My brakes are crap! All the pistons move ok there were bent pins now straight,the back is better than the front,so is the brake reservoir big enough or am I just expecting too much?
Will
In what way are they crap... In relative terms..? i.e. Comparing 1982 standards with 2012? or do they just not function correctly..?
On my V1000 the first couple of junctions are pretty scary... I commute on a '93 FJ1200 with 2005 YZF 'R1' "Blue-spot" calipers fitted... The front brake would easily flip the bike over if applied hard enough...
Getting off that and onto the Hesketh is quite a difference to accommodate... The front brake is working fine, but it takes a LOT more pull to work and has less feel than the blue-spot setup... It takes a few miles to get the hang of it... After the near 160 mile run yesterday, I was coming to terms with it nicely...
So the ride into work today on the FJ was interesting..!! ;D
So... Details please... Do you have the standard V1000 setup? Or Vampire setup (larger pistons) or something else completely..?
Miti
Just the STD brakes,that's why I posted,the back brake is good and I would expect the twin discs to be at least as good,I have seen some v 1000 with the calipers on the back of the forks?
First thing to do is bin the original brake hoses if you still have them. Surely nobody still has these fitted after thirty years?
The replacement hoses that Mick had made up are in black and look OK but the difference in feel is tremendous. As in "there is some feel"! EBC / Green Stuff pads are also quite good and again, don't use the originals.
Has somebody fitted the wrong brake master cylinder at some time? Check the piston/bore size and hopefully somebody reading this will remember what it should be. 15mm rings a bell but I am probably wrong.
Switching the calipers to the back of the fork legs reduces the pendelum effect which sharpens up the steering. And it works!
Mine has "nearly new" (about 5 yrs old) hoses throughout, but I'll be replacing these and flipping the forks around at the same time... Most major bike manufacturers started fitting the calipers behind the fork (thus reducing the tendency for the front wheel to "flop" into slow bends) about the same time that our bikes were being built...
I find that HEL provide a really good service for brake hoses and the latest retailer I've used to source them are "Furore Products". They make the hoses to your specification, with prices based on overall length... You can see their stuff here: Hel Brake Hoses @ Furore (http://furoreproducts.co.uk/7_hel)
I concure with the EBC pads... I go with the Kevlar ones and steer clear of the "disk-eating" "HH" variety...
All that said, I found an enormous improvement with my front anchor just from replacing the brake fluid and bleeding it up properly... ;D
And whilst we're on about brakes... Can the front lever be adjusted so it's closer to the h/bars..? I struggle to reach mine comfortably... Only bike I've ever had this problem with...
Miti
Thanx for the tips,I also find the lever span too much so filed some alloy off to shorten the span
Fit the later Brembo 16 mm master cylinder, they come with dog leg levers and improve the feel.
If that's not enough and you want to keep it looking standard, then fit P9 calipers.
They have a 48 mm piston and are standard fiiment to the Vampire.
Andy
Thanx Andy I will look in to your suggestions,do you know what bikes had them fitted as STD?
Guzzi 1000 and Spada from '85 on... Laverda Jota (very late ones) . Retailers like Motorworks (http://www.motorworks.co.uk) and Gutsibits (http://www.gutsibits.co.uk) sell spares such as seal kits and (teflon coated) pistons for them if you find some badly treated examples... The pad pins and covers, bleed nipples and dustcaps are all available, so repairs and maintenance shouldn't be a problem...
I think the later ones were described as "Goldline" and were actually painted gold...
HTH
Miti