OasisInTheDesert
New member
I just bought an 07 Yamaha V-Star 1100 from a YouTube channel - I pick it up next weekend. It was a good price, and I wanted a big, heavy couch that'll eat up highway miles without complaint or roadside issue for some planned trips this summer.
A mechanic went over the bike and said the front pads were factory original, but nearly at 100%. The old owner was a rear brake only kinda guy, I guess.
My first big boy bike was a, "It's free if you can get it started" 80's Kawi, that was also about 20 years old. On one of the first rides, going up a mountain, the rear brake pad separated from the rest of the shoe, jamming the rear wheel locked. SOMEHOW, I kept the thing upright!
Now, I know that brake pads don't formally, 'expire.' But does whatever bonds the pad material to the backing plate lose strength overtime?
So, I'm kind of leery of old brakes. Do you think what happened on that Kawi was a 1-off, freak accident? If you were getting an almost 20 year old bike, would you replace the brake pads, even if they were unused?
A mechanic went over the bike and said the front pads were factory original, but nearly at 100%. The old owner was a rear brake only kinda guy, I guess.
My first big boy bike was a, "It's free if you can get it started" 80's Kawi, that was also about 20 years old. On one of the first rides, going up a mountain, the rear brake pad separated from the rest of the shoe, jamming the rear wheel locked. SOMEHOW, I kept the thing upright!
Now, I know that brake pads don't formally, 'expire.' But does whatever bonds the pad material to the backing plate lose strength overtime?
So, I'm kind of leery of old brakes. Do you think what happened on that Kawi was a 1-off, freak accident? If you were getting an almost 20 year old bike, would you replace the brake pads, even if they were unused?
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