Rear MC Question

[pshaw]

I bought this 81 MNS and have rebuilt her. The only thing left is the rear brakes. The rear MC is not original, or at least it doen't look like what's pictured in the tech tips. I have two other mc that are from xs1100's, which too are slightly different from each other. One has two hoses coming out and the other only has one. I'm going to use the one with just one hose because I know where that hose goes to and it's already been rebuilt. My question concerns the push rod going from the brake pedal to the mc. The one that was on the old one was held into the mc by a C-clip. I took it off but haven't a clue as to how it worked because all that was in there was a shallow hole with a rounded end. No rubber, no compression, nothing. So now my question is how does the rod supposed to connect on to the mc? Does it just rest against it? Is it held together somehow? What does the rod supposed to look like in case it had the wrong one? Please shed some light so that I can get this bad boy on the road. Thanks,
Phill

[John]

Hey Phil

The 81 MNS has a linked braking system like your XJ has. There should be a proportioning valve attached to the rear M/C, and a brake line going to the right front caliper. Examine the brake system on the XJ, and you'll see how the system is set up. The push rod shouldn't be held into the M/C by a clip. It just sits in the depression in the M/C piston, and there is an adjustment on the push rod that takes up the slack where the push rod meets the piston.

[pshaw]

Thanks John. I guess the previous owner changed up the front brakes as well. I think the other M/C I have is for an XJ so I'll see if I have (or can get) the rest of the parts needed to restore the linked system. I assume it is the better way to go. Thanks again.

[DiverRay]

You may want to leave the brakes the way they are, as far as linked/not linked. Yamaha put the linked system on so people used to cars could just push on the pedal, and they had stopping power. Most motorcycles have a rear and front brake system, and most riders learn to use them as such. Putting it back to "stock" would be a personal preference, but I like being able to ride the rear brake slightly going into a corner.
Ray

[pshaw]

Good point. I decided to leave them, but it was because I'm wanting to ride this bike that I bought almost a year ago...and then sell it. I got most of it together, but now I need to go to the junk yard and get a new rod (the one that pushes in the M/C). The other one is way too long. Thanks for your response.