Disc brakes maintanence

[Catrin]

Is there anything special about taking care of my disc brakes on my mountain bike that I need to know? Have been thinking about this lately, they are working find and am especially glad they are finally broken in and the screaming sounds has stopped :)

Since I will be disappearing into the woods for a few days of camping and playing on the trails it seemed a good time to ask...I will be alone.

[tzvia]

The main thing to remember is to keep the rotors clean. That includes not touching them and getting finger oils on them, because the pads will pick that up like a sponge and it will affect stopping power and may cause howling. After every few rides, I like to wipe them down with alcohol.

Other than that, make sure that nothing bangs into them and dents them.

As far as riding with them, if you have a flat and need to work around them, remember they may be hot from use so try not to touch them or bump into them. By default, they are on the same side as the QR, but I've seen some people put the front QR on the other side for this reason. The rear one is problematic, as the derailleur is there. I run with not-so-quick releases that use a allen key, so I put that side on the derailleur side so I don't touch the possibly hot rotors...

Have fun out there- be safe.

[Catrin]

Thanks for the tips! I stopped by my LBS yesterday and basically asked for "disc brakes 101", I have a better understanding now. I had picked up a few things (like not touching the rotors with my fingers), but learned some other things as well.

[SadieKate]

If you have hydraulic discs, check the banjo bolt when you're doing routine checks of chain ring bolts, etc. Loose banjo bolts can result in slow to immediate loss of brake fluid.

Ask me how I know.

Of course, this does give you an excuse to practice descending for miles and miles on only your front brake.