HFX-9 question

[Bobby_Digital]

been serching the site and the web to find out about this but cant find anything (even in hayes manuel)

my missus picked up her new bike the other day (finaly!!),
it's got HFX-9's on it, the rear works fine but the fronts dont, you need to pull the leaver in all the way before they get to lockup (they touch the gear change lever)

they dont feal spongy at all, just take up to far in.

is there any adjustment for this?

i would take it back to the store but it's a good 2 hour round drive and i really cbf'ed

 

[|Matt|]

been serching the site and the web to find out about this but cant find anything (even in hayes manuel)

my missus picked up her new bike the other day (finaly!!),
it's got HFX-9's on it, the rear works fine but the fronts dont, you need to pull the leaver in all the way before they get to lockup (they touch the gear change lever)

they dont feal spongy at all, just take up to far in.

is there any adjustment for this?

i would take it back to the store but it's a good 2 hour round drive and i really cbf'ed

Look at the lever from the side. If you look in, past the lever you should see a small allen key screw. Wind it in and that makes them bite earlier. Alternatively wind it out to make it bite less.

If the bike is new it will take a bit for the pads to bed in anyways

**edit** there have been a few threads on this already, try the 'search' function next time

 

[Bobby_Digital]

as i said i did try the serch function but couldent find anything relating to this.

but thanks for your help!

 

[NoFearNick7]

Yeah as stpzeroridah said you need to wear in the brakes. Also Stpzeroridah, can you use that allen key screw to adjust how far apart the pads are? I have been having problems with mine (yes I know all about the pistons, etc) and they don't seem to want to move backwards. Was a real pain at the 4x having to pedal to get down a hill.

 

[|Matt|]

Yeah as stpzeroridah said you need to wear in the brakes. Also Stpzeroridah, can you use that allen key screw to adjust how far apart the pads are? I have been having problems with mine (yes I know all about the pistons, etc) and they don't seem to want to move backwards. Was a real pain at the 4x having to pedal to get down a hill.

TBH, i have NO idea what the grub screw does to make it bite better, i just know it works. A guess is that it moves something in which pushes the fluid down further to reduce empty space in the line. Just a guess though

 

[Shane_ishga]

rebleed them, there mite not be much fluid in them
and yeah as they said play around with the screw in the leaver

that screw just adjusts the position of the leaver without moving the position of the pistons

 

[LordNikon]

That grub screw doesn't change how the brakes function. Only when the lever engages the piston.

As far as I know, Hayes Brakes don't have any adjustment for pad position.

 

[Shane_ishga]

That grub screw doesn't change how the brakes function. Only when the lever engages the piston.

As far as I know, Hayes Brakes don't have any adjustment for pad position.

there sort of is
you can put 2 shims (buisness cards) either side of the disc between the pads and pump it seven times then take them out and pump seven times again and that gives you more leaver movment
or you can take the wheel out and touch the lever a bit then they will be closer to the disc

 

[Bobby_Digital]

rebleed them, there mite not be much fluid in them
and yeah as they said play around with the screw in the leaver

that screw just adjusts the position of the leaver without moving the position of the pistons

we only got the bike on thursday (i think) from BSC and they went back through it and gave it a bit of a service etc cause it was a good 4 months from when we put it on layby and we picked it up, so im guessing they should have bleed them if they needed, but as i said they are not spongy so there is no air in there, just to much travel.

 

[Shane_ishga]

we only got the bike on thursday (i think) from BSC and they went back through it and gave it a bit of a service etc cause it was a good 4 months from when we put it on layby and we picked it up, so im guessing they should have bleed them if they needed, but as i said they are not spongy so there is no air in there, just to much travel.

have you tried pushing the pistons back in there bores and pumping them with the wheel back in?

 

[vando]

there arent any leaks are there? shold ba able to spot them. and if the pads are nearly worn, whack some new ones in, push the pistons back in to the bores, and see how it goes then.

 

[spinner]

Solution 1: If they are worn , replace the pads. A new pad will have about 2mm of meat on it. If they are getting down near the metal , their days are numbered.

Solution 2: take the wheel off , put something about 1mm thick in between the pads and pull the lever. This will pump the pistons out and reduce the amount of stroke needed at the lever to make the pads contact the rotor. Be careful here , you don't want the pistons to pop right out.

When it comes time to replace the pads further down the track , you will need to push the pistons back to allow for the rotor to fit between the new fatter pads. I use a 10mm open ender spanner to do this. Don't push on the post in the centre that the retainer clips connect to, only the sides of the piston. Hence the use of the open ender , position it so the post is in the centre of the spanner opening.

As LN said , the grub screw only adjusts the position of the lever , not the position of the pads.

If in doubt , take it to the shop and get them to do it. It will , at most , be a minimum charge job.

Welcome to the mediocre world of the HFX 9 owner !

Hope this helps.

 

[Bobby_Digital]

there brand new so no wear at all

just need to adjust the lever position!

but thanks for your help!

 

[BrumbyJack]

Just adjust the lever position with the tiny allen key/screw thingy in the lever.

I was riding a brand new bike with HFX9's the other day and reaslied after 2 runs on Cannonball that my fingers were losing it because I was holding the levers in too far.... it was just a simple adjustment to suit me and all was fine after that.

It's nothing wrong with the brakes, just adjusting the levers to suit the rider. the screw only adjusts when the lever hits the piston (in non geekspeak)

 

[mullan2304]

Deep space 9

If you aren't confident pumping the pistons in closer to the disc then you should bleed them and put more oil in them. It worked a treat on my set and in the end there was almost no play in the lever, it bit instantly. It can create a problem of rubbing or locking up though. Just force more fluid in untill you recive the desired effect.

 

[exvitermini]

Look at the lever from the side. If you look in, past the lever you should see a small allen key screw. Wind it in and that makes them bite earlier. Alternatively wind it out to make it bite less.

If the bike is new it will take a bit for the pads to bed in anyways

**edit** there have been a few threads on this already, try the 'search' function next time

im sorry to say that YOUR WRONG stpzeroridah and that really wont help... that adjusts where the leaver blades sit...it may make them bike earlyer,but do you want your levers 20cm in front of your bars?

 

[S U R E]

I 2nd exvitermini.
The grub screw on the lever only moves the lever in/out to adjust for short/long fingers. It dose nothing for the pads.

It sounds like pistons are to far away form the disc. causing your lever to move too far befor it dose anything. I had the same problem and i did this: I took the caliper off and looked at the pads and pumped the lever a bit. just enugh to move the pads in a tad, not so much that they stick together or you cant put the caliper back on the disc. Thay should have lost that play in the lever now.

Try that. It helped me.

 

[DH_DUDE]

maybe invest in some avid carbons or 7's. i run carbons, so sweet. They come with the lever pull adjuster on the lever and also has the pad contact adjuster...as you are all on about pads these solve the problem.