On 6/3/2024 at 3:30 PM, lineaway said:

I guess you have never used the water trick. Which is the best way to get your brakes working in just a few minutes. Just over heat your rotors and hit them with a bucket of water. Instant sharp brakes.

Never used it before that first time mentioned in my original post. But it's not something I want to do before every trial.

Anyway, last trial I used an old set of pads and didn't use the brake cleaner. That worked. For the future I shall continue to scuff the pads with abrasive, but wipe them off with dry paper and put them straight in. I'll still use brake cleaner on the discs because I use a lot of WD40 for cleaning, but I'll abrade them afterwards, not before. Hopefully that should see the job OK.

I too enjoy using wd40. But I always cover my brakes. Funny how the cause of bike issues always slowly comes out in these threads.

On 6/7/2024 at 2:30 PM, lineaway said:

I too enjoy using wd40. But I always cover my brakes. Funny how the cause of bike issues always slowly comes out in these threads.

Part of the reason I am so particular over cleaning pads and discs is because I use WD40. I don't think the WD40 is the cause of the problem as I think you are implying.

Wd 40 will totally destroy your pads.

I agree with lineaway, I have seen and fixed more than one buddies brakes because of contaminated pads over the years and most often its an oil based product, including but not limited to WD40, that got on the pads.  Comments are always something like, but its just a little over spray (of what ever the product was), and no matter how much cleaning, heating, or other attempts I have tried to get it working again in the end only proper cleaning of the disk, new pads, and a good heat cycle and water quench has been the fix. 

My exp and 2 cents for what its worth. 

Edited June 11, 20242 yr by jonnyc21

Returning to this subject, I changed my bike and the new-to-me bike is just the same. It came with brand new Apico sintered ceramic pads so I changed to a set of red Galfer that I had lying around. Still the same. This is getting very frustrating.