Adjusting brakes

[Matts6345]

Hello,
I have a basic manual brake caliper set up on my go kart. No matter what I do I cannot seem to find that perfect spot for the brakes they either lock up or do not stop at all or will stop the first couple of stops then have no stopping power at all. I am looking for any pointers on this. I cant seem to find anything really via internet searches.

 

[OzFab]

Are the pads or caliper new? New pads need time to bed in before they work 100% efficiently &, until then, they'll be very touchy...

 

[plyfly#14]

I have a similar issue - fairly new, but they don't ever lock up. They do slow the kart but from speed, they are basically useless. At some point I will measure stopping distance, but for now, they suck! How much is your kart with rider vs size of brake pads. May not be large enough.

 

[KartFab]

Ok, if we are talking about the generic brake caliper, then you need to adjust them so the pads are almost touching, or even slightly dragging against the disc.

You need leverage to stop. Properly adjusted, I can make my 22" tire go kart skid to a stop from full speed. The disc size matters 8" is good for larger tires, and 6-7 is good for smaller tires.

If it is an old caliper, you may need to rebuild it or grind down some worn areas with a dremel.

The bullet shaped steel pin should have s nice rounded nose, and the lever should also be smooth where this bullet shaped pin pushes against it.

So back go leverage. There are two holes in the caliper lever. Putting the brake rod in the hole furthest out will give the best leverage.

What about the brake rod? If it is a brake cable, or thin throttle cable, it may be stretching out on you.

Again, back to leverage. Where does the brake rod connect on the pedal? Do you want a small amount of travel with lots of force,? If do, put it low on the pedal. If you want less braking force, but with more travel, put it higher up on the pedal.

If it has dirt/grime on it, this could also affect braking power.

Hope that helps.

 

[KPD]

I am not sure if this article quite addresses what your issue is, but it has a lot of good information about optimizing your brakes. Hope you are able to solve the problem.

http://www.kartpartsdepot.com/MAXIMIZING_YOUR_BRAKES_p/033.htm

Chris