Cable Rear Brakes. "How to make them work"

blasternoob

New Member
Feb 7, 2008
137
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0
Fort Oglethorpe, GA
When I began my quest for cable rear brakes that actually worked, I couldn't find that one article that "put all the pieces together." I'm gonna attempt to do that here. I now have awesome rear brakes! Its wheelie time.

Step 1. BUY THE AFTERMARKET "SHORTY" REAR CABLE. (This is non-negotionable!)

Step 2. Buy a new set of rear pads. (Suggested but not required)

Step 3. Get the back wheels off the ground by placing the quad's carriage on something.

Step 4. Remove right rear tire. (Just do it; Makes the procedure so much easier; "4" 14mm nuts.)

Step 5. Remove rear brake caliber ("2" 12mm bolts) along with the old cable that runs all the way up to the front brake.

Step 6. Open up the rear caliper by removing the "3" allen bolts. We will call the entire assembly inside the caliper that you are now looking at "The mechanism." It is essentially just one piece. Keep it together. Run the adjustment all the way in on the cable; there is a pin that slides out on the inside to release the end of the cable from the mechanism. Remove the entire cable and discard.

Step 7. Remove the brake pads. Clean the caliber out with "carb cleaner" THOROUGHLY! Remove the old gasket and discard; use a new gasket for reassembly.

REASSEMBLY
Step 8. Put the "skinnier" brake pad in its place first. Bolt the caliper back on. Put the new cable on at the rear brake-pedal first. Make sure your spring is still working on your rear brake pedal. Screw the new cable all the way into the caliper, then back it out about 2 turns. Reattach the cable end to the mechanism.

Step 9. The "thicker" rear pad must line up with the pin sticking out of the mechanism. Grease the sides of your new "thicker" pad; insert it into the caliper. To get the pad in place, align the pin on the mechanism with the brake pad, and push the pad all the way in until it hits the rotor. You can now slide the mechanism back out as we'll need to adjust it.

ADJUSTMENT (The stuff I read said that the mechanism is "self-adjusting," but no such thing happened for me. The following is what worked perfectly for me.)

Step 10. By now, on the mechanism, you've probably noticed a white plastic cap that clicks, and on the other side a little rod that sticks out. Slide the white plastic cap out of its place, then turn the rod clockwise until it stops. This will screw the rod into the mechanism, thus making it shorter. Push the plastic cap back into place.

Step 11. If you were to put the mechanism on now, and the cover, the rod would not be making contact with the pad. The trick is to turn the plastic cap clockwise, thus making the rod longer before you bolt the cover on. How much do you turn it you ask?? That's where the fine-tuning comes in. Just turn the cap a couple clicks, then slide the mechanism in place, and place the cover on. With the rear wheels suspended, you can spin them, and you'll immediately know if you've made the rod too long, thus locking the rear wheel. When this happens, screw the rod back into the mechanism a little, and try again.

Step 12. (I would get the rod adjusted as close as I could b/f I started doing a lot of adjusting on the cable part.) After your brake pedal is working, adjust your cable at the caliper to remove any "looseness" in the cable. Snug your cover up with the "3" allen bolts. Don't forget to put ur rear wheel back on!! :) Enjoy!

(I hope this helps and doesn't add to the confusion.)
 
sweet i needed this, i just got a caliper with the shorter cable yesterday and it needs new pads, thanks for the info I:I
 
I would definitely recommend getting the short rear brake cable. It simplifies the rear brake system and makes everything work better.

Good write-up.
 
what if you have a trenga rear brake?

There is sooo much play in it right now, that the pad doesnt even put pressure on the rotor when you slam on the brakes

how can i fix this?
-add fluid and bleed brakes?
 
I'm not sure what a "Trenga brake" is. My brother's Blaster had the hydraulic brake system and his back brakes were not working. He had to buy a rebuild kit for the caliper and new pads. Did rebuild kit, bled brakes and now he can lock the back tires. His hydraulic brakes kick butt!
 
Nice write-up! I'll be using it soon enough. One question though...what exactly is the purpose of the "shorty" rear cable? I think I know the simple answer is to make the rear brake work better, but more specifically, how does it do that?? If I was considering extending the swingarm, would the "shorty" cable be an issue?? There sure seems to be plenty of slack in the stock cable.
 
the shorty cable eliminates the parking break. the whole problem with the set up was you would put the brake on, the front half going to the e-brake streched and makes it do you cant stop well. The shorty goes just to the foot lever, so when you pull on the cable it just stops.
 
I just did my rear brakes and now they work great..You guys really saved me a lot of time and money with the "How To sections" that have been posted..Now I have all the kids with 4 wheelers bringing them over to work on them cause they see how well mine runs thanks to all of you..Appreciate all the help..Kurt
 
hah, thats kick ass. thats how it is in my neighborhood too. I got a friend with an XR100R that beats the sh*t out of it, and i have to fix it all the f*cking time. He f*cked it up pretty bad this time, he needs a clutch cable, and shifter, then ill probably be fixing it again. Same with kids and bikes, except for one friend, i f*cked his breaks up by accident, i over tightened them.
 
yea mine worked great untill the rebuild than once i put em on as soon as their the slightest bit tighter than i can do by had they lock right up wtf? i clean the sh*t out of em
 
If I get the cable then I can dump all the parking brake crap? I currently have no rear brakes and when I push the pedal I see little if any reaction from the cable. The guy I bought it from said "it just ain't right"..lol he said he takes it apart a lot and cleans it up and it works for "awhile".
Now that I have read this section, I want to ditch the whole parking brake assembly anyway.
I found a boat load of cables on ebay. My son wants to get an extended swing arm..cool enough, but then I am guessing I just pick the cables on ebay that show they are for +3 , +4 etc?
By the way, just for the record...this DIY section kicks f'n ass! I'm a big do it yourselfer..some call it cheapness...I call it why pay for something I can do myself and get some enjoyment and save a few bucks!! I am down with that anytime.I:I