Today my hope e4 brakes that I ordered from Amazon came, but when I tested the brakes I found that the pistons wouldn’t retract. I tried changing the brake pads because the originals looked dirty and had some brown dust on them but it didn’t help, I’m worried that maybe these brakes were Returned by somebody because they were broken and then shipped to me but I’m not sure. If anybody knows how to fix this or if these were broken when I first received them I would appreciate it. Thank you
by 3B14
6 Comments
You already know the answer.
did you squeeze them without anything in between? are they your first hydraulic brakes?
just return them.
The pistons can be stiff if they have been sitting for a long time. I highly recommend keeping the piston lubricated and exercised before you shorten the hose and bleed them. Have you tried pushing the pistons in with a tire lever? Are they seized? I had a lazy piston on mine, and a few cycles and they started moving smoothly. Best brakes I’ve ridden FWIW.
Hope’s open source piston exerciser tool, that you ca 3d print is super helpful too:
[https://www.hopetech.com/open-source-tools/](https://www.hopetech.com/open-source-tools/)
You shouldn’t have tested the brakes without a block in there or mounted up. You’re gonna have to open the reservoir and push the pistons back.
They are not broken. You just have no idea what you are doing.