tokenhire.TakeThisOut@yahoo.com wrote:
>The calipers were rebuilt by a local backyard mechanic
What do you mean by "rebuilt"? Did he replace the square rubber o-ring and
hone out the cylinder bore? Did he replace the rubber dust seal? Did he
lubricate the two pins that the caliper halves slide on?
http://houseofmotorcycles.bikebandit.com/partsbandit/ShowSchematic.asp...eptId=1
#2 piston seal
#17, #18 pin
>He claims that because the brakes are single caliper
>devices that the brakes are working as they should be.
Well, those single piston calipers are certainly not the highest technology,
but there are a bazillion cars on the road that have single piston calipers.
One factor in disk brake performance is the material the front disk is made
of.
Honda knew that they would have a hard time selling a motorcycle with a cast
iron disk which would quickly rust.
The delicate sensibilities of rich elite yuppies would be offended.
So Honda made the disks out of slippery stainless steel that wouldn't rust.
The yuppies came back with complaints that their disks turned brown or yellow.
You can help the stainless steel disk a bit by using a scotchbrite pad on it
and then clean the disk with aerosol brake cleaner.
If the look of swirling scratches on the disk upsets you, go with the
existing groove pattern, turn the wheel while holding the pad against the
disk.
Another factor is the friction material the brake pads are made out of.
If your shade tree mechanic friend used aftermarket brake pads with metal
chips imbedded in a softer material, chances are they are harder and have a
lower coefficient of friction than the original equipment pads.
A harder brake pad means that you need to apply more force to the lever to
stop the bike.
A softer brake pad requires less force and the front forks will dive suddenly
under light braking.
I think your best solution is to find a softer pad and accept quicker wear or
buy OEM Honda pads and pay the price.
You can research the catalogs and ask the slack-jawed "experts" behind the
parts counters and talk to nose-picking "technical representatives" of all
the brake pad manufacturers, but I doubt if any of them would be able to tell
you what the "mu" of their brake pads are.
"Mu" is the Greek letter that symbolizes coefficient of friction. Lower "mu"
indicates a harder brake pad material.
One thing for sure, don't try to use any sintered metallic pads, they will
tear up your disk PDQ. Sintered metallics are actually harder than the
stainless steel disk, so they chew it up.
>I believe the master cylinder should be replaced (there were some
>shadows of fluid around the resevoir lid seam when I got the bike and
>the lid is slightly bowed out).
So buy the rubber accordion gasket that goes in the top of the reservoir. As
fluid level in the reservoir drops, the accordion expands to keep the brake
fluid over the intake hole. You can also buy a rebuild kit for the master
cylinder if
it leaks pressure while you're squeezing the lever.
If you had to buy a new master cylinder, it would be too expensive. But there
are aftermarket master cylinders for less than $200. You just have to know
whether your present cylinder has a 9/16ths inch piston or a 5/8ths piston.
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