When I press my front brakes down the first cm or so doesnt do anything. Then I can feel the lever kind of jump down another cm or so and the brakes jerk a little bit. When I first got it, the brake lever and brakes were smooth all the way through? What do you think is wrong?Also when I shift gears it sounds kind of rough, not really clanky, just rough. Is that because I have a dry clutch system as opposed to a wet clutch?It is a 2005 Suzuki gs500f
Sounds like you have bubbles in your brake line. You need your brake fluid replaced and rebled. GS500s have wet clutches. When was the last time you changed your oil? Do you check your oil level often? when you check are you making sure the bike is straight up and down? Has it always sounded this way? This bike has a 6 speed constant mesh transmission which means all gears are always making contact with another gear so that will make a bit of noise from the friction.
I agree with the sticking caliper. I had that problem once and it would slowly release enought to not drag the pads. If I hit the brakes it would pop and then it would apply the front brake. I had to be extra careful in town and really depend on other people to NOT make stupid mistakes until I got it fixed.
Most probably a Bad master cylinder. A rebuild kit is about $20. A New Replacement about $110. Aftermarket,,about $50~60 (Ebay Item # 110258862836 or 140238831617) ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,... Adjust the clutch properly ---starting at the bottom adjuster on the throwout mechanism,, and change Motor Oil to either Mobil1 20w-50 V Twin or Amsoil MCV 20w-50
Sounds like a stuck piston in the brake caliper to me... Not something you want to mess with, since 70% of your stopping power is in the front brakes... Or, could be that your pads are so worn out and in need of replacement that your master cylinder is nearly empty of fluid...Id replace the apds, and while at it, I would be checking the pistons to see if they are moving freely of not... Could be air too, but I would wonder how the air got in there if it was fine before and you havent done anything to it yet... I wasnt aware that bike had a dry clutch...Sounds like you are low on oil and probably need it changed desperately... Heck, if you thought you had a dry clutch, chances are youve never changed the oil either...
No it will not cause any harm to the bike, as long as you keep it upright on the rubber. When you you get an unexpected red, WHY was it unexpected? Had you been watching it green for several seconds, and it suddenly changed to blue or purple or some odd color? Maybe you need to slow down at intersections? If you get an unexpected color tomorrow just grab the clutch lever and lean on the brakes! You may be able to downshift a couple of gears, but be careful you don't cause the rear tire to lock up and low side your bike at the light. Didn't they tell you how to do that in your Basic Riders Course?
