KaisoArt

People often Velcro their their brakes "on" when leaning their bikes against a support or using a Click Stand. It prevents the bike from rolling and falling. In fact, there are levers with lock buttons just for this purpose. However, I've only seen this done with cable brakes. I will soon be getting a bike with hydraulic brakes. In a shop I expressed that I wished I could get locking levers on hydraulics. They don't exist, so I said "I'll just have to use velcro." Someone in the shop said that would be bad for hydraulics. I can't see why. I works for mechanical disks. Thoughts?

FBinNY 

There are a number of variables, but with a bit of common sense relating to how long and how hard you lock them, you shouldn't have any worries.

I suppose the guy at the shop was worried about possibly forcing oil to bleed past the seals. But that would depend on the design. Some brakes (may) use diaphragms, so there wouldn't be any sliding seals to bleed. But even if there were, a few hours locked lightly enough to hold a bike would cause far less bleeding than a single hard braking.

Since the brakes are able to handle hundreds of hard braking events, what you would do by gently locking them for a while is trivial by comparison.

fietsbob

You can also use a strap around the down tube securing the wheel ,keeping it straight and nor rolling ,

if that hydro brake thing worries you . though mostly unfounded..

a thick rubber band looped from being hooked over the valve stem, over the down tube , and back to the valve stem

is cheap and effective, works, even if you have Mudguards..






....

Andy_K 

This seems like an odd claim for the shop to make. One common piece of advice for getting air out of the lines is to zip tie the lever closed and leave it over night. Apparently the extra pressure encourages air bubbles to migrate to the top. I'd be interested to hear any explanation as to what the potential concerns are.

fietsbob

low pay = rapid staff turnover, so people without experience take the jobs.. and learn stuff

and move on when they can no longer pay the rent.

kevindsingleton 

That's not even an insult! Lame!

fietsbob

So Kevin, do you live on a minimum wage job? , with no benefits , and have every one say "I can get it Cheaper online"..?

maddog34

if that were true, then every time you apply the brakes, they would be damaged.

i'd advise avoiding whoever told you that bad rumor, whenever possible.

EXTENDED PERIODS of hard-applied force might cause issues with the seals in the calipers taking on a new bend... those seals are why the caliper releases the pads from the discs when you release the levers, btw... the ONLY release force if the disc is dead-true, actually.... the seals are square profile, and kinda stick to the pistons... flex when brake applied, return to original shape when released.

KaisoArt

Before this goes to far. Sorry for any confusion. It was NOT a shop mechanic that made the statement. Just another person hanging around who heard my comment. I did not want to debate it there, but wondered if there was some actual reason this idea had been born. It seems to me hard braking on a loaded touring bike would be more strenuous on the system. The only argument for it, is that no one makes locking hydraulics--only cable brakes. I suspect that is due to market needs and/or the big design change for such a niche product.

fietsbob

Only locking lever I'm aware of, is for tricycles... to keep it from rolling off, since it wont fall over..

MePoocho

KaisoArt,

Think about all the passenger jet airliners. They all have landing struts that are nitrogen pressure over hydraulic fluid. They share similar seals as disk brakes in automobiles and your cycle. These planes everyday hit the ground with considerable force and they sit on the ground with their gross weight on these struts with no problems.

So, I agree with FBinNY in that a little pressure on you brake lever for a period of time is no issue. But should you notice some fluid weeping out around your caliper it would be an indicator of a problem with seals. I then would suspect an inferiorly designed caliper or one that has lots of miles on it and needs attention. The 'weeping' is the key indicator of a problem developing. It is better to find it with your cycle sitting static than during hard braking while in the dynamic mode.

Go for it............

JonathanGennick 

As well, so called "parking brakes" in passenger jets are often mechanisms that keep the hydraulic pressure on while a plane is parked. I'm sure the OP doesn't need to worry about velcro-locking a bicycle brake.