Whyte E-180s new owner

Jamze

Well-known member
Jun 30, 2020
391
720
Oxfordshire
I find on SRAM brakes I have to advance the pistons quite a bit (wheel out) to get them feeling firm enough. Don't have to do this on my Shimanos.
 

Peter1979

Member
Jun 7, 2021
75
28
South West uk
I find on SRAM brakes I have to advance the pistons quite a bit (wheel out) to get them feeling firm enough. Don't have to do this on my Shimanos.
Yeah I had to do this in the end. Fit new pads, advance the pistons a bit and it felt much better. Seems like I can only get around 60% pad wear though and they feel shite again and end up fitting new pads to get it to feel good again.
 

Healy

Active member
Oct 4, 2020
342
243
Forest of dean
Changed the pads in mine the other day. They are now shuddering sometimes. Did it last night when I took my son out. Out this morning over pedalabikeaway so hopefully be better. Not missing work
 

Peter1979

Member
Jun 7, 2021
75
28
South West uk
Having issues with my SRAM code R brakes at the moment.
Can't seem to get it to feel good for more than a ride before needing to be bled again. The bleeding edge port in the rear caliper doesn't seem to have a noticeable click on the connection as the front and I'm wondering if air is getting in somewhere.
On my ride today the bake brake lever pulled to the bar mid way through the descent and I had fitted new pads pretty recently.
Not sure how to approach this now as I can't seem to fix it. I guess I'll have to get it in to a workshop.


On the plus side, had a great ride anyway, got soaked and filthy but it was good fun..
 

Jamze

Well-known member
Jun 30, 2020
391
720
Oxfordshire
If it's not clicking, then I suspect it's not connecting properly, so you could be sucking air in. Is it the SRAM kit? I had a cheap one that didn't work too well. The seal on the connector can get damaged too.

I prefer the older design on my REs TBH. Simpler.
 

Peter1979

Member
Jun 7, 2021
75
28
South West uk
If it's not clicking, then I suspect it's not connecting properly, so you could be sucking air in. Is it the SRAM kit? I had a cheap one that didn't work too well. The seal on the connector can get damaged too.

I prefer the older design on my REs TBH. Simpler.


The thing is, I use the same bleeding edge connector for my SRAM guide brakes and it connects fine to that. Also, it connects fine to the front brake on the same bike, so it must be the caliper connection?
 

Peter1979

Member
Jun 7, 2021
75
28
South West uk
Well the bike is back from the workshop and brakes feel good for now. Mechanic said it must be my bleeding edge adaptor as he had no problems bleeding it. 🤷🏼‍♂️

On to next issue.

Ride at risca today, and started to get a dodgy noise from rear wheel. On inspection it seems the rear brake caliper was ever so slightly fouling the rotor. I can't quite believe that this can happen to be honest. It is crazy close to the rotor. The rotor now has marks on it from where it is wearing and I'm left wondering how I can stop this. I've tried to realign the caliper and due to the pads having worn more on one side the brake now pulls the rotor towards the caliper. I might swap out the pads for fresh ones and rest the pistons.
 

Peter1979

Member
Jun 7, 2021
75
28
South West uk
PXL_20211016_120739054.MP.jpg


Also, trying to figure out if this is a scratch or the makings of a crack in the rear rim.
 

Mikerb

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
May 16, 2019
6,628
5,104
Weymouth
Well the bike is back from the workshop and brakes feel good for now. Mechanic said it must be my bleeding edge adaptor as he had no problems bleeding it. 🤷🏼‍♂️

On to next issue.

Ride at risca today, and started to get a dodgy noise from rear wheel. On inspection it seems the rear brake caliper was ever so slightly fouling the rotor. I can't quite believe that this can happen to be honest. It is crazy close to the rotor. The rotor now has marks on it from where it is wearing and I'm left wondering how I can stop this. I've tried to realign the caliper and due to the pads having worn more on one side the brake now pulls the rotor towards the caliper. I might swap out the pads for fresh ones and rest the pistons.
the pistons will adjust to the worn pads if you reset them. Push all pistons fully back after cleaning and lubing them. Caliper clearance to rotor is only c 2mm on all brakes on my bikes.
 

Peter1979

Member
Jun 7, 2021
75
28
South West uk
the pistons will adjust to the worn pads if you reset them. Push all pistons fully back after cleaning and lubing them. Caliper clearance to rotor is only c 2mm on all brakes on my bikes.

It's at the point where the caliper meets the post mount adaptor. I'd say there is less than 2mm clearance on mine. I'll get a picture uploaded in the morning.
 

Jamze

Well-known member
Jun 30, 2020
391
720
Oxfordshire
I'd say it's < 2mm on mine, nearer 1mm. You mean the gap between the adapter and the rotor? I run my pads as close as poss so much closer than the gap to the adapter.

Is it rubbing all the way round the rotor or just one point?

Rear caliper clearance.jpeg
 

Peter1979

Member
Jun 7, 2021
75
28
South West uk
PXL_20211017_070221119.jpg
PXL_20211017_070237351~2.jpg


I've moved the caliper away a bit now so it's more similar to yours but now the rotor isn't aligned to the caliper/pads evenly so it pulls the disc towards it and the gap is too thin to stick a finger nail in.
It's marked the rotor all the way round.
I just find it odd that this is even possible, to have the caliper touch the rotor at all.
 

Jamze

Well-known member
Jun 30, 2020
391
720
Oxfordshire
Looking at the position of your pad spring, your outside pistons are sticky so pulling the brake on is pushing the rotor to the left, until it touches the caliper mount?

I use one of these to get sticky pistons moving in Codes/Guides.

Piston release tool SRAM Guide
 
Last edited:

Mikerb

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
May 16, 2019
6,628
5,104
Weymouth
You may also have a loose rear hub....the lever thru axle does not look properly closed and is also very vulnerable to being grabbed on the trail.
 

Mikerb

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
May 16, 2019
6,628
5,104
Weymouth
You may also have a loose rear hub....the lever thru axle does not look properly closed and is also very vulnerable to being grabbed on the trail.
As I mentioned before you need to clean and lube the pistons and set them fully home into the calliper. All hydraulic brakes are self adjusting to compensate for pad wear. Use the block in the post above or improvise to get each piston extended in turn. Use IPA on an ear bud to clean the piston then dot fluid to lubricate it....repeat until it returns fully into the calliper easily. Repeat the process for each piston in turn. Clean everything with IPA before refitting the pads.
 

Peter1979

Member
Jun 7, 2021
75
28
South West uk
I'll get this done.
I guess I'll have to change pads, as one side has worn considerably more than the other. I feel like the bike shop should have noticed this and mentioned it as they apparently did a 'caliper inspection' when it was in.
 

highpeakrider

E*POWAH Master
Aug 10, 2018
693
568
Peak District
I always had heat and vibration from my rear brake.
To cure it I removed the sensor and remove the brake adapter, refitted so that it was aligned over towards the wheel which gave more room to align the pads, put a small amount of grease on the connecting surfaces.

On the brake bolts I removed the top flat washer so the pads sat slightly lower, also in the cups i put a thin layer of grease.

The rear brake has been golden since , no vibration and only get a bit of squeal when wet.

I think the way the adapter is mounted can cause the caliper to-be to far over on the frame.
 

Peter1979

Member
Jun 7, 2021
75
28
South West uk
Back with problems with my brakes again. They've been away for repair and we're fine for about 4 rides and already back brake is pulling to the bar.
Got a new bleed kit now and the new bleeding edge adaptor clicks in place so it must be that the epic bleed kit adaptor just isn't a good enough fit. Anyway, bled the brakes, still feels shit.

To be honest I'm fed up with these brakes. They should t need constant maintenance, and it's not a good feeling always thinking about wether your brake will survive a ride.

So I'm going to get shot if them and swap for saints. Get the LBS to fit them.

Question is will my current rotors be fine with saints and will the current adaptors be fine too? Currently the shifter and dropper lever are hung from the code brakes. What do I need clamp wise for these to fit to the bar as presumably they won't mount direct to the Shimano levers (currently got SRAM GX shifter and Whyte dropper).
 

Healy

Active member
Oct 4, 2020
342
243
Forest of dean
I’m swapping mine for Magura mt5 with hope rotors soon. Ask your local bike shop who you use to advise you. Hi use ace in Monmouth who supplied the bike, they are great
 

Peter1979

Member
Jun 7, 2021
75
28
South West uk
I’m swapping mine for Magura mt5 with hope rotors soon. Ask your local bike shop who you use to advise you. Hi use ace in Monmouth who supplied the bike, they are great

I've dropped my local bike shop a message asking about cost to fit and what I might need.
Is it cheeky/not the right thing to do to supply the brakes myself and get them to fit them?
 

Peter1979

Member
Jun 7, 2021
75
28
South West uk
Got a quote of 45 quid for fitting and extra 50 if motor needs dropping so basically 100 quid as motor will need dropping due to hose routed through. 😳
Looks like I'll be doing it myself for that sort of money

Also, just spent around 2 hours bleeding my brakes using the neighbour's SRAM pro bleed kit as opposed to my epic bleed kit and brakes actually feel pretty decent now. Perhaps it was the shitty epic bleed kit that was the problem? (And also my shitty mechanical skills 😫)
 

Mikerb

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
May 16, 2019
6,628
5,104
Weymouth
Got a quote of 45 quid for fitting and extra 50 if motor needs dropping so basically 100 quid as motor will need dropping due to hose routed through. 😳
Looks like I'll be doing it myself for that sort of money

Also, just spent around 2 hours bleeding my brakes using the neighbour's SRAM pro bleed kit as opposed to my epic bleed kit and brakes actually feel pretty decent now. Perhaps it was the shitty epic bleed kit that was the problem? (And also my shitty mechanical skills 😫)
the main difference in quality between bleed sets are the syringes rather than the fittings. Dot is pretty corrosive and on the less expensive bleed kits the seals on the syringes are more likely to deteriorate over time.
 

Peter1979

Member
Jun 7, 2021
75
28
South West uk
Bit of an update.
After bleeding my SRAM brakes with my neighbours SRAM bleed kit (opposed to the epic bleed kit I had) the brakes felt good for almost 3 rides.
In a moment of sheer madness I bought a pair of Shimano saint brakes. £350 later and around 5 hours of work to fit them I took my bike for a ride round FoD today and am absolutely pleased with my decision.

It's a revelation to have a brake that just seems to work, with short lever throw and a good bite. They feel a lot more powerful than the SRAM and I need to get used to not grabbing the lever too hard!

What a pain in the ass it was to fit the rear brake though. It's tight in that motor housing. And getting the battery back in was driving me mad. In hindsight I should have paid the money 🤣


Superb ride at fod today and got some of my quickest times purely from have more confidence in the brakes. Bike was lovely today.
 

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