Smashed Bandit caliper gives top mechanic a nasty shock
Experienced mechanic Dr Tepi was shocked by this badly bodged Bandit
Kevin Hollingsworth, or Dr Tepi to his friends, prides himself on getting bikes working properly and not allowing riders on the roads with dangerous faults.
The Doncaster Motorcycles man has 23 years of experience and has got used to certain bikes having certain problems. So the first thing he looked at when he got a Suzuki Bandit in recently was the rear caliper. And it was a shocker. He said: “Sticking pistons are a common problem. Corrosion in the caliper causes the seals to apply pressure on the piston and stops them returning properly. “That’s normally pretty straightforward to fix. It’s a case of replacing a couple of seals and topping up the fluid. It would take about an hour to do and cost £50. “But on this bike there was another issue which made things a little more complicated. And dangerous. The caliper had been attacked by a previous owner, or maybe a know-it-all from the pub to address the binding brake issue, but it’s been done roughly which has broken the caliper body. “It looks like someone has used a big hammer when what was needed was gentle heat and lubrication to ease the pins out. The corrosion then needed to be cleaned off. “The damage to the caliper means the pads could have worked loose and fallen out. Or, worse, the pads could have been dislodged and locked the wheel. “The owner had just bought the bike and knew nothing of its history. He brought it to us to check over properly. Good job he did. “The most cost effective option here was to replace the entire unit with a reconditioned unit at a cost of £120, which in the grand scheme of things is a small price to pay.”
‘The pads could have worked loose and fallen out’