Caliper piston removal

After reading a thousand threads about stuck caliper pistons, i feel like sharing my 10 minutes method. Drill a hole in the bottom of the piston without damaging the caliper. With your threadcutter tool - cut a good strong thread ( i used 10mm) and simply let the threadcutter lift the piston out of the caliper. No warming, cooling, hammering special modified tools, compressed air, grease niple replacement, drilling holes in caliper etc etc. MAKE SURE....that you remove the pointy sharp tip of the tool, in order not to damage caliper. Especially a good method when the piston is so far back that it is blocking the brakefluid channel....... Voila....end of story.

Here's my method and I've done several this way. Run a compressed airline into the inlet. Odds are the puck on that side will pop out. This leaves the cross over port open and no way to get air pressure on the offside puck.
Jam a plastic golf tee into the cross over port opening. Hold it securely with a phillips screw driver. You don't want your fingers in there. Pressure it up now and the offside puck should start to move. You may have to soak it with rust remover and apply the air on and off but don't give up it will come out.

htown16 said:

Here's my method and I've done several this way. Run a compressed airline into the inlet. Odds are the puck on that side will pop out. This leaves the cross over port open and no way to get air pressure on the offside puck.
Jam a plastic golf tee into the cross over port opening. Hold it securely with a phillips screw driver. You don't want your fingers in there. Pressure it up now and the offside puck should start to move. You may have to soak it with rust remover and apply the air on and off but don't give up it will come out.

Click to expand...

that's exactly what I do ,done it loads of times not just on Norton's ,always works no drama at all

You can also use a grease fitting and grease gun instead of the compressed air. I've done both. The grease gun method is messy but safer and more controllable. Bad part is you must soak the caliper for hours and properly degrease before use.
BTW, I use DOT 5 silicone fluid and will never go back.

Jaydee

+1 - the grease gun method. And when reassembling use rubber grease to stop the pistons from sticking and dragging the pads on the disc, which might cause the bike to self-steer itself off the bitumen.

I came across this thread using search, as I had a stuck piston.
I didn't care for the drilling method - too much risk of drilling through and damaging the calliper.
Grease sounded really messy, so ditched that idea.
I really liked the sound of using compressed air, but there was a problem: I don't own a compressor.
However, I do own a push bike pump for use with both Schraeder and Presta valves.
I attached the pump using the Presta option to the bleed nipple, covered the cross over ports with a couple of fingers, and pumped lightly.
The piston popped out easily with no mess and no cost to myself.

Or easier yet, use the bike's existing hydraulic system to push the pistons out. Just block the first one that moves, before it pops out and breaks the system - concentrate on the sticky one.

Requires a bit of forethought, I know.

I use the compressed air method and works a charm. Like others stated above watch your fingers. :shock:
Cheers,
Thomas