XS 1100 SG WEAK front brakes

[Bonz]

Guys,

My 1980 XS 1100 SG has the most pathetic excuse for front brakes that I have seen! The lever is firm, and I have re-built the calipers (took apart and cleaned pistons, under the seals, etc on both calipers and new pads), cleaned the MC (yes, the spooge hole too, etc) and the whole nine yards.

The only things I haven't done in front is rebuild the MC or put on new brake lines.

Funny thing is, the rear brake is awesome and has the best feel of any bike I have owned. I haven't done a thing to the rear except clean the MC and flush/bleed out the old fluid. Stil loriginal rear pads, albeit getting worn some. Bike has 13,600 total original miles now and overall runs fantastic.

When I got the bike in mid-April, the front pads were original and had fork oil contamination. They REALLY sucked then, but the effort required now after the rebuild, etc is still tremendous if I want to slow in a hurry, and they feel like wood. New pads are broken in well, etc so what's a guy to do?

Thanks in advance.

[Paintman]

Brakes

Hey Bonser the thing that helps the most on these old bikes is a good set of Galfer brake lines and a set of Cross drilled rotors esp in the Rain if you want a set of galfers i just got my set from
cyclebrakes.com. was 143$ with shipping.good stuff i have 3 sets of these on my other bkes .Hope this helps.

John

[Bonz]

So you are saying the old lines are absolute crap by now and probably always were, and I ought to quit trying to polish a terd and just get the stainless lines?

Sounds like a good idea....

[Paintman]

Exactly

they flex to much and also break down over time and the linings will clog up the caliper.

John

[Bonz]

Thanks guys.

[snowdog51]

mc

my brakes were like that i went tru the mc and they were no better then i put a used zx900 nija mc on , then steel lines now two fingers brakes . you won't beleive how bad the stock mc is untill you try something else.

as ever bill

[Ken Talbot]

Originally posted by hbonser
So you are saying I ought to quit trying to polish a terd and just get the stainless lines?

Yup, that's exactly what we're saying. You won't believe the difference.

BTDT

[Bonz]

Other than the Ninja 900 MC that was mentioned, would just about any MC work as a replacement, which ones work better than others, etc...

Thanks!

[Crazcnuk]

The original lines work fine. From a safety stand point it;s likely a good idea to change them, they are ~30years old.


That being said I never change mine, unless I have an issue, which I never have.

The biggest problem, I see, is that if you still have the original pads, they are probably rock hard. Try just new pads first.

You CAN try taking them out and sand off the surface with sandpaper, on a flat surface. It's just the outside that gets really hard.

Crossdrilling is ok, but will not make your brakes work better, except in the rain or in extreme on/off braking. They will cool slightly better.

[TopCatGr58]

Hey HBonser,

The XS's front MC is a large sized piston to drive the dual calipers. Also remember that Yamaha's mirrors are reverse threaded....IIRC on the right side which might be different with other brands of MC. IF you don't want to trust your old MC or REBUILD, you can get a new large capacity one from MikesXS or PNM for about $80.00.

Mine was so messed up 8 years ago when I was doing my rebuild, I got a used one from a wrecker, think it was for an XJ, low profile, and I had to pull the lever all the way to the grip before it would generate enough volume and pressure to drive the front brakes...the XJ is smaller since it is only for 1 caliper!

I then put on SS lines and now I only have to pull the lever 1/2 the distance, and they are very tight. I think if Snowdog had put the SS lines on FIRST, he probably wouldn't have felt the need to change his MC to the Ninja!?
T.C.