations (that aren't too expensive)?

 

['02 bLaStErKiD]

get the shorty brake cable

 

[specialized7]

i would rip apart the whole caliper and clean everything out. then maybe lube up your brake lines.
Mine works really good.

 

[jeepinncreepin]

when i changed mine pad was rusted in.got it out lubed everything up with gear fluid and grease adjusting them took a minute but the they lock up on pavement now

 

[2strokenitfast]

i would take it all apart make sure nothings sticking or anything

fmf fatty
extended rear end 4 inches
custom seat cover
small rears
2 stroke
and newly added foot guards.
89% of people have switched to 4 strokes, If your one of the other 11% riding a 2 stroke then put this into your sig

 

[ruthless_one3k]

Yours has mechanical rear brakes, so in a word YES your brakes are bad. They were never very good even new. Best bet is get the shorty cable (I think Motion Pro makes one) the factory one is probably stretched. But even with that the self adjuster never seems to work right so they will probably only work for a little bit. A lot of times people seem to lose the spring that goes between the caliper cap and the adjuster that can cause headaches too.

 

[YZGUY]

I did rebuild the caliper and it works fine (nothing is sticking). I have a new brake cable too, though it is not the shorty.

For those who are able to lock up their rear brakess (even on pavement), do you have the same cable actuated brake caliper as mine, or is it hydraulic? Though I wouldnt think hydraulic would make that much difference since they are both still calliper/rotor systems.

For those that went from the full to the shorty cable, did that improve braking, or just elimate the parking brake?

So my remaining options that may work are a shorty cable (but then I have to give up the parking brake), a brand new rotor and better pads. Which do you think would help more? What's the best bang for the buck rotor and pads? I don't want to dump a lot of money into it. It was a project I took on a few years ago to see what I can do with a blaster for under $1,000 total (including purchase price).

You can check it our here Blaster Project

But since then it has some new graphics. Still contemplating a pipe and silencer...

 

[jeepinncreepin]

i have the mechanical brakes and parking brake still.what i did was with caliper bolted on took it apart turned the white screw thing in a few clicks put it together.kept taking apart turn screw few clicks til i felt a little drag on my tire.BAM now i come to a screaching halt literally.pretty loud on pavement dont think neighbors like it though.

 

[skinnto]

i have a 96 with stock setup, mine work fine. My buddy who use to work at an atv dealer told me to spray white lithium grease on my cables....works great! Said its a common problem on blasters for them to start to seize up, so keep em lube'd ( he is also a former blaster owner)

 

[244blackblastard]

I have the shorty cable with non hydro and i can lock up on payment also. with the shorty it will eliminate the parking brake. the factory cable with parking brake is really long and has a lot of flex in it so when you try to brake hard it won't let you. you can try to adjust your cable out as much as you can to get the best braking force when you apply your brakes. If you haven't got new pads that will help too. one thing i did on mine i noticed the brake pad toward the sprocket didn't ride that close to the rotor so i put a couple washers as spacers between the caliper and mount to push the caliper over a tad.