From: dc-cycles-digest-request@XXXXXX (The dc-cycles list administrator) To: dc-cycles@XXXXXX Errors-To: dc-cycles-digest-request@XXXXXX Subject: dc-cycles digest for 12/11/05 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ __ /-----\ __ 'dc-cycles' is an unmoderated email discussion list (__\/ _____ \/__) about motorcycling in the Washington D.C. area. =( \___/ )= \ ___ / An archive of the dc-cycles list is available at: | / _ \ | http://www.dc-cycles.org/ \ || || / \|| ||/ Subscribe/unsubscribe requests should be sent to: \| |/ dc-cycles-digest-request@XXXXXX |_| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Date: Sun, 11 Dec 2005 10:41:40 -0500 From: skip To: DC Cycles Subject: [dc-cycles] speed alone is not reckless http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4510992.stm _ _ _ _ .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) Date: Sun, 11 Dec 2005 16:19:41 -0500 X-FC-Form-ID: 141 To: dc-cycles@XXXXXX From: "garcia oliver" Subject: [dc-cycles] close call I was riding along Independence Ave just south of the Washington Monument, slowing down for a stop sign, when I heard or felt a soft ‘clunk’ and the front wheel locked up completely. Fortunately I was going no more than 5 mph, so there was no skid. But, I couldn’t move the bike---a big, heavy Suzuki 1100 from the early 1980s--- forward or back at all. Checked the brakes: nothing visibly wrong, and the rotors were the same temperature and not badly scored. Bearings? No, they wouldn’t lock up like this, even if they broke or seized. Gotta be brakes, but I had nothing much in the way of tools (bad, bad, bad!) with me. I tried revving the engine and letting the clutch out, but only skidded forward a few feet. Anything other than straight ahead threatened to skid out the front end. A few cars (including a cop) and runners went by without stopping, but a second cop pulled up behind me. He had no relevant tools either, he said. I wanted to get across the intersection and off the street, and he offered to stop cross traffic while I rode/skidded across the road. I made it about 1/3 of the way when the rear tire stated to spin and ended forward progress. Now I was blocking half of the cross traffic, too. Meanwhile, two other cops stopped. I suggested four of us could lift the locked front end and walk the bike out of the road. They weren’t willing to try this (no explanation given), and said they would call a “crane” (tow truck?). I said, “Let’s try riding across again, with one of you pushing down on the back of the bike to keep the rear tire from spinning out.” First cop did this, and it seemed to be working, after a fashion (I was headed toward a curb and still couldn’t go any direction except straight), when, suddenly, with a louder clunk, the front end broke loose. I could st eer again and wobbled across the intersection and out of the road. I told the cop I’d ride around the cul-de-sac there and would continue home if the bike cooperated. It did and I rode the 5 miles to Mt Pleasant with a deathgrip on the handlebars, anticipating another lockup, without touching the front brake. Back at the ranch, front end off the ground, the brake worked and the master cylinder seemed to be ok. Spontaneous remission? Maybe. But there was no way I was going to ride again without finding out what was going on. Disassembled the right caliper and found one of the two brake pads gone! It, presumably, fell out of its cage (this design doesn’t use retaining pins) and locked the wheel. No idea why or how. I put in a used pad I had saved out of pack-rat-itude and all seems to be working. But I still don’t know why this happened and whether it might happen again, which is not very confidence-inspiring. Especially when, had this occurred at a higher speed, on a curve, or with a car behind me, I would have been down. Next day I went back to the scene of the crime to see if the condition of the spit-out pad would provide any clues; never found it. But I am now carrying tools to remove and disassemble a brake caliper on the side of (or in the middle of) a road. So---anyone experience or hear about this happening? --garcia "What sort of “intelligent design” would be responsible for the thousands of genetic diseases that afflict people, or design species in such fashion that the vast majority of them are extinct?" _ _ _ _ .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) Date: Sun, 11 Dec 2005 16:48:33 -0500 From: Danny Motorcycle To: skip Subject: Re: [dc-cycles] speed alone is not reckless Cc: DC Cycles Anyone know if MD calls 20+ reckless? I can't recall. Good for that judge. On 12/11/05, skip wrote: > http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4510992.stm > > _ _ _ _ .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) Date: Sun, 11 Dec 2005 17:07:23 -0500 From: Danny Motorcycle To: garcia oliver Subject: Re: [dc-cycles] close call Cc: dc-cycles@XXXXXX Very interesting! Glad it wasn't ugly! I hadn't heard of anything like that. I would probably be looking to adapt some calipers (rotors, wheel and , or forks downward if neccessary) from another model bike though.. if I were you. So exactly how do those pads get retained in the caliper? and how was your rotor after that? _ _ _ _ .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) Subject: RE: [dc-cycles] close call Date: Sun, 11 Dec 2005 17:26:58 -0500 From: "Hugh Caldwell" To: X-Junkmail-Status: score=0/50, host=smtp.vzavenue.net When was the last time the brakes were serviced before this happened? I would think that for the pad to fall out of it's cage the piston on that side must of retracted quite a bit. Do these brakes have pistons on both sides? Hugh _ _ _ _ .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) Date: Sun, 11 Dec 2005 18:14:08 -0500 (EST) From: Wayne Edelen To: DC Cycles Subject: Re: [dc-cycles] speed alone is not reckless On Sun, 11 Dec 2005, Danny Motorcycle wrote: > Anyone know if MD calls 20+ reckless? I can't recall. I got a ticket for 82 in a 55 about 3yrs ago, no reckless. Judge dropped it to 64 in a 55 in court... 1pt and I was on my way :-) Oh yeah, this was in MD. -- Wayne