Hello and welcome to 30-Minute Motorcycling , the podcast where we're talking two-wheelers from motorcycles to scooters and other things on two wheels all in under 30 minutes . And this episode will be a little bit special because here we're talking about brake pads . But wait , didn't we already cover brake pads in episode 18 ? Yes , we did , but this time I'm going to share a personal story of mine . Specifically , it's the story about the very first time I attempted to change brake pads and how it didn't exactly go according to plan . I've decided to share this story with you for a very good reason . You can learn a lot about mechanical repair from books , online courses and even DVDs , but some of the greatest lessons can only be taught from real life experiences , and this experience slash ordeal that I had , changing brake pads for the first time taught me not just one , but two invaluable lessons that I still use to this day . But before we get into it , you need a little bit of a context , because this story takes place all the way back in 2021 .
Speaker 1Back then , I decided that I wanted to learn a brand new skill set , so I decided to enroll in a one-year job training course to become a certified automotive technician , or , in layman's terms , a mechanic . Now , I should mention that during my time there , I worked on cars and only cars , but please don't get caught up on that , because this story and the lessons I learned could easily apply to any kind of vehicle , whether it has two , four or four hundred wheels . Anyway , a big part of this course involved doing a lot of practical exercises , such as changing brake pads . In fact , changing brake pads was the very first thing I was asked to do while I was still at that school . As far as repair jobs go , this is one of the easier ones . Even better , the school that I went to had some very handy step-by-step instructions , complete with illustrations , that showed in great detail how to change the brake pads . It sounds so easy , right ? Just follow the instructions carefully and , as they say in the UK , jobs are good , right ? No , far from it . As it turned out , even though I had all the resources at my disposal I could possibly need , this was a lot more difficult than I imagined . Of course , these days I can change a pair of brake pads easily and quickly , but remember was back in 2021 , and at that time , this was a completely new experience for me .
Speaker 1At that time , I had never attempted any kind of mechanical repair job , but although it wasn't too difficult getting the old brake pads off , putting the new ones on was a completely different matter . In order to get the old pads out , I had to apply the brakes . This would then push out the old brake pads , making them easier to remove . But now I had a problem . The brake piston that is the thing inside the brake caliper that pushes the brake pads towards the brake disc was still protruding out , and while it was still protruding out , it was impossible to get the thicker , newer brake pads in . I had no other choice but to push the piston back in again , and I had absolutely no idea how to do that . No matter how hard I pushed , it just wouldn't budge , and that was the straw that broke the camel's back . So much so that I slammed the spanner I held in my hand against the top of the tool chest in anger and stared at the brake caliper . In fact , I kept staring at it for what seemed like hours , while a handful of not-so-nice thoughts rolled around in my head . Ugh , I'm such a screw-up . I'll never get this right . What made me think I could do this ? Dammit , what the hell am I doing ? Wrong ? Wrong Wrong . Do you know what I did wrong and , more importantly , how I solved this issue ? This scenario is actually quite common , but fortunately there's an easy solution . Remember those old brake pads ? I took off . I figured out that I could have used those as a wedge of sorts to push the brake piston back into the caliper and , presto , I could now install the new brake pads . Huh , what a handy trick . But surprisingly , that trick was not one of the lessons I learned from this experience , although we're about to dive deeper into those now .
Speaker 1The first and , above all , the most important lesson to take away from the story is this Let your first time take time . Sure , has a nice ring to it , doesn't it ? But it's true . By far the biggest mistake I made here was that I rushed through the entire thing . The way it went in my mind at the time was that I had to change the brake pads as quickly as possible . So that meant that I was needlessly stressed out . And once again , I need to remind you that this was the very first time I picked up a wrench . And think about this when you did something for the first time , regardless of what it was , was it completely flawless ? Probably not right . So what would be the point of rushing through something you've never done before ? Wouldn't it be better to give yourself plenty of time , read through any instructions you might have carefully and complete the job with a great sense of yeah , I did it . The job might not get done as quickly as you would like it to , but don't let that discourage you . The second time you attempt the same job , you'll do it a little faster and better . Then the third time will be even faster and better than your second time , and so on . But either way , don't rush it Once again . Let your first time take time .
Speaker 1The second lesson to take away from this story is that nothing good comes from complaining . You know that saying about how quitters never win . Well , complainers never win either , and what happened to me certainly proves it . Did complaining solve the task at hand ? No , did complaining give me any ideas about how ? Did complaining solve the task at hand ? No , did complaining give me any ideas about how I could solve the problem I had ? No , did complaining make me feel better ? No , not by a long shot .
Speaker 1Imagine if , instead of complaining about how I would never get this right , I would have replaced it with this thought Hmm , I can't push the piston back into the caliper with my bare hands . Hmm , let's see . I wonder if there's anything I could use to make it easier . It would have required some detective work on my end , but at least it's better than simply giving in to the frustration and almost giving up . If you feel like you're not getting anywhere , it's better to stop what you're doing , step back and look at the big picture again , and if you have to take a break , every problem has a solution . And that concludes this episode about how something good came out of the very first time I attempted to change brake pads . What's funny is that , despite my initial frustration at a simple repair job , it really was all uphill . From there . I just got better and better , and one year later , in 2022 , I'd become a fully qualified automotive technician .
Speaker 1It certainly was an educational year for me , not just from what I read , but also from experiences like the one I just shared with you . These real-life experiences taught invaluable lessons about how to improve my mechanical skills that no book , video or Google search could teach . And because of their invaluable lessons , I've decided to compile all of these stories into an e-book . Five Mechanical Lessons I Was
Taught From Real Life Experiences .
Speaker 1Inside this e-book you'll discover more about another time I was spared from more aggravation doing a much more complicated repair job , and it was all thanks to a tool that you normally don't keep inside of a toolbox . You'll also get to read a remarkable story that I've dubbed the Tale of Mr Bottle , a story that truly is stranger than fiction . I couldn't make up something half as strange if I could . If you'd like to check out these stories , the link to the e-book is inside the episode description in this podcast . Alternatively , you could visit wwwdualwheeljourneycom and download it from the e-books section . Thank you all for tuning in and until next time . Happy trails , no matter what or where you ride .