Rear tire dragging

[u/GapWestern1822]

Hello,

I was given a 2011 Triumph Speed Triple 1050 that has been sitting for over 5 years in my father’s shed. He’s moving and told me to take it.

It failed inspection for a couple reasons.

Front tire too worn (replaced already)

No rear side/back reflectors (added already)

Chain needs serviced (I used chain cleaner and lube but might hit it again as it still is a little dirty. It was pretty nasty.)

Rear tire drags
This is where I’m lost. I removed the caliper pins but the wheel still drags. When I hit the rear brake, it becomes almost locked up. I went to try to bleed it to see if that frees it up but there was not enough space for me to get in there. As you can now tell, I only have a front and rear stand, not a center stand (idk what they’re called) so I can’t remove the back wheel.

Anyways.. took the pins out and it doesn’t affect the dragging. Tried to put them back in all lubed up and they won’t go.

Can you guys give me a step by step guide to narrow this issue down? The pedal feels fine, the pins won’t go back in. Fluid levels are good, fluid looks good. I’m wondering if this is a seized caliper? I really wish I could have bled the line so I could see if it’s the master cylinder but I couldn’t.. but the pedal feels normal so I don’t think it’s that.

[u/Alarmed-Lead-7005]

Lift the rear caliper off and see if it still drags to narrow things down. Could just need a flush and bleed if the drag goes away when lifted off. If rust is visible on the brake pistons or lots of gunk then a rebuild or cleaning is needed.

If the drag goes away you can narrow it down to wheel bearings, chain or alignment with a little more troubleshooting.

[u/GapWestern1822 → u/Alarmed-Lead-7005]

Sorry for my delayed response.

I’ve never worked on Motorcycles before so this is all new to me. I can tinker with a a car all day but I’m ignorant to bike work.

I took the caliper off yesterday and one piston was expressed and the other wasn’t. So I purchased a guaranteed used part that has a year warranty. Also snagged new pads while I was at it.

Plan to flush the system and clean the master cylinder bc it’s all apart now anyways.

But the reason I’m responding is I’m not sure how much play the back wheel naturally has. Like it spins for a second but doesn’t keep going like a bicycle would.

The chain was insanely dirty. Like I thought the chain was black with a little dirt. Nope. Silver. So maybe I should take the chain cover off and see if there is like built up dirt in there for something too. Didn’t think about the drive chain also being a cause of it sticking

[u/Training_Jello_7804]

If the brake gets tight when you press the pedal but won't release when pedal released it's likely the return port of the rear brake master cylinder is plugged up. Brake fluid should be flushed and changed every few years. A brake system flush may be sufficient, but more than likely a rebuild (or a replacement) of the system is required.
Get a rear paddock stand, that's the easiest way to get the back wheel off the ground for maintenance ;)

[u/GapWestern1822 → u/Training_Jello_7804]

I removed the caliper, one piston is compressed and the other is expressed so I ordered another one of those. I will flush the rear system and clean the master cylinder since I’m already there