Nearly destroyed a piston pushing it back with a metal screw driver (didn’t read up on that first!).

Need some leverage that will not destroy what is left of the pistons and am struggling for inspiration – what do you use?

Cheers

wedge of wood?

Leave a set of old pads in, then push them back with a big screwdriver

Put the screwdriver on the other side, i.e. push against the backing of the pad so it pushes the other pad which pushes the piston.

I used a plastic tyre lever by sliding it across so both ends of the lever were protruding and then used both hands to force it back , worked fine on my new shimanos.

Old pads and a piston reset tool from xtreme ( big flat tire lever)

Nice one – cheers

I use a tool for pushing pistons back in from superstar, it’s made of metal but so are brake pads! When experimenting with a sticky piston I had limited choice and used a ring spanner so I could lever against the other side of the caliper. Are the ceramic poisons really that failure? Or is it only if you use something sharp and pointy like a screw driver.

A park piston press with the pads still in or a plastic tyre lever.

I’d be questioning the state of the seals if it takes that much effort to retract the pistons. I swapped the seals on an Elixir and the difference was astonishing.

Take a wooden clothes peg apart, and you instantly have two opposing wedges that fit neatly through most top mount calipers (minus pads, obviously).